Every four years, the entire football community is glued to their gadgets for a month to watch the World Cup. The matches of such a tournament are played under the scrutiny of the global public. In each of these tournaments, there are:
- beautiful goals;
- scandalous moments;
- penalties;
- penalties and much more.
Many of these events often make it difficult to make correct score predictions for betting companies and bettors. But some events are remembered at the tournament for centuries. These events are the reason why people love the game of millions. Let’s take a closer look at the most iconic moments from WC.
Maradona’s Hand of God in 1986
At that time Maradonna shone in all his glory, but he was the cause of the main scandal during the World Cup. Argentina won their group very confidently, beating South Korea and Bulgaria and drawing with Italy.
Then in the play-offs, the Argentine team minimally defeated Uruguay and in the quarter-finals met with the originators of the football team England. The match was evenly matched until early in the second half when a pass went into the British penalty area. English goalkeeper Peter Shilton came out on the ball and Maradonna pounced on it. As a result, the ball supposedly from Diego’s head flew over the British goalkeeper.
It seemed like a clear goal, but the British started to appeal and the replays showed that their appeal was unjustified. Diego in a leap put out his outstretched arm and from it, not from the head the ball flew into the goal. Maradonna later claimed many times that he had played with his head. However, after the tournament, he claimed that if there was a hand, it was the “Hand of God” who used it to guide the ball into the goal. That World Cup was eventually won by Argentina, but had Maradonna not played with his hand, things might have turned out differently.
Kuwait stopped the match in 1982
Kuwaiti scandal with Ukrainian flavor. The 1982 World Cup group stage match between Kuwait and France was officiated by the now-Ukrainian ex-arbiter Myroslav Stupar. The match was very predictable and the French were beating their opponents with the score of 3:0. However, at 75 minutes Kuwait scored a prestige goal, and after 5 minutes imitation of the whistle from the fans in the stand led to the fact that the Kuwaiti players decided that the whistle was from the referee. At this time the match continued and France scored the fourth goal.
What happened infuriated the Kuwaiti Sheikh, who ran onto the pitch with his guards, started shouting at the Ukrainian referee, and demanded that the goal be canceled. Such situations did not happen at that time and there were no recommendations for referees at that time. As a result, Stupar pointed to a disputed ball, and the match continued and France still scored the fourth goal. After this event, recommendations for referees were introduced and it was recognized that the Ukrainian referee had done everything correctly. However, after that scandal, Stupar did not officiate any more top matches at tournaments.
Rooney-Ronaldo conflict 2006
The World Cup-2006 was remembered for several scandalous episodes. One of them happened in the quarter-final match between England and Portugal. At that time Cristiano Ronaldo was playing for Manchester United, but in the national team match, he showed that he would do everything for the victory of his team.
In one of the episodes, the English striker and Cristiano’s teammate Wayne Rooney fought for the ball with Ricardo Carvalho. In the heat of the fight, he accidentally stepped on the Portuguese’s groin and the referee instantly stopped play. However, he came under heavy pressure from Cristiano, who directly demanded a red card for his teammate. The referee after talking to the Portuguese made this decision. As a result, England finished in the minority and lost in the penalty shootout.
After the tournament in England, all matches of the championship booed Cristiano and he realized that he was no longer welcome in England. Many believe that if it wasn’t for Ronaldo’s actions, England could have competed for the World Cup title.
Zidane beats Materazzi and leaves the pitch in 2006
Another episode from this World Cup. France had a bad start at this World Cup, drawing with Switzerland and South Korea in the group. However, it still managed to finish a passable second place and take on Spain in the playoffs. The team then rocked up and won all the matches until the final against the top (Spain, Brazil. Portugal).
In the final Zidane and company faced Italy, whose path to the main match of the tournament was much easier (winner in the group, and the top team got only in the semifinals. In the match of these teams, no one could make correct score predictions, because France showed itself better throughout the tournament, but Italy approached the match fresher.
The scandalous episode happened in extra time because for 90 minutes the teams scored once in each other’s gates. The goals were scored by Zidane and Materazzi. Ten minutes before the end of the second extra-time, passing by the Italian Zidane heard insults against his Muslim sister. This hurt him badly, he turned to Materazzi and hit him in the chest with his head. As a result, he received a red card and was sent off the pitch.
In the penalty shootout, the Italians all scored, with Frenchman Trezeguet failing to beat Buffon. Many believe that if not for the removal of Zidane, the champion of that tournament would have been the French.
Conclusion
Of course, the events mentioned in this top list are not the only significant moments. At the World Cup-2006, we can highlight the phenomenon of Ukrainian`s goalkeeper Shovkovskiy, who kicked all the penalties during the penalty shootout. This achievement cannot be surpassed, but only repeated.
We can also remember the 2010 World Cup, where the Spanish national team played mostly without strikers, but became Champions. The big upsets were France’s defeat to Senegal and the failure of the reigning World and European champions to qualify for the 2002 World Cup. However, it is the above-mentioned events from different World Cups that are considered to be the most iconic and discussed.
