FIFA World Cup stars take on social media with hilarious pranks

Now that the World Cup's over, lets take a look at the lighter side of this beautiful game as these World Cup stars share an off-the-pitch chuckle by pranking fellow teammates and members:

Top scorer James Roriguez takes time out from Colombia to prank his team-mate in a hotel room:

Rodriguez and his team-mates manage to chill out and have fun by finding time to play pranks on Pablo Armero in their hotel room. The 22-year-old, with Juan Cuadrado and Carlos Bacca, announce on a vine that 'they're going to scare Armero', before jumping out on him from behind the curtain and frightening the life out of him.

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England stars celebrate masseur Paul Small's 50th birthday by dumping him into a tub of iced water

The England squad played a prank on the team's masseur on Tuesday afternoon by 'treating' him to a quick dip in the ice bath. Players of the England squad, Steven Gerrard, Glen Johnson and Joe Hart tied masseur Paul Small to a plastic chair before leading him towards the bath and throwing him in.

Captain Gerrard posted the clip to his Instagram account and said: 'All the lads wishing our masseur Smally a happy 50th birthday with a quick dip in the ice bath!'

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Liverpool frontman Daniel Sturridge also recorded the prank and joked via his Instagram: 'Smally you got a phone on ya mate?'

Another video shows him helplessly left in the goal mouth as members of the England squad prepare to practice penalties. Sturridge narrates the prank, he said: “It’s going off, we got the old man tied up here. We have him in bondage right now.”

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English keepers Forster and Foster share a laugh as the former's drive along the green doesn't turn out  quite as planned: 

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Jimmy Kimmel shows his audience just how much some football fans know about their beloved sport:

He asks them what they thought of US star Landon Donovan's World Cup performance. Donovan was famously cut from the United States team before the World Cup even began. Most people seemed to think he was actually part of the squad. 

“He took one to the nose and he kept playing,” one fan told the show.Another participant told the faux reporter that he “cried” at the tricycle kick Donovan did.

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TV presenter Mario Sergio Conti was caught red-faced when the 'Luiz Felipe Scolari' he interviewed was in fact a doppelganger

Columnist and TV presenter Mario Sergio Conti thought he got lucky when he boarded a flight from Rio to Sao Paulo only to discover that Luiz Felipe Scolari, the current Brazilian coach widely known in Brazil as Felipao, was sitting next to him. The man answered some of his questions and an interview was published on the website of two of the leading newspapers in Brazil where Conti writes occasional columns.

The problem was that the passenger at Conti’s side was not the real Scolari, but a look-a-like called Wladimir Palomo, who had gone to Rio to take part in a TV comedy programme – where naturally, he plays Scolari. “Everything was a huge misunderstanding,” Palomo told the BBC.

Conti's piece was published in two of Brazil's leading newspapers, who eventually discovered all was not what it seemed.

 

A linesman thinks on his feet  

Referee Joe Fletcher had to be consoled by Iker Casillas after he had the embarrassment of a handshake snub live in the players’ tunnel. The match official was forced into a comedy hand-through-the-hair bail out after a FIFA dignitary ignored his attempt at a handshake.

Fletcher tried to reach out to a FIFA delegate who was doing his pre-match handshake formalities before Spain's World Cup clash against Chile. Unfortunately, the FIFA representative didn't spot him reach out, and Fletcher immediately tried to save face by rubbing his head. But it was too late. The world had seen it, and even World Cup-winning goalkeeper Iker Casillas was on hand to witness Fletcher's sheepish reaction, much to the Spain international's amusement.

However, the official returned to shake Fletcher's hand as he laughed off the initial snub with good grace.

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Where's Mathieu?

During France's match against Germany in the World Cup quarter final, FIFA paired French midfielder Mathieu Valbuena with the tallest possible mascot who was less than half his age, but almost as tall as him. Valbuena stands at just 5 feet 6 inches (1.67 metres) tall and revealed that for Marseille colleagues Samir Nasri and Franck Ribery used to poke fun at his height during his time at the Ligue 1 club. A hilarious but unintentional prank by FIFA officials.

 

Coach Sabella's instructions seem a little 'dry' to Argentine superstar Ezequiel Lavezzi as he squirts water onto his manager's head

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