The Hand of God: Argentina vs England (1986)
You can't start a debate about footballing injustice without mentioning Diego Maradona. In the 1986 World Cup quarter-final, with tensions already high due to the Falklands War, the Argentine genius perpetrated the most infamous act in the tournament's
history. As a miscued clearance looped into the English penalty area, Maradona, standing at just 5'5", leaped with goalkeeper Peter Shilton, who was a full eight inches taller. Impossibly, Maradona got to the ball first, punching it into the net with his left hand. The Tunisian referee, Ali Bennaceur, missed the infraction and awarded the goal. England’s players were incensed, but their protests were futile. Minutes later, Maradona would score the 'Goal of the Century,' but it was the first goal, the one he later claimed was scored 'a little with the head of Maradona and a little with the hand of God,' that remains a permanent stain, a moment of brilliant, brazen cheating that knocked a nation out of the World Cup.
The Host's Advantage: South Korea vs Italy & Spain (2002)
Sometimes, it’s not a single incident but a pattern of baffling decisions. During the 2002 World Cup, co-hosts South Korea went on an unbelievable run to the semi-finals, aided by some of the most controversial refereeing ever witnessed. In the Round of 16 against Italy, Ecuadorian referee Byron Moreno disallowed a legitimate golden goal by Damiano Tommasi for a non-existent offside and controversially sent off Francesco Totti for diving when he appeared to be fouled in the penalty box. South Korea won on a golden goal. The farce continued in the quarter-final against Spain. Egyptian referee Gamal Al-Ghandour and his linesmen disallowed two perfectly good Spanish goals, one for a supposed foul and another because the ball was incorrectly ruled to have gone out of play. Spain's spirit was broken, and they eventually lost on penalties. For Italy and Spain, this wasn't a robbery; it was a home invasion.
The Ghost Goal: England vs Germany (2010)
This was the goal that forced football into the 21st century. In the 2010 Round of 16, England were trailing 2-1 to their old rivals Germany when midfielder Frank Lampard unleashed a beautiful shot from the edge of the box. The ball struck the underside of the crossbar, bounced a full yard over the goal line, and spun back out. It was a clear goal to everyone in the stadium and the millions watching on TV. Everyone, that is, except referee Jorge Larrionda and his officials. Play was waved on, and England’s chance to level the match at 2-2 was stolen. Germany, revitalised by the let-off, went on to score two more goals and win 4-1. The incident created a global outcry and became the single biggest catalyst for the introduction of goal-line technology. While justice came too late for Lampard and England, this 'ghost goal' ultimately changed the game for the better.
Henry's Helping Hand: France vs Ireland (2009)
While it didn't happen during the World Cup finals, this moment of deceit directly decided who went to the tournament. In the dying minutes of extra time in their 2010 World Cup play-off, France and the Republic of Ireland were tied. A long free-kick was floated into the Irish box, where French captain Thierry Henry blatantly controlled the ball with his hand—not once, but twice—before squaring it for William Gallas to score the winning goal. The Irish players surrounded the Swedish referee, Martin Hansson, but he had missed the most obvious handball since Maradona's. France were through to the World Cup; Ireland were out. Henry later admitted the handball, and the incident was so egregious that FIFA even paid the Football Association of Ireland €5 million in compensation to avoid legal action. It was a cold, calculated act that denied a deserving team their World Cup dream.
