Top 20 Insane World Cup Moments
#20: The Big Upset
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In the first World Cup since World War Two put the competition on hiatus, Uruguay, who won the inaugural tournament in 1930, faced off against the favorites, Brazil. At the time, the winner was determined by a final league table rather than a one-off match. All Brazil had to do was avoid defeat, and the host country would be world champions. And all was going to plan when Friaça opened the scoring. But then…a goal by Uruguay’s Juan Alberto Schiaffino leveled things up. Uh-oh. To make it worse for the Brazilians, Alcides Ghiggia fired it in to give the underdogs the win!
#19: The Disgrace of Gijón
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In the 1982 World Cup in Spain, if West Germany beat Austria by at most two goals in the final game of Group 2, both teams would qualify, while Algeria would be knocked out. Well, West Germany won one-nil. But it was the performance of both teams that concerned everyone. As soon as the first goal was scored, West Germany just passed the ball amongst themselves, not bothering to attack. While Austria barely put in any effort. Everyone watching was livid, and the teams were accused of match-fixing. FIFA investigated but found no rules had been broken. However, they changed the rules so that the final games of group matches would be played at the same time to avoid a similar situation.
#18: French Fallout
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Tensions between France's manager, Raymond Domenech, and the players during the 2010 World Cup erupted most spectacularly. At half-time of their group game against Mexico, France was losing. Nicolas Anelka got into a heated argument with Domenech in the changing rooms, causing the striker to be sent home from the tournament when he refused to apologize. Well, his teammates weren’t happy and so they went on strike. After an intervention from then-president Nicolas Sarkozy, the players returned to work. However, France failed to progress from the group as they finished last.
#17: The Wink
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For the 2006 World Cup quarter-final, England was set to face Portugal. This meant Manchester United’s Cristiano Ronaldo would be taking on some of his teammates like Wayne Rooney. As the English forward got into a tussle with Ricardo Carvalho, the defender went down, and Rooney accidentally stamped on Carvalho. Immediately, Ronaldo and the Portuguese players bombarded the referee to take action. And it worked. Furious, Rooney pushed one of the players (who just so happened to be Ronaldo). And he was immediately sent off. As Ronaldo walked off, he winked to the bench, mission accomplished. Ronaldo claims he never intended for Rooney to be sent off, only to get the foul.
#16: The Battle of Nuremberg
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Usually, names involving the word “battle” are typically used for a military skirmish. But in this case, it’s the round of sixteen match between Portugal and the Netherlands at the 2006 World Cup. It was one of the most violent games of football in World Cup history. A massive sixteen yellows were issued, the first coming in the second minute. On top of this, four red cards were issued. It really overshadowed Portugal’s one-nil win.
#15: Ilunga Has Had Enough
For the 1974 tournament, Zaire, now known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo, was making its debut on the world stage. And they were in a tough group. After losing two-nil to Scotland and nine-nil to Yugoslavia, they faced Brazil in the final game, in which they lost three-nil. But during it, as a freekick was set to be taken by the South Americans, defender Mwepu Ilunga sprinted from the wall and booted the ball up the pitch, clearly breaking the rules. As such, he was booked. While many found his apparent lack of knowledge amusing, there was more going on. Ilunga stated he was hoping to be sent off as a protest against his nation for withholding the players’ earnings.
#14: Spit Frenzy
During a match against West Germany, Netherland's Frank Rijkaard wiped out striker Rudi Völler, earning himself a yellow card. He responded by spitting at the back of Völler’s head. Lovely(!) When the German complained, he was booked. Then, less than a minute later, Völler committed a handball to avoid colliding with the Dutch goalkeeper. After a tussle involving Rijkaard and Völler, both players were shown a red card. Then, the Dutchman spat at the back of Völler’s head once more as they left the pitch. Rijkaard’s side went on to lose two-one.
#13: Wrath of the Sheikh
For the 1982 World Cup, Kuwait made its debut at the international tournament. But rather than be remembered for this historical event, something else comes to mind. As the team took on France in a Group 4 match, Sheikh Fahad Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, who was also president of the Kuwait Football Association, was watching. Late into the game, a whistle is heard in the stadium. While Kuwait’s players stopped, France’s Alain Giresse made it four-one to the Europeans. Well, Fahad wasn’t having that. He went onto the pitch and demanded the referee disallow that goal, or his team would leave. For some reason, the ref ruled the goal out. Unfortunately for Fahad and Kuwait, Maxime Bossis scored, and the game finished four-one.
#12: The Battle of Santiago
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On paper, this should have been a pretty standard match in Group 2 during the 1962 tournament. But thanks to the drama going on behind the scenes with Italian journalists stirring the pot by criticizing Chile’s capital, Santiago, tempers boiled over on the pitch. Even BBC broadcaster David Coleman introduced the game’s highlights by describing it as the most “disgusting and disgraceful exhibition of football.” Within twelve seconds after kick-off, there was already a foul. From there, Italy had two players sent off, with one being escorted off the pitch by the police. The ref could have issued more red cards as players punched each other, with one even getting a broken nose. The 2-0 win for Chile was vastly overshadowed by the violence.
#11: Rivaldo’s Rehearsal
After his incredible performance at the 1998 tournament, expectations were high for Brazil’s Rivaldo in 2002. But in their first game in Group C against Turkey, he did his best to tarnish all that good faith. When Turkey’s Hakan Ünsal kicked the ball toward Rivaldo, who was taking the corner, the ball seemingly struck him in the face, and he went down. Seeing this, the referee gave Ünsal a second yellow, sending him off. But as the replay showed, Rivaldo was hit on the leg, not the face. His acting turned him into the tournament’s villain as he was fined thousands of Francs by FIFA for his poor behavior.
#10: Goal of the Century
In a game that’s often remembered with one Diego Maradona moment – more on that later – this bit of magic is often overlooked. In the 1986 World Cup quarter-final between Argentina and England, Maradona received the ball in his own half. He then went on a dribbling rampage, beating four England players, with Terry Butcher losing to him twice. Finding his way into the box, he dummied a shot, causing goalkeeper Peter Shilton to fall to the floor. This left the goal open for Maradona to place the ball into the empty net. The Napoli legend ran 60 yards in around 10 seconds, taking only 11 touches along the way. In 2002, this stunner was voted Goal of the Century by FIFA.
#9: Karate Kick
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Taking on favorites Spain in the final, during the first half, Netherlands’ Nigel de Jong jumped up and struck Xabi Alonso in the chest with his studs. The Dutch midfielder should’ve seen a red card coming from referee Howard Webb’s pocket. Instead, it was surprisingly yellow. According to Webb, he didn’t have a clear view of the incident and didn’t want to make a guess. But when he saw the replay later, he stated he should’ve sent off de Jong.
#8: Final Fiasco
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If you ask England fans their most important footballing moment, most would likely point to this one which took place at the 1966 final. With the score two-two in extra time against West Germany, Geoff Hurst’s shot thundered off the bar before crossing the line. Or did it? The replays seem to suggest the whole ball didn’t cross the line. As such, VAR would probably not have given the goal that motivated the team to win four-two. Looking back, it seems like the whole ball didn’t cross the line. Just before the game was over, Hurst completed his hat trick, securing the trophy for England by winning 4-2.
#7: Dodgy Calls
With the 2002 tournament being the first time that two nations had hosted it, that should’ve been the focal point for South Korea. Instead, bizarre occurrences on the pitch took people’s attention with accusations of match-fixing. With South Korea against Italy in the round of sixteen, referee Byron Moreno appeared to have a vendetta against the Europeans. He was inconsistent when awarding penalties, disallowed rightful goals, and sent off Francesco Totti for diving which didn’t seem like the case. Then, against Spain in the next round, similar shenanigans happened with referee Gamal Al-Ghandour. He was later accused of accepting a car from the Korean company Hyundai, which he denied.
#6: Stand-In Keeper
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At the 2010 tournament, Ghana had gotten to the quarter-final against Uruguay. And boy, was it a battle. In the last minute of extra time, a goal line scramble forced Luis Suárez to block one attempt. But when Dominic Adiyiah headed the ball toward goal, Suárez got in the way again, but this time with his hands, a big no-no. He was sent off, and a penalty was given. However, Asamoah Gyan missed. The match then went to penalties, which Uruguay won. Even ten years after the incident, players from Ghana still won’t forgive Suárez.
#5: Hammering the Hosts
In 2014, fans were foaming at the mouth to watch two great teams, Brazil and Germany, battle it out in the semi-final. While the host nation had lost Neymar to a fractured vertebra and Thiago Silva, who was serving a suspension, a hard, tough match was expected. But that’s not what we got. Instead, we witnessed one of the most shocking matches in World Cup history. Germany tore the South Americans apart with their superior finishing. Even though they had fewer shots and less time of possession than Brazil, Germany still won by a massive seven-one! The result was the biggest margin of defeat in a World Cup semi-final.
#4: Chomping Chiellini
Uruguay took on Italy in the final game of Group D. The South Americans needed to win to progress. In the second half, Suárez tangled with Giorgio Chiellini, causing the then-Liverpool player to bite the defender. While he was able to get away with it during the match, FIFA later took action. Suárez was banned for nine international games and anything football-related for four months. This was the biggest punishment in World Cup history. The sentence was harsher since this was the THIRD time Suárez had gone all Dracula on an opponent.
#3: The Hand of God
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Since we mentioned an infamous Maradona moment in the 1986 quarter-final match against England earlier, here we are. With the score nil-nil, a botched clearance by Steve Hodge forced the ball to sail toward the England goal. As keeper Peter Shilton ran to get it, he was beaten to it by the smaller Maradona, and the ball rolled into the net. As Argentina celebrated, England protested. But still, the goal was given. Replays showed that Maradona had clearly knocked the ball in with his hand. Maradona would later admit that he did indeed hit it with his hand.
#2: Goalkeeper’s Assault
With the score one-all between West Germany and France in the 1982 World Cup semi-final, Patrick Battiston, who was only just subbed on, found himself running at the German goal. Well, keeper Harald Schumacher wasn’t having that. While Battiston’s shot went wide, Schumacher forcefully clattered into the defender. Battiston was out cold. The medics quickly gave Battiston oxygen at the pitchside and was taken out in a stretcher. But even with all this, France didn’t even get a foul, let alone Schumacher being sent off. Adding insult to injury, West Germany went on to win the game in penalties.
#1: Zidane’s Headbutt
Zinedine Zidane is one of the best players to ever walk onto a pitch. But his career was tarnished in the final against Italy in 2006. With the scores one-all deep into extra time, Zidane got into a verbal spat with Marco Materazzi. Suddenly, he headbutted the Italian in the chest. With no other option, the ref showed the Real Madrid and Juventus legend a red card. To make it worse, France went on to lose on penalties. In 2012, this incident was immortalized when a sculpture by Adel Abdessemed was unveiled in Paris.