Ex-Porn Star Mia Khalifa Switches Premier League Allegiances, and Fans are Split

Mia Khalifa appeared to ditch her Premier League favourites, West Ham, as she saw Watford overturn a two-goal deficit against Arsenal in Sunday’s fixture.

The American internet personality, 26, was at Vicarage Road stadium as part of a deal with their primary shirt sponsor, online sportsbook Sportsbet.io.

During the warm-up, she gave the finger to the Arsenal players and shouted, “F*** you Arsenal.” The ex-porn star wore a Watford jersey throughout the game and filmed herself wildly celebrating the home side’s comeback to a 2-2 draw. “I can’t believe I had the chance to see first hand Watford play Arsenal, even though it was a draw, it was electric,” she wrote after the match in a sponsored post from their locker room.

Khalifa’s antics raised many eyebrows, since she’s been known as a huge West Ham fan for quite a while, posing pitch-side during a West Ham game and wearing the Hammers’ colours.

She revealed in a 2018 interview that she’s been rooting for West Ham because of her love for Green Street, a film about West Ham hooligans.

Reacting to a series of messages from heartbroken West Ham fans, she tweeted of her Watford flip: “Business, not personal. Rooting For My Irons Today! Let me live and enjoy EPL, it’s all new and exciting to me.”

😂😂😂 business, not personal. ROOTING FOR MY IRONS TODAY!!! Let me live and enjoy EPL, it’s all new and exciting to me 😭⚒♥️ https://t.co/J5xcn1C84R

— Mia K. (@miakhalifa) September 16, 2019

In a separate tweet, she admitted to supporting “whichever team is playing against Arsenal”.

During a January West Ham-Arsenal clash, Khalifa called out Arsenal midfielder Guendouzi in a viral X-rated tweet for diving on the field: “F***ING P***Y,” she wrote in all-caps as the game was going on. “I’ve seen you go down more in this match than I did in 2014.”

The self-deprecating comment referenced a brief stint in porn she did in late 2014 to early 2015, which earned her both worldwide fame and infamy. The actress quit the industry in January 2015 following massive outrage over a sex scene in which she wore a hijab, and has since then established herself as a sports commentator and social media influencer.