FIFA World Cup 2010 – 5 Big Controversies in the World Cup’s History
5) Portugal Vs Netherlands - Battle of Nuremberg (2006)
In the World Cup 2006, a new record was made; considering how many red or yellow cards have been issued in a single match. During a match between Portugal and Netherlands, the two sides that are not very rough during their football matches, went on to face each other in a pre quarter final match. The match was known to be the “battle of Nuremberg” due to the fact that there were many fouls committed by the players and in FIFA’s history, most yellow and red cards were issued. It started off with a 2nd minute yellow card suffered by Marcon van Basten and then all h**l broke loose. Later, we saw that the Portuguese captain got only a yellow card for a head butt. In the match, Portuguese were able to win with a single goal scored by Maniche. According to the FIFA president Sepp Blatter, “Ivanov should have given himself a yellow card for such poor performance.”
4) Chile Vs Italy – Battle of Santiago (1962)
Chile and Italy faced each other in the group stages of the 1962 World Cup. There were tensions between the two nations due to the fact that earlier that year, Chile suffered an earthquake and two Italian journalists called their country a dump. Just 12 seconds into the match, first foul was committed and later on in the 12th minute the first player, Honorino, was sent off. He was escorted out of the ground by the police, as he was refusing to leave the pitch. Throughout the match, there were incidents that kept on happening time after time. There were players kicking each other and the match became really heated. Sanchez, of Chile, broke the nose of the Italian player Maschio, for which he was sent off. The police had to break into the pitch several times to break the fights that occurred during the match. Finally, the match ended with Chile winning 2-0, in a game that is really infamous in the World Cup history.
3) South Korea and the Officials in the FIFA World Cup 2002
South Korea, one of the two host nations of the 2002 FIFA World Cup, qualified for the Semi finals with a “little” help from the referees. After the group stage, the Koreans went to the round of 16 and faced Italy as their opponents. In that match, Totti was red carded for diving, while the referee denied a perfect goal for the Italians. The consequences of all this were obvious. The Koreans won the match 2-1 on a golden goal scored by Jung Hwan. Later, in the quarter final, South Korea once again managed to stun the audience by awful referee decisions. The Spaniards were denied two perfect goals by one given offside and the other known to be “not crossing the goal line.” Later on, the Koreans advanced with a 5-3 win over the Spanish side on penalties. Shortly afterwards, both the referees had to retire because of match fixing and receiving a new car for helping South Korea.
2) Argentina Vs England – Diego Maradona’s Hand of god (1994)
No one can forget the legendary hand of god scored by the Argentinean legend Diego Maradona. He is known to be one of the most controversial figures in the football history. In 1986, Argentina was set up against England in a quarter final. In the 51st minute, Diego Maradona left a mark in the World Cup by scoring a goal with his hand, although the keeper had an 8 inch advantage over him. He stretched his hand to throw the ball into the net which made it one of the most controversial yet legendary goals in the football history.
1) West Germany Vs England - Bakhramov Rules Hurst’s Goal (1966)
In the 1966 World Cup, during the 101st minute of the final between England and Germany, the referee made an obnoxious decision when he allowed a goal struck by Hurst, but was bounced off the goal line. The shot was hit off a crossbar and bounced on the goal line. The Swiss referee was confused about the fact whether or not the ball went inside the goal, but the Soviet Union’s referee Bakhramov was sure that it did. Bakhramov, on his deathbed, was asked whether the goal he gave in 1966 was correct. He replied with a single word only; “Stalingrad!” Stalingrad was a city in Soviet Union, in which the n***s (Germans) killed 75,000 Soviets.
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