The Disgrace of Gijón

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• PugJesus@piefed.social ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disgrace_of_Gij%C3%B3n

  The Disgrace of Gijón (Spanish: Desgracia de Gijón) is one of many names given in hindsight to the 1982 FIFA World Cup football match played at the El Molinón stadium in Gijón, Spain, on 25 June 1982, in which West Germany beat Austria 1–0. Both teams advanced to the next round while Algeria was eliminated by having the lowest goal difference. Algeria had played its last game a day earlier, unable to achieve the four-goal victory margin that would have seen them through regardless of what happened in this match. In German, the match is known as Nichtangriffspakt von Gijón (lit. “Non-aggression pact of Gijón") or Schande von Gijón (lit. “Disgrace of Gijón"),[1] while in Algeria it is called فضيحة خيخون (faḍīḥat Khīkhūn, “Scandal of Gijón"), and in French le Match de la honte (lit. “The Shameful Match"); it has also been satirically referred to as the Anschluss (a reference to the Nazi German annexation of Austria in 1938).[2]

  The Algerian team had beaten two-time World Champions and reigning European Champions Germany 2–1 in the first round, then had lost to Austria 2–0, before beating Chile 3–2. As the last game of the first-round Group 2 was scheduled a day later, the two German-speaking teams had an advantage in knowing that a West German win by fewer than three goals would qualify both, while any other result would see either Austria or West Germany eliminated. After a German goal early in the game, the match remained competitive before the teams started to “defend” the 1–0 score in the second half, as there was little benefit for either side to try harder. Many spectators, mostly Algerians, were unhappy with the perceived lack of effort, and accused the West German and Austrian teams of manipulation.[1]

  Despite widespread condemnation and a formal complaint lodged by Algeria – who were consequently eliminated – FIFA ruled that neither team had broken any rules. Following the tournament – with similar controversy regarding Argentina vs Peru in the previous World Cup and Northern Ireland vs Spain later in the 1982 tournament – FIFA revised the group system for future competitions so that the final two games in each group would be played simultaneously.[3] This change made it highly impractical for teams to engage in any form of match-fixing, since they would not know what result was required ahead of time.

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• Skullgrid@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  Reminds me of Trevor Noah’s standup about the SA football team.

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