Many fans dream of meeting their favourite athlete, or any pro athlete for that matter. Some think about what they would say, what they would do, what they would talk about. Nobody really anticipates meeting their favorite athlete only to be left with a bad taste in your mouth.

It’s fair that you could catch anyone on a bad day and they will react sourly towards you. That doesn’t make the athlete a bad person; it’s just human nature. There are also some annoying and rude fans who pester fans or bother them which turns them off from interacting with fans. Nobody would blame them for that at all. It should also be considered that athletes are very good at the sport they do, but talking and interacting with fans is a whole different thing. There are probably many athletes who are more reserved and don’t have natural charisma, making it harder for them to know how to handle these situations.

Taking all of this into account, there are still athletes who committed some disturbing acts while interacting with fans. We will leave it up to you to determine which stories are believable or not, but each of them have been shared on the Internet for others, like us, to enjoy.

This article is for those athletes who fans probably do not want to meet, based on stories other fans have shared about their encounters. Some of these stories might be much worse than others, but each of them are disturbing in some way. Whether it be questionable behaviour when fans ask for autographs, sharing “too much”, or just being downright rude to fans in public, here are fifteen disturbing stories told by fans who had negative encounters with a pro athlete.

15 15. Flight Attendant Doesn't Get MIKE TYSON Crackers Fast Enough

Mike Tyson is probably the poster boy for athletes who you do not want to meet in person. He has behaved questionably and illegally many times in the past and seems to think he can get away with anything. There was a story about how someone was sitting behind Mike Tyson on a first class flight several years ago.

Mike asked the attendant for crackers at the beginning of the flight. Apparently, the flight attendant was not fast enough for Tyson’s liking as he started complaining and going nuts over the lack of crackers 30 seconds later. Even when the attendant gave him his crackers, Tyson kept complaining and would not drop the matter. To make things even better, a lady nearby covered her ears and mouthed, “He’s angry – watch your ears.” Even though it wasn’t a direct encounter, I think the moral of this is that you should proceed with caution when interacting with Mike Tyson.

14 14. LEBRON JAMES Leaves A $10 Tip After Keeping Restaurant Open All Night

Many restaurants either stay open later or open early to accommodate their celebrity clientele. LeBron James took advantage of this in 2008 when he went to XO Prime Steaks in Cleveland. He stayed at the restaurant until 4am, well past its’ normal closing time of midnight. This meant that most of the staff was required to stay at work much longer than they probably would have wanted to, just to accommodate King James and his entourage. James spent $800 there, but only gave a $10 tip. This is particularly disturbing because he kept the staff there well past normal closing time only to give such a lousy tip for all their added efforts. He is making millions each year and spent $800 on food so surely it would not have been tough for James to show his appreciation a little more.

13 13. LESEAN MCCOY Leaves A 20 cent Tip

LeSean McCoy is currently a running back for the Buffalo Bills in the NFL, and has become one of the league’s best players since entering the league in 2009. In 2014, McCoy left only a 20 cent tip for a waiter at PYT, a Philadelphia burger restaurant. Despite having a salary of $7.6 million in 2014, McCoy felt he only needed to tip 20 cents on a bill that came to $61.56, and then sign it with a flourish. McCoy defended his decision in saying that he usually tips very well, but he had gotten “rude and disrespectful service” at PYT. Regardless of what happened, controversy erupted over the incident as many people were disturbed by this and felt that McCoy should have tipped more than a mere 20 cents. On the flip side of the coin, calling out McCoy on social media was not the smartest idea in the world either.

12 12. Chamillionaire Completely Snubbed By MICHAEL JORDAN

Michael Jordan might be one of the most beloved NBA stars in history, but some fans who have met him might not think as highly of him. Chamillionaire, a rapper, had the opportunity to meet Michael Jordan, who he said was his childhood hero. As most people would do when meeting their childhood hero, he asked Jordan for a picture. Jordan told Chamillionaire, “You know what, I tell you what, you pay $15,000 right now for a jersey from me and I’ll take a picture with you.” If you ask me, Jordan’s response was disgusting. Not only did he refuse to take a picture, which is his right, but he was downright rude to Chamillionaire. Jordan may give off the impression that he is a good guy and can do no wrong, but this story indicates otherwise.

11 11. TIGER WOODS Snubs A Kid

Maybe Tiger Woods’ involvement on this list isn’t much of a surprise. After all, if he sleeps around and hooks up with that many women behind his wife’s back, you have to start to question the type of person he is. There have been several fans who complained about Woods ignoring fans who politely asked for an autograph. One witness described a scene where a young kid approached Woods, and some of the other pro golfers, politely and asked for an autograph. While the other golfers happily obliged, Woods disgustingly looked the kid in the eye and refused before moving on. Another fan incident occurred at the 2002 Canadian Open where Woods was flown to and from the course by a private helicopter just to avoid the fans. When the man who provided security detail for Woods at the event asked for an autograph for a simple autograph, he was turned down.

10 10. KIRK GIBSON Shoves Fan And Knocks Item Out Of His Hand

Kirk Gibson is one of baseball’s greats during the 1980s, but never quite good enough to make it into the MLB Hall of Fame. Gibson has remained involved in MLB and was recently the Diamondbacks manager until 2014. While he remains active, there have been fans who met Gibson and left unimpressed.

One (former) fan of Gibson’s recalled an incident during the Detroit Tigers 1985 Spring Training. A fan was at Ft. Myers for the game and approached Gibson to autograph a baseball. The fan reported that he knocked the ball out of his hand and shoved the fan aside. Gibson also apparently said, “I don’t have time for this *crap*, leave me alone right now.” Sure, Gibson might have been preoccupied with something else. That does not excuse the disturbing behaviour of Gibson, as he could have politely refused to sign the baseball. Lance Parrish, Gibson’s teammate at the time, apparently agreed. He gave Gibson a dirty look and signed a few items for the fan, and then gave him a Tigers Spring Training Jersey. Thankfully there are players like Parrish who deserve respect and should be commended for the way they treat fans, especially after seeing how Gibson rudely interacted with a fan.

9 9. TERRY FRANCONA Hits On A Fan's Girlfriend

Okay, okay. Terry Francona is not a pro athlete; he has been an MLB manager since 1997 but is no longer a player. He is included on this list because is one of the best-known MLB managers and probably has tons of fans in his own right. Of course, Francona is unfortunately involved in a disturbing fan encounter. A fan emailed DeadSpin in 2012 with a story involving Francona, 53, and the fan’s girlfriend, 27, at the time.

Francona e-mailed the young woman half-naked pictures of himself, only wearing a towel (as seen in the picture shown above). DeadSpin verified the e-mail as belonging to Francona, who was recently divorced and free to pursue other women. Two problems here. He was chasing someone who already had a boyfriend, and wasover 20 years younger than him (roughly the same age as some of his own children). The fan knew his girlfriend had previously met Francona, and he discovered they had texted a little bit. The fan later found out that his girlfriend sent pictures of her chest to Francona, obviously leaving the fan more distraught. Francona later apologized for the incident, but it is certainly disturbing and does not portray him in the greatest light.

8 8. BEN ROETHLISBERGER Making Inappropriate Passes

Ben Roethlisberger is easily one of the best NFL QBs of this era, and will probably end up with his name at or near the top of Pittsburgh Steelers’ record books by the time he retires. “Big Ben” has a reputation for making passes at strangers, even if they did nothing to initiate or show interest. One person wrote about how Ben was driving through the streets of Pittsburgh on a motorcycle when he approached the writer’s sister-in-law. According to the writer, she is a busty woman who dresses in a way that accentuates her curves. He apparently asked her to sleep with him and wanted to see her topless, but she called him a name and walked away.

Some college students also shared how he would make “ridiculous passes” at girls much younger than him while getting very drunk. While many people make passes at people while drunk, it does not excuse his behavior. Pro athletes generally have personal conduct expectations to uphold by the league. I also don’t know what Ben was thinking during the first story described.

7 7. JOHNNY MANZIEL Thinks He's Still Worth Your Money

Johnny Manziel apparently thinks he is a lot better than he actually is. He was a star quarterback at Texas A&M and was drafted in the first round of the NFL draft in 2014. Manziel only spent two seasons in the NFL with the Cleveland Browns before being released primarily because of his persistent off-field controversies. It is mind boggling how Manziel can rationalize charging fans $50 for a simple selfie and $99 for a more professional photograph with him at a 2017 Super Bowl event. If you want his autograph, that will set you back an additional $99! He would also provide an inscription for $29, but it came at a maximum of four words.

Manziel has not been touched by any team in the NFL or the CFL and he is obviously desperate trying to make some money off his short-lived NFL fame. Making matters worse, some fans reported that Manziel was rude to the fans who did show up and appeared disinterested the entire time.

6 6. BATISTA Ignores A Kid's Drawing Of Him

There has always been much discussion over the type of person Batista is outside the ring. Well, there have been many people who have shared stories of their interactions with the former WWE star turned movie actor. Most of them have not been positive. One person recalled that Batista was signing autographs at an event and it was immediately clear he was not interested in being there at all. It got worse when a young kid gave Batista a drawing he had made, only for Batista to not even look at it and left it on the table. Look, it’s one thing to not keep all the drawings that you get. It’s another thing to not even pretend to care or even acknowledge that one of your young fans drew it for you and was happy to give it to you in person. To that kid, it was probably like a big slap in the face.

5 5. BRETT LAWRIE Lashes Out At Female Parking Attendant

Brett Lawrie has a reputation for being hot-headed and temperamental on the field and in the dugout. He spent a few years with the Toronto Blue Jays before spending time with the Oakland Athletics and Chicago White Sox, and sat out the entire 2017 season. While he is a very talented baseball player, perhaps his apparent attitude has turned some possible teams off him. Similar to his on-field antics, Lawrie has had some relatively disturbing encounters with fans.

When he was with the Blue Jays, he was apparently driving his car into the players parking garage when he was rude to the female attendant. When the attendant would not raise the meter immediately, he began honking the car horn repeatedly and yelling profanity at her. This head-scratching behavior was immature and completely unwarranted.

4 4. THURMAN THOMAS Trashes Hotel Room

Thurman Thomas has a generally engaging personality, but there have been some instances where Thomas might not be all that he presents himself to be. A former employee at a small inn in the Buffalo area revealed that Thomas had made a list that very few people are on. The inn kept what was called a “no rent list”, which was basically a list of past customers who they would never book rooms for anymore. As of about six years ago, there were very few people on the list, but Thurman Thomas happened to be on the list. The innkeeper verified that it was the actual former NFL player. Apparently, Thomas had previously stayed at the inn, a national historic landmark, and completely trashed the room. The rooms are decorated with antique furniture and art, but Thomas and his family walked in and showed complete disrespect by destroying the room.

3 3. TAYLOR HALL Thinks He Owns The Bar

For the past several years, the Edmonton Oilers have had many young players on their team – and still do. Taylor Hall was one of those young players for the Oilers for several years until his 2016 trade to New Jersey. A former bartender shared how the younger Oilers players typically go out drinking after home games. He said that, for the most part, they are good, tip well, and usually respectful (all good things).

Taylor Hall, not so much. Apparently, Hall is frequently loud, annoying, and comes across like he owns the place. He would grab bottles and just take them and pass them around and cause a big scene in front of the other guests. Of course, the staff were told to largely keep quiet because the Oilers are good business. The bartender might love the Oilers hockey team, but he is certainly no fan of Taylor Hall’s after his childish and spoiled behavior!

2 2. Fans Wait For JOSE CANSECO Only To Be Called Scumbags

Jose Canseco probably has very few friends among those he used to play baseball with because he opened the floodgates to the steroid conversation in baseball. In 2010, Canseco was playing in the independent leagues for the Laredo Broncos. In a game against the Edinburg Roadrunners, Canseco hit a home run that landed in the bushes outside the park. Two brothers apparently went searching for the home run ball and found the ball after a couple of innings. Following the game, they were the only ones waiting around to meet the former big-league star.

When they tried to meet him and get his autograph, he called them “scumbags”, pushed them aside, and told them to get lost. As with any athlete, Canseco does not need to autograph anything. However, Canseco should have appreciated their efforts considering how far past his prime he is and how they genuinely cared enough. Calling them “scumbags” was just too much and was highly disrespectful.

1 1. Hmmm, Maybe JAY CUTLER's Not The One To Blame Here

Jay Cutler is the #1 on this list. The event leading to his inclusion on this list might be exaggerated, but it is just too difficult to ignore! A couple of years ago, QB Jay Cutler was at a sushi restaurant in Chicago during the offseason. According to the story, the guy apparently walked into the restroom and saw Cutler at the urinal. The guy also went up to a urinal and said, “Hey Jay, I also went to Vanderbilt, we might know some of the same people…”. Jay promptly cut him off mid-sentence with an, “I DOOOONNNTTT CAAARRREEE” (not exaggerated for this article). Bar Stool Sports later did an interview with Cutler where he never denied nor confirmed the story.

A witness to the story is sticking to the story, which can be read here. While the length of the “I don’t care” might have been exaggerated by the apparent fan, this event is nonetheless disturbing. Truthfully, this might be the one disturbing fan story that might actually be disturbing because of the fan. I mean, who walks up to a complete stranger at a urinal and proceeds to commence a conversation with him?