As the upcoming series of Dancing On Ice announces its line-up, former British footballer Anton Ferdinand is one of the star-studded celebs who has signed himself up.
“I decided to sign up for the show because it’s a challenge first and foremost. I’m in a new phase of my life since retiring from football and the one of the things I’ve missed about playing is the structure it gives you,” Anton told talkSPORT radio.
He continued: “Dancing On Ice will give me that focus but I’m also doing it for my daughter because she loves dance and performing arts. My son always had my football to shout about so this will give my daughter and me something to share.”
As Anton prepares to show off his moves on the ice, we’re taking a look at his career and what he’s been up to since retiring from football.
Who Anton Ferdinand is and what he’s famous for
Anton Ferdinand is a former English footballer who was born in Peckham, Greater London.
Anton’s mother, Janice Lavender, is from Ireland, while his father, Julian Ferdinand, is from Saint Lucia.
From an early age, he showed a lot of promise and potential in football. However, he was also gifted in the singing apartment too.
In a 2005 interview with The Independent, Anton admitted he was keen to pursue a career in music when he was younger. However, his father, Julian, convinced him to go down the football route first.
“He said: ‘Have a go at football first. You can’t do football after singing but you can do singing after football,'” Ferdinand recalled to the newspaper. “That just made sense.”
Growing up, Anton said his dad “took me everywhere I needed to go for my football and when he couldn’t do it, my mum did”.
How old is Anton Ferdinand?
Born on February 18, 1985, Anton Ferdinand is currently 39 years old.
His star sign is Aquarius.
Where Anton Ferdinand lives
Anton currently lives in Essex with his wife, Lucy Cornell, who he married in 2016.
They share three children together – Flynn, 11, Lilah, seven, and Farron, two.
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Anton Ferdinand and his relationship with Rio
Anton Ferdinand is the younger brother of Rio Ferdinand, who is also a famous former footballer.
Like his younger sibling, Rio also played as a centre-back and has been regarded as one of the best-ever players to come out of England. Between 1997 and 2011, Rio played for England 81 times.
Rio retired from football in May 2015 and has since become a television pundit for TNT Sports.
Despite his older brother succeeding in football, Anton stated that didn’t mean he would also follow the same success.
“I’m not Rio,” Anton told The Independent. “It wasn’t a guarantee that I was going to make it so my football was always second to school. And then when I finished with school, football was the main thing.”
Rio and Anton also have three sisters on his father’s side and a brother and sister from when their mum got remarried.
‘I wanted it all for myself’
Speaking about looking up to his big brother, Anton told BBC Radio Scotland in 2018: “Seeing him do it and what comes with being a professional footballer, I wanted it all for myself. That’s why I worked hard as a kid and still work hard now. I’m still one of the last ones off the training pitch at 33 years old and want to play for as long as possible.”
“People would say: ‘Oh that’s Rio’s brother, let’s see what he’s got.’ But if I didn’t do something within the first five minutes that likened me to Rio, I was rubbish – because he was the best.
“He gave me advice. He wanted me to be better than him. Rio knew the pressure I was under. It made him proud that I was able to deliver when I needed to. When I became Anton Ferdinand, not Rio’s brother, it was such an achievement because I’d had it since I was nine years old. I felt like I’d done it and I half-relaxed.
“I’d go places and people would say: ‘That’s Rio’s brother, that’s Rio’s brother.’ Then all of a sudden, it was: ‘That’s Anton.’ I was playing very, very well. Rio was the best in the world at the time I was coming through. To come out of the shadow of someone who is the best in your position, it is a big thing.”
Who did Anton Ferdinand play for?
Throughout his football career, Anton Ferdinand has played for various teams. Before retiring, he played for St Mirren as a centre-back.
He was previously a part of the West Ham United Academy and also played for their senior team, West Ham United.
Anton joined West Ham aged nine and later signed a three-year professional contract in 2002. He played for the team until 2008, before moving over to Sunderland.
While talking to The Independent, Anton recalled the emotions he felt when walking out on the pitch for the first time as a player for West Ham.
“It’s a day I’ll never forget. I walked out onto the pitch, it was the first time I had ever been up there. I walked out of the tunnel and saw this big stand in front of me. Whoa! This is Manchester United. The Theatre of Dreams. I just thought, what’s going on here?” he said.
Other teams include Queens Park Rangers, Bursaspor, Antalyaspor and Reading.
Why Anton Ferdinand retired
Anton Ferdinand waved goodbye to football and decided to retire in 2019 after he was associated with a Premier League racism storm. It all kicked off when John Terry allegedly used racially abusive language towards Anton during a match.
After a four-day hearing, John was found guilty by The Football Association. In addition to being fined £220k and being banned from four matches, he lost his title as England captain.
After feeling unsupported by the authorities, Anton was left feeling disturbed by the fiasco and has since spoken out about feeling guilty for not speaking up at the time.
In 2020, Anton released a BBC One documentary, Anton Ferdinand: Football, Racism And Me, where he talked about the incident while expressing his dislike for football culture.
“I’d carried the burden of not speaking for nine years,” he said, adding: “I beat myself up about not speaking out.”
At the time, for not speaking up, the public continued to give Anton and his family abuse. His mum’s home was “targeted with missiles” while Anton got “sent bullets in the post”.
“I’m not ashamed to say it now – I was scared. If I had spoken about it at a certain time, that could have been the end of my career,” Anton continued.
“When it happened, I think I was on over 200 games in the Premier League. I think I played 10 more after the incident – and that was my lot. I had to go and play in Turkey, I came back and went down the leagues.”
What is Anton Ferdinand doing now?
Since retiring, Anton has become a mentor and ambassador for New Era Global Sports management.
He is an ambassador for the new Pears Maudsley Centre for Children and Young People, a mental health facility in London that launched in 2024.
“I talk openly about my own mental health struggles now. I was that person who was ignorant towards it before,” he told the Mirror in 2023.
Dancing On Ice starts on ITV1 in January 2025.
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