Liverpool FC defenters try painting

Liverpool FC’s Joe Gomez and Andy Robertson brush up on their art skills while taking part in the first episode of AXA’s new interview series
The players are asked to paint portraits of their teammates for each other to guess, challenging them to try a new skill

AXA UK may not have discovered the next Picasso, but Liverpool FC defenders Joe Gomez and Andy Robertson certainly displayed some abstract art skills while filming the opening instalment of ‘AXA Player Portraits’, a new six-part video series.

The series challenges a mix of Liverpool FC players and staff to try their hand at portrait painting while being interviewed by LFC fan Paul Machin, a presenter on the popular YouTube channel The Redmen TV.

Joe and Andy both said they hadn’t picked up a paintbrush since school, although Joe claimed he’d recently used one to do some home decorating - something close friend Andy said he doubted!

Joe, whose mum is an art teacher, and Andy were tasked with painting a portrait of one of their teammates while chatting to Paul about their childhood and their careers. At the end of the session, they had to guess who each other had painted.

During the chat, Andy talked about the sacrifices his parents made when he was growing up, driving him all over the country to matches. The players also discussed their pre-game rituals and the importance of impressing new Head Coach Arne Slot.

While creating his masterpiece, Andy said: “It’s a shocking painting but I’m enjoying myself – the person I’m painting won’t be happy!”

AXA’s Future You campaign explores things we can do to benefit our future selves, such as taking out health insurance. Joe and Andy were asked to share things they’re doing now that they’ll be grateful for in years to come. Joe said he was being more disciplined with routines to benefit his mental wellbeing, while Andy said he was looking after himself better with a healthy diet.

This has been a really fun series to work on with Liverpool FC. Putting players and staff out of their comfort zones with a paintbrush and easel has created interesting results and stimulated great conversations.

Some of the paintings have been pretty impressive, although others perhaps less so! AXA is all about giving customers confidence to progress and our ‘Know You Can’ message is at the heart of everything we do.Joe and Andy certainly took to this challenge with confidence.

Sharon Mintah, Campaigns & Sponsorship Lead at AXA UK

Watch the full interview and find out if the players managed to guess the subject of each other’s works of art on AXA UK’s YouTube Channel here.

AXA UK became LFC’s Official Insurance Partner in 2018 and subsequently became Official Training Kit Partner in 2019 and Official Global Training Partner in 2023. Two training facilities – the AXA Training Centre in Kirkby and the AXA Melwood Training Centre where the women’s team is based – bear the insurer’s name. Earlier this year, AXA UK agreed a five-year extension to the partnership that will last until at least 2029.

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About AXA UK

AXA Insurance UK plc registered in England and Wales under registered number 078950 and authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority under Financial Conduct Authority registration number 202312. Registered office is 20 Gracechurch Street, London, EC3V 0BG.

AXA UK is part of the AXA Group, a worldwide leader in insurance and asset management, with 147,000 employees serving 94 million clients in 50 countries. In 2023, IFRS revenues amounted to Euro 102.7 billion and underlying earnings to Euro 7.6 billion. AXA had Euro 844 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2023.

In the UK & Ireland, AXA operates through a number of business units including: AXA Insurance, AXA Health and AXA Ireland. AXA UK & Ireland employs around 10,000 staff.

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AXA Player Portraits – defenders give painting their best shot