Football Makes History The late Bill Shankly, one-time manager of Liverpool, insisted that football wasn t a matter

of life and death it was more important than that. Looking back at the history of football matches one would tend to agree with him. The history of football, in particular the World Cup, is marked by fights, bad sporting behavior and even murder. The year was 114 and World War I had transformed much of Western Europe into a mass of battlefields and trenches. The area between the two sides at war was known as no-man s-land because if a soldier left a trench and walked into this area, he would be shot by the enemy. The soldiers put down their weapons, met in the middle and played a game of football. The Scottish Seaforth Highlanders were positioned on the Franco-Belgian border with the enemy, the 9th Royal Saxon Infantry opposite. They were preparing to celebrate Christmas day. Next to the trenches they had put up simple trees decorated with candles. The Germans did not return the gunfire. The Scots in turn stopped shooting and silence followed. Then the sound of German soldiers singing Silent Night could be heard. At midnight, silence fell until the next morning when a few of the Saxon Infantry wandered into no-man s-land . The Scots responded and went out to meet them. One report states that cigarettes, watches, rings and tins of meat were exchanged and photos of loved ones were shown. An unorthodox match of football followed. Goal posts were marked with caps and teams were established. Finally the men shook hands and went back to their trenches and to war. Since then there have been other matches that have made history. Unfortunately, many have done so for the wrong reasons. South American players and supports have often committed acts of violence. After Uruguayan Consulate in Buenos Aires until the police began shooting at them. Another example is the tragic death of 39 Italian supporters who died in the riot at the Heysel Stadium when Liverpool were playing Juventus in the final of the 1985 European Cup. Players too often display extremely unsporting behavior. In 1962 an Italian player s nose was broken by Chile s Leonel Sanchez, and twenty years later a French player lost two teeth after being hit by the West German goalkeeper. Accusations of cheating or fixing the score have also been made. Andres Escobar scored an own goal when Colombia lost 2-4 to the USA in 1994. It was said that Colombian drug barons had bet a lot of money on Colombia losing.

Fotbal face istorie Bill Shankly trziu, o singur dat managerul Liverpool, a insistat ca nu era o chestiune de fotbal de via i de moarte - a fost mai important dect faptul c . Privind napoi la istoria meciurilor de fotbal s-ar putea tind s fie de acord cu el. Istoria fotbalului, n special Cupa Mondial , este marcat de lupte, comportamentul sportiv r u i chiar crim . Era anul 114 i Primul R zboi Mondial am avut transformat mare parte din Europa de Vest ntr-o mas de cmpuri de lupt i de tran ee. Zona dintre cele dou p r i aflate n r zboi a fost cunoscut sub numele de "nu-man's-teren", deoarece n cazul n care un soldat a l sat un an i a intrat n acest domeniu, el va fi mpu cat de c tre inamic. Solda ii pus jos armele lor, sa ntlnit n mijloc i a jucat un joc de fotbal. Scottish Seaforth Highlanders au fost pozi ionate la frontiera franco-belgian cu inamicul, 9 Royal sasesti opus Infanterie. Ei au fost preg tirea pentru a s rb tori ziua de Craciun. Al turi de transee au pus n copaci simplu decorate cu lumn ri. Germanii nu sa mai ntors focuri de arm . Scots, la rndul s u oprit de fotografiere i de t cere au urmat. Apoi, sunetul de solda ii germani canta Silent Night putea fi auzit. La miezul nop ii, t cerea a c zut pn a doua zi diminea a cnd cteva dintre Infanterie s se ti r t cit n "nu-man's-teren". Scots a r spuns i au ie it n ntmpinarea lor. Un raport afirm c ig rile, ceasuri, inele i conserve de carne au fost schimbate i fotografii ale celor dragi au fost prezentate. Un meci de fotbal, urmat de neortodoxe. Por ii, au fost marcate cu capace i echipele au fost stabilite. n cele din urm oamenii au dat mna i s-au ntors la tran eele lor i la r zboi. De atunci, au existat alte partide, care au f cut istorie. Din p cate, mul i au f cut acest lucru din motive gresite. Sud juc tori americani i sprijin au comis acte de violen de multe ori. Dup uruguayan Consulatul din Buenos Aires pn la politia a inceput tragere la ei. Un alt exemplu este moartea tragic a 39 de suporteri italieni care au murit n revolta de la Stadionul Heysel atunci cnd joac Liverpool au fost Juventus, n finala Cupei Europene 1985. Juc torii de prea multe ori un comportament extrem de afi aj nesportiv. n 1962 nas un jucator italian a fost spart de c tre Chile lui Leonel Sanchez, i dou zeci de ani mai trziu, un juc tor francez a pierdut doi din i dup ce a fost lovit de portarul Germaniei de Vest. Acuza iile de fraud sau de "stabilire" scorul, de asemenea, au fost f cute. Andres Escobar a marcat un autogol atunci cnd Columbia a pierdut 2-4 la Statele Unite ale Americii n 1994. Sa spus c baronii columbian de droguri au pariat o gramada de bani pe Columbia pierde.