A surprise appearance stole the show during Premier League action this weekend — but not on the pitch. The unexpected cameo arrived instead in the latest offering from The Guardian’s resident football cartoonist, David Squires, whose weekly strip published on Tuesday has set social media abuzz with a reference that left fans doing a double-take.
Cartoon cameo steals the show
Squires’ cartoon, titled “David Squires on … an unexpected cameo amid all the Premier League drama”, lands at the climax of a season that has delivered genuine excitement at both ends of the English top-flight table. According to the accompanying standfirst, the strip captures “a weekend of genuine excitement at the top and bottom of the English top-flight table”. Yet it is the nature of the cameo itself that has drawn most attention — a nod, it appears, to the unlikely intersection of Premier League football and children’s television. One online observer noted that the phrase “Peppa Pig x Tottenham” immediately brought Squires to mind, suggesting the cartoon may incorporate the animated pig and her connection to the north London club as a key element or running joke.
The reference chimes with Squires’ well-established style: a wry, satirical take on the past week in football that often blends humour, politics and a deep knowledge of the sport. His rudimentary yet chillingly accurate portrayals of football’s big personalities have made him a fixture for readers of The Guardian in the UK and The Guardian Australia for around a decade. The unexpected cameo in this week’s strip — whatever form it takes — is precisely the kind of absurd juxtaposition that has become his trademark, offering a moment of levity amid the high-stakes drama of a title race and relegation scrap.
A weekend of genuine excitement
The Premier League weekend in question delivered drama at both extremes of the table. At the top, the title battle continued with its customary twists; at the bottom, survival was far from settled. Squires has form for capturing these moments: his recent cartoons have covered Chelsea’s Wembley trip amid more managerial chaos, the epic clash of the titans between Manchester City and Arsenal, and the TikTok of the clock as Arsenal’s title charge faltered. This week’s strip, however, appears to stand out precisely because of its unexpected guest star — a reminder that even in the most serious of footballing weekends, there is room for the surreal.
The cartoonist’s ability to weave together league drama with broader cultural references is part of what has made his work so popular. His latest book, Chaos in the Box: Chronicles from Modern Football, a collection of his Guardian cartoons from 2018 to 2024, was shortlisted for the Sports Book Awards’ Sports Entertainment Book of the Year. Reviews have hailed him as “the king of the football comic strip”, praising his capacity to combine humour, politics and deep knowledge of the game into a single frame. The book covers managerial merry-go-rounds, billionaire ownership and FIFA’s perceived ineptitude — themes that regularly surface in his weekly strip.
The king of the football comic strip
David Squires’ journey to becoming a household name in football satire began in Wiltshire, where his childhood love of both football and drawing led him to produce his first published cartoon for the Swindon Town fanzine, The 69er, in 1992 — a piece concerning the transfer of player Duncan Shearer. He gained significant traction during the 2014 World Cup, when he drew a cartoon for each day of the tournament, eventually leading to his work with The Guardian. Since then, his weekly output has become a fixture for fans who appreciate his ability to find the memorable — and ludicrous — moments in the modern game.
Squires also draws for L’Équipe magazine in France and 11Freunde in Germany, and produces a weekly A-League cartoon for The Guardian Australia, playing on his outsider perspective as an Australia-based artist and illustrator. His previous book, Goalless Draws: Illuminating the Genius of Modern Football, further cemented his reputation. His work has lampooned figures from Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp to Mikel Arteta and Jose Mourinho, and he has expressed disgust and anger at FIFA’s “entwinement with the Maga movement”. The unexpected cameo in this week’s cartoon — whether Peppa Pig makes a literal appearance or the reference is more oblique — is the latest example of Squires’ talent for injecting the absurd into the serious business of Premier League football.
For readers wanting to revisit his 2025 favourites, Squires has previously highlighted strips including “The extraordinary life of Denis Law”, “Moving scenes and mind games as Palace win the FA Cup”, and “The story of England winning Euro 2025”. This week’s offering, however, may well become a contender for this year’s list — a cameo that, for one weekend at least, stole the show without kicking a ball.
