Bayern Munich's Javi Martinez Suggests 'The Hunger Games' Was His Idea

Bayern Munich midfielder Javi Martinez has suggested he could have become a literary legend were it not for a career in football, saying he began writing a book similar to The Hunger Games series.

The first entry in the fantasy trilogy was released in 2008 before its film adaptation came out four years later.

Martinez told Socrates (h/t Goal's Chris Burton): "Writing is a great pleasure for me, even as a teenager I started to write a book. And believe it or not, the plot was pretty much the same as The Hunger Games'."

It wasn't until Martinez watched the first film of the series in the cinema that he recognised the material: "That was strange, I was sitting in the cinema and thought: 'It does not exist, that's my idea, which I had years ago, the creators must have stolen my computer.'"

The midfielder was still at former club Athletic Bilbao in 2008, and it seems improbable author Suzanne Collins would venture to the Basque Country for inspiration on her dystopian novel.

Bayern broke their transfer record to sign Martinez for €40 million—since broken by Corentin Tolisso—and the Spain international likely takes home a handsome pay packet at the Allianz Arena.

Still, that may not compare with the royalties he could have been due had he penned the series that would go on to spawn four films and more than $2.9 billion combined in cinemas worldwide, per BoxOfficeMojo.com.

Instead, he'll have to settle for life at Bayern, where he has won the Bundesliga in each of his six seasons so far, not to mention clinching the UEFA Champions League and FIFA Club World Cup in 2013.