Crazy Champions League conspiracy set to hand Max Verstappen 2026 F1 title

Goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin's stunning goal for Benfica in the Champions League earlier this week may well hand Max Verstappen the 2026 F1 drivers' championship, according to one bizarre fan conspiracy theory.

Trubin scored in the 98th minute against Real Madrid from a free-kick having been sent up due to his team needing one more goal in order to rescue their Champions League season.

Jose Mourinho's side were already 3-2 up against the 15-time European champions, but were outside of the top 24 teams in the league phase of the competition, facing an early exit. But Trubin's goal pushed them above Marseille and Pafos and into the qualification round of the Champions League.

It was also the first time that a goalkeeper has scored in the Champions League since 2023, a goal for Ivan Provedel against another Madrid team in Atletico de Madrid.

And that statistic has led to a bizarre tongue-in-cheek conspiracy theory featuring four-time F1 world champion Verstappen.

"The last time a goalkeeper scored a header in the Champions League, Max Verstappen won the title," a post on X read.

"Today, a goalkeeper has once again scored a header in the Champions League."

Of course, Provedel's goal did come in September 2023, so factually the statement is correct, Verstappen became champion a couple of months later. But linking the two sports together might just be one of the most obscure title omens that Verstappen has ever received.

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Will Verstappen win the 2026 title?

Red Bull are starting a new era of power unit production this year, in partnership with Ford, and where they are in the competitive order will heavily depend on how this goes.

2026 is the first time since their inception in the sport that Red Bull have started a season without long-time team boss Christian Horner, with Laurent Mekies taking over from the Brit back in July.

On top of this, Red Bull no longer have Helmut Marko in their team, after he opted to retire at the end of 2025.

But amid all of this change, Red Bull still have Verstappen, and his supreme talents alone are enough to turn Red Bull into title contenders, as evidenced by 2025 when Verstappen came within just two points of title success in an inconsistent RB21.

The Dutchman will be desperate to win back the crown that he claimed four times consecutively between 2021 and 2024.

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