The Divine Ponytail’s Burden
For many, the defining image of the 1994 World Cup is not of Brazil lifting the trophy, but of Roberto Baggio standing, hands on hips, head bowed in disbelief. Played at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, it was the first World Cup final ever to be decided by
a penalty shootout. Baggio, Italy’s superstar forward known as “The Divine Ponytail,” had single-handedly carried his team to the final, scoring five goals in the knockout stages. He was the man Italy looked to for miracles. But when he stepped up to take the decisive fifth penalty, with Italy needing to score to stay alive, his shot blazed over the crossbar. The miss instantly ended the match, handing Brazil its fourth title. Baggio, arguably the tournament's best player, became the face of its most brutal conclusion. He later described the moment as something that haunted him, a wound he never truly accepted. His story is the ultimate example of the shootout’s cruelty: how a player at the peak of his powers can become a tragic hero in a matter of seconds.
The Captain’s Agonizing Slip
The 2008 UEFA Champions League final in Moscow was poised on a knife’s edge. Chelsea, captained by their iconic defender John Terry, had battled Manchester United to a 1-1 draw. In the ensuing shootout, a miss from United’s Cristiano Ronaldo gave Terry the chance to win the trophy for Chelsea with the fifth kick. He was not a designated penalty taker but stepped up to seize the moment of glory. As he ran up, his standing foot slipped on the rain-soaked turf. The ball spun off his boot and struck the post, sending the shootout to sudden death, where Manchester United eventually triumphed. Terry, the heart and soul of his club, was left in tears, inconsolable. Though he would eventually lift the Champions League trophy four years later (while suspended for the final), the image of his slip remains an iconic moment of heartbreak—a reminder that in a shootout, even destiny can be derailed by something as mundane and brutal as bad footing.
The GOAT’s Long Road to Absolution
For years, Lionel Messi’s career was marked by a painful paradox: unparalleled success at the club level with Barcelona, and a string of agonizing near-misses with Argentina. The lowest point came in the 2016 Copa América Centenario final. After teammate Arturo Vidal missed Chile's opening penalty, Messi had the chance to give Argentina the lead. Instead, the man considered by many to be the greatest of all time blazed his shot over the bar. Argentina went on to lose the shootout, their third consecutive major final defeat. A distraught Messi announced his retirement from international soccer shortly after. But that wasn’t the end. He eventually returned, and his redemption arc became one of the sport's most compelling storylines. He finally led Argentina to a Copa América title in 2021, and then, in 2022, to the World Cup trophy—scoring crucial penalties along the way and cementing a legacy that was, for a time, threatened by that one brutal miss.
A Young King’s Fiery Redemption
At Euro 2020, Kylian Mbappé, the young prince of French soccer, experienced the crushing weight of shootout failure. After a thrilling 3-3 draw with Switzerland, the world champions were forced into a penalty shootout. Mbappé took France's fifth and final kick, which was saved, sending his nation crashing out of the tournament. The miss, from a player who had already won a World Cup at 19, led to immense criticism and even made him consider retiring from the national team. However, his response was a testament to his mental fortitude. Just 18 months later, in the 2022 World Cup final against Argentina, Mbappé delivered one of the greatest individual performances in history. He scored a hat-trick, including two high-pressure penalties in the final minutes to force extra time, and then calmly scored his kick in the subsequent shootout. Though France ultimately lost, Mbappé had stared down his demons on the world's biggest stage, a stunning act of personal redemption that proved his greatness beyond any doubt.
