The Damned United

To follow football, or any sport you have to be a conspiracy theorist. What else could explain your team's disastrous performance (or even run of performances) other than the combined actions of UFOs, men-in-black, shadowy government organisations, phone-tapping and anti-Castro Cubans?


Except the problem, where football conspiracy theories are concerned, is that on more than one occasion they have exhibited a strong likelihood of being right, or at least on the right track. Tell that to Leeds United supporters. If they got their heads together, would probably be able to figure out what really happened in Dallas on that day in November 1963, not to mention Roswell and the Turin Shroud.

These days Leeds United compete in the lower divisions of English league club football and have even had to stave off bankruptcy in recent years. But back in the 1970s Leeds held a prestigious place in English football and were even European contenders. But that's as far as they got ... or were allowed to get.

Leeds reached the final of the 1973 European Cup Winners Cup where they faced AC Milan. The Italian side clinched the title with a single goal but the result has been hotly debated and contested to this day. You can watch excerpts from the match below:

Referee Christos Michas was judged to have made a number of unfair decisions and Leeds requested a replay (a request that was denied by UEFA, not unpredictably, but it was later proven that Michas had been involved in match-fixing on other occasions and was later banned from refereeing for life. According to World Referee:

Michas made a series of very dubious decisions during the match (ignoring a Milan player handling the ball in the area, sending off a Leeds player but not his opponent, annulling a goal etc) all favoring Milan. In fact he was so bad the neutral audience shouted it was a shame, so bad that UEFA banned him for life after the match, fixing was proved later but Milan still got to keep the Cup.

In 2009, more than 35 years later, MEP for Yorkshire and Humber Richard Corbett petitioned UEFA to investigate, more than 35 years later.

Leeds fared no better in the final of the 1975 European Cup against Bayern Munich. Although no allegations of corruption have ever been lodged or proven the match was not without controversy:

Bayern won 2-0, but not before referee Michel Kitabdjian had ruled out Peter Lorimer's valid goal and denied Leeds two clear-cut penalties. - The Telegraph, Football's Great Conspiracy Theories

Arising out of the affair Leeds supporters coined a terrace chant: We are the Champions, Champions of Europe. It is said that it is still heard in Elland Road.

Aqua Sports and Amateur Dramatics

Diving is the curse of the modern game. Cheating is bad enough in itself but worse still when it goes rewarded!

Players these days seem to hit the floor quicker than a bucket and a mop and the Beautiful Game is being transformed before our eyes, into something akin to those lace and corset dramas of a bygone era - ladies feinting and swooning all-round, at the mere hint of a manly presence.

But all is fair in love and war and football falls somewhere in between the two. As long as referees are going to be taken in by this kind of amateur theatrics, what else are players going to do?

This however must be a candidate for one of the worst dives ever. If this isn't proof that it's gone too far, we don't know what is.

Clive Thomas: Brazil vs Sweden 1978 World Cup

Some refereeing decisions are just bizarre. No apparent logic. They don't produce outrage, simply head-scratching as in 'what is that guy on?'

In a 1978 World Cup encounter between Brazil and Sweden, with the score at 1-1, a corner is awarded to Brazil in injury time. From the resulting cross Zico heads it in. Brazil celebrate but ... bizarrely the goal is disallowed; not because of any foul or infringement; but because Welsh referee Clive Thomas deems that full-time had elapsed while the ball was in flight. [Watch it here on YouTube - it has to be seen to be believed in any case.]

So why was the corner awarded in the first place? Nobody understood Thomas' rationale and the incident is still debated to this day. The only thing that might be said in his defence is that the incident is not unique in the annals of bad refereeing decision. Other referees have joined Thomas in Football's Academy of the Punctilious.

According to Soccerphile "recently, a Spanish referee made the same mistake at the expense of Dinamo Bucharest at Marseille in the UEFA Cup." Someone here also has a recollection of a similar incident in an English League fixture - possibly late 80s or early 90s, most likely pre-Premiership - but can't remember the specifics. [Anyone out there with any information? Answers on a postcard, preferably e-mailed to us]

Whatever the case, we would tend to concur with Soccerphile: "Something should be done with referees like that."

What the Referee Didn't See

In addition to the controversies there are the humourous, even surreal moments in the game. But football is a competitive and combative sport, which also occasionally throws up some ugly stuff.

Referees come in for a lot of criticism and from all corners but their role is as much to protect the players as to protect the game. A human referee can never serve as the 'all-seeing eye' but video technology can.

Even back in 1982 the technology was sufficiently developed to pick up this 'collision' involving German keeper Harald Schumacher and French defender Patrick Battiston. The occasion was the World Cup semi-final between France and West Germany and Battiston had picked up a through-ball from Michel Platini but shot wide. Schumacher was running out of his goal to 'defend':

Battiston was knocked unconscious, and later slipped into a coma. He also lost his two front teeth and had a damaged vertebra. He received oxygen on the pitch. Michel Platini later said that he thought that Battiston had died, because "he had no pulse and looked pale". - source: Wikipedia

West Germany went on to win this encounter by the way. They met Italy in the Final where they lost 3-1.

'Play On' said the Ref

The person who posted this clip on YouTube (a Dundee United vs Partick Thistle encounter from 1993) claims this as 'quite possibly the worst decision ever made by a referee in the history of football!' Watching it one almost feels it's an understatement.

Scottish referee Les Mottram not only misses Dundee United player Paddy Connolly score but then disregards the fact that the Partick defender CATCHES THE BALL and hands it to his keeper and instead of giving a penalty waves play on!

At the time Mottram was an internationally accredited referee and he went on to officiate at the 1994 World Cup in USA. What probably happened is that he thought the ball had hit the post (you'll notice that these are old-style goal posts that are no longer used) but it still doesn't explain why he didn't award a penalty against the defender who handled the ball - and even possibly a sending off for a deliberate (nay blatant) handball!

Fast forward to about 1.10 for the contentious moment.

Le Hand of Henry and the Luck of the Irish

Even before World Cup 2010 kicked-off in South Africa, controversy was already sparked over an incident involving French footballing legend Thierry Henry, in his team's qualifying game against Republic of Ireland.

There is no real argument about whether France's winning goal was a result of a handball by Henry; he admitted it afterwards so that put paid to that aspect of the controversy:

There was still a lot to gripe about though. Irish football fans reacted furiously. A Facebook petition to have the match replayed gathered over half a million followers. But it wasn't just the Irish soccer community that was enraged. The injustice done to Ireland became an international talking point and for once it had nothing to do with the Brits (which must have come as a surprise to them as much as anyone).

The discussion arising out of the incident increased pressure on FIFA to take decisive action by introducing video technology. Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger was just one of the high profile names who weighed in supporting calls for a replay:

Bizarrely within a few short months of that interview Arsene Wenger would have his own run in Referee Martin Hansson who took charge of that particular World Cup qualifier.

Many others were canvassed for their opinion including footballing legend Pele. A formal complaint was lodged with FIFA by the Football Association of Ireland who called for the match to be replayed:

FIFA refused to be swayed however and France headed off to South Africa, where their performance was mediocre, getting dumped out of the competition in the first round. The Irish players and fans watching must surely have felt that they would have done better. 

Some more reactions to the affair are included in the playlist below (we've saved the best for last!):

Van Persie Sending Off at Camp Nou

Although easily outclassed by Barcelona in their Champions League second round clash, Arsenal looked like they were still in the game right up the the Van Persie sending off in the 51st minute.

The reason was a second bookable offence, his second yellow coming for apparently playing the ball after the whistle had gone. Van Persie, along with his manager Arsene Wenger and several members of the Arsenal squad protested vigourously.

"My sending-off had a big influence, and in my opinion it was a total joke. How can I hear his whistle with 95 000 people jumping up - how can I hear that for God's sake? Please explain that."

When told later that there was an approximate delay of one second between the referee blowing his whistle and his attempt at goal, Van Persie replied: 'That just makes it even worse.'

You can see his reaction here:

For match reports see Mail Online and Sport 24.