Neymar Hairstyle 2016
The year was 2016. The world was still spinning to the beat of “Sorry” by Justin Bieber, Pokémon GO had turned pedestrians into zombies, and the Brazilian football galaxy revolved around one man: Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior. But in that year, he was not just famous for his rainbow flicks, his sombrero dribbles, or his telepathic connection with Lionel Messi and Luis Suárez at FC Barcelona. No, in 2016, Neymar’s hair had become a secondary protagonist—a living, breathing, bleaching, fading, and shaving entity that captured the world’s attention almost as much as his goals.
In 2016, Neymar Jr. solidified his status not just as a global football superstar, but as a premier style icon. Throughout the year, his hair served as a dynamic canvas, reflecting his on-pitch triumphs and ever-evolving personal brand. The Olympic Transformation: "Going for Gold"
If you are feeling nostalgic and want to recreate this classic look, here is the cheat sheet for your barber: neymar hairstyle 2016
The world took notice. Teenagers from Tokyo to Toronto started asking barbers for “the Neymar undercut.” However, this look had a tragic expiration date. In the Champions League quarter-final against Atlético Madrid, Barcelona crashed out. After the final whistle, Neymar sat on the turf, his man-bun sagging, his face buried in his hands. The warrior had fallen. By June, as Brazil prepared for the Copa América Centenario in the United States, Neymar knew he needed a transformation. He needed to shed the skin of failure.
The year kicked off with a shock of white. On January 6th, Barcelona faced Espanyol in the Copa del Rey. When Neymar jogged out of the tunnel, the Camp Nou gasped. His once-dark locks were gone, replaced by a bleached, platinum blonde crop that looked like it had been struck by lightning. The press called it “the albino look.” His teammates called it “crazy.” His mother, Nadine, reportedly called him with a single question: “Você está louco?” (Are you insane?) The year was 2016
But that was the genius of Neymar. The quiet before the storm. Because as December turned into January 2017, we would later learn that the simple black hair was just camouflage. Behind the scenes, his dissatisfaction with playing in Messi’s shadow was growing. The man who changed his hair as easily as his socks was about to make the biggest change of his career: the move to Paris Saint-Germain for a world-record €222 million.
If 2016 was the year Neymar Jr. solidified his status as a global football superstar—capped by that historic Olympic Gold Medal in Rio—it was also the year he established himself as football’s preeminent style icon. While his feet were dazzling defenders on the pitch for Barcelona and Brazil, his hair was commanding just as many headlines off it. No, in 2016, Neymar’s hair had become a
This was his serious phase. The playful blonde was gone. In its place was a focused, angular assassin’s cut. On April 2nd, he scored a stunning solo goal against Real Madrid in El Clásico , running half the pitch, weaving past Sergio Ramos and Dani Carvajal, before slotting the ball past Keylor Navas. As he celebrated, he pulled the hair tie out and let the dark locks fall over his face. The image was iconic: Neymar as the warrior-poet, soft hair hiding a killer instinct.