8 sports stars who are pro-marijuana: UFC’s Conor McGregor, Nick and Date Diaz have cannabis businesses, while NFL legends Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Randy Moss admitted to smoking too

Jan 28 , 2022

These athletes advocate the use of marijuana, whether it’s for medicinal or recreational use. Photo: @thenotoriousmma, @mrapinoe, @kareemabduljabbar, @randygmoss/Instagram

McGregor touts his CBD-based recovery product TIDL Sport, while the Diaz brothers launched their own cannabis brand Kill_4209 – which Nate smoked at a UFC 263 press conference

Female athletes are less vocal, but US runner Sha’Carri Richardson spoke up after a 2020 Tokyo Olympics ban and footballer Megan Rapinoe endorses her twin sister’s CBD brand Mendi

The world is changing – fast. Once a taboo, marijuana is growing in popularity and legality for athletes. Even the notoriously strict NBA and NFL leagues have loosened their policies on disciplining players for marijuana use in recent years. Meanwhile star athletes like Conor McGregor and Calvin Johnson have been open about their use of the drug.

Cannabis use among athletes has sparked debate on health issues and social values

In recent years, the NFL has reduced the punishment for players who test positive for cannabis, and the NBA has stopped testing for the drug altogether.

Some experts believe cannabis, in the form of CBD, could help relieve pain and promote muscle recovery. CBD is a non-psychoactive component of cannabis that has been exempted from the doping ban since 2019.

Most the locker rooms, if they’re not currently taking part, they have smoked or used cannabis in some application. If we’re hanging, that was our preferred vice

Calvin Johnson, NFL player

Most the locker rooms, if they’re not currently taking part, they have smoked or used cannabis in some application. If we’re hanging, that was our preferred vice

There is no real research to confirm the benefits of CBD in physical recovery. However, many researchers believe that given the number of endocannabinoids in the body – particularly in the skin – it makes sense that CBD, which binds to endocannabinoids, could be a helpful agent in muscle recovery.

Here’s a list of athletes who have publicly stated that they use cannabis or have invested their own money in companies that produce and sell the drug for recreational or medicinal use.

1. UFC fighter Conor McGregor smoked a blunt on Instagram

Whiskey isn’t the only substance UFC fighter Conor McGregor endorses. Photo: @thenotoriousmma/Instagram