Inside Jamie Carragher and Rio Ferdinand's explosive 'feud' after brutal World Cup draw dig

Jamie Carragher has reignited his long-running feud with Rio Ferdinand, who hosted the 2026 World Cup draw. The Liverpool legend took a swipe at his former England team-mate on social media when a clip surfaced of Ferdinand calling himself "a man of the people" while addressing the tournament's soaring ticket prices.

The ex-Manchester United defender also addressed concerns over a proposed 'dynamic pricing' system, which some fear could push certain fans out of the market for match tickets. "I am a man of the people in terms of I'm from a place where we were always hoping for things to be accessible," Ferdinand said.

"I know that the people behind the scenes at FIFA are aiming and working to something like that now, whether they get there for that remains to be seen. I think we have to be conscious of that and I think FIFA are definitely people who are conscious of that, the powers that be there.

"I think we can look at every industry, every sector, we have that conversation about things and I think it's more about making sure that there's a product that's super elite that matches what's on the pitch and then everyone can feel that it's justified taking time out and working hard to go and get tickets."

In response, Carragher replied to the clip with three laughing-face emojis and three money-bag emojis, highlighting perceived hypocrisy given Ferdinand's immense wealth. By the next morning, Ferdinand had hit back, posting a photo of himself holding a newspaper featuring a doctored front page with his face on it and the headline "Man of the People," while playfully tagging Carragher.

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Spats between the pair are nothing new. Over the years, the two Premier League icons - both now well-established media figures - have traded both subtle and not-so-subtle digs, whether during live broadcasts or on social media.

Their most recent clash centred on Carragher's controversial comments about the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). Back in February, the 47-year-old sparked backlash by suggesting the competition was not a "major" tournament.

He argued that Mo Salah's Ballon d'Or prospects would not be significantly boosted by winning the AFCON - unlike a European player winning the Euros - because of the tournament's perceived lower prestige. Ferdinand, though, publicly rejected that view.

"The majority of people out there would say [what Carragher said] and I don't think that's right," he said. "I think that's an ignorant thought process because the [Africa Cup of Nations]... if you go to Didier Drogba, Abedi Pele, Samuel Eto'o, Riyad Mahrez, Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane they will tell you we have to win this."

He added: "I understand what Jamie is saying but I don't agree with it. But I understand that is the majority's fault and it's not right."

Carragher hit back on Instagram, calling Ferdinand a "clown" and accusing him of misrepresenting his comments. "I didn't say that, you clown - stop playing to the gallery like you always do," he wrote.

A few days later, Ferdinand took another jab at Carragher after tennis legend Boris Becker called the Liverpool legend "uninformed" about Bayern Munich manager Vincent Kompany. After Bayern drew Bundesliga rivals Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League round of 16 last season, Carragher claimed that Kompany's future at the Allianz Arena would be in jeopardy if Bayern were knocked out.

"Bayern have not convinced me at all yet," he said. "Now they are playing against Leverkusen, who dominated Bayern in the Bundesliga recently. It's a 50-50 tie. In the end, I'm predicting Leverkusen (to advance). If Kompany does not win, there will be many question marks about his appointment."

Bayern fan Becker snapped back on X, reminding him that Die Roten were in fact very content with Kompany at the helm as he said: "Jamie is NOT well informed at all". Adding fuel to the fire, Ferdinand interjected, saying: "Boris… he's having a bad couple weeks. Let him off."

A year earlier, Carragher had branded Ferdinand a "poor man's Virgil van Dijk" and suggested he didn't belong in the debate over the Premier League's greatest-ever centre-back. During Liverpool's 4–1 win over Luton, Micah Richards captured Carragher's animated reaction to Van Dijk's equaliser from the CBS Sports studio.

"Look at the colossus, look at him, look at him! A marvel of modern science," Carragher beamed. "He is the best centre-back the Premier League has ever seen, by a mile."

Richards then asked how Van Dijk compared to other legendary centre-backs like Ferdinand, John Terry, Sol Campbell and Tony Adams. "JT could play alongside him, I would allow that," Carragher replied. "Ferdinand was a poor man's Van Dijk."

The dig followed earlier accusations of hypocrisy and grandstanding between the pair over Saudi Arabia's growing influence in modern football. In recent years, the Saudi Pro Leaguehas lured a string of high-profile players with enormous salaries and transfer fees, prompting widespread claims of sportswashing as the country seeks to reshape its controversial global image.

Speaking on his FIVE program, Ferdinand took aim at Carragher for refusing to condemn former Liverpool team-mate Steven Gerrard after he took the reins at Al-Ettifaq. "Jamie. Jamie Carragher. Where are you man? I heard a lot of talk, a lot of negativity about Saudi. Oh, Bernardo Silva, I can't believe it. It's a disgrace, it needs investigating, this league, etcetera," Ferdinand said.

"Steven Gerrard's gone. You used to carry his boots and his bag at Anfield to games. Your boy's gone over there and I've not heard a peep out of you. I've not heard how disappointed you are. I want to see him say "I can't believe Stevie's gone there".

However, Carragher would later hit back by accusing the 47-year-old of ducking questions over Qatar during the 2022 World Cup. "I never criticised Silva, Benzema, Neves or SG [Steven Gerrard]. I don't like Saudi trying to buy football like they golf," he wrote in a post on X.

"I knew you'd be all over it @rioferdy5 [three money-mouth face emojis], like you were in Qatar! That's why you refused to do the opening game for @BBCMOTD [because you] didn't want to criticise your paymaster."

Back in 2021, Ferdinand said he had to "mute" Carragher whenever the Liverpool legend discussed winning Premier League titles. "Carragher shouldn't really talk about winning leagues," Ferdinand said on his YouTube channel.

"He's never done it. He doesn't know what it means. He doesn't know how to do it - he's never navigated a team to that point to win a league. So I find it very difficult when he speaks with such conviction about winning leagues. He should stick to cup competitions, the moment he starts talking about winning leagues, I just mute it."

At the time, Carragher - who never won the league as a player - had been arguing on Sky Sports with Roy Keane about Manchester United's inability to mount a title challenge despite the return of Cristiano Ronaldo.

Hitting back at Ferdinand, Carragher posted: "No [Premier League title] for me but Sky like my opinions! No [trophy] in your career without [Alex Ferguson] and when you stopped winning PL at [Manchester United] you tried to move to Chelsea so please stop giving it the big MU fan one!"

Ferdinand later claimed he was simply trying to provoke a response, posting an image calling Carragher's comeback the "bite of the year."