Today, we bring you five of the biggest controversies to occur in European football. There have been some pretty crazy events over the years.
Di Stefano transfer
To get the ball rolling you back to the summer of 1953, when both Real Madrid and Barcelona tried to sign Argentinian great, Alfredo Di Stefano, to bolster their reputations as football clubs. The "blond arrow" was the best player in the world at the time and is still considered by many to be one of the greatest of all time. Barcelona agreed a deal with River Plate for his signature, while Real Madrid had agreed a deal with Milonarios, who Di Stefano was playing for at the time, in a rebel league. Barcelona had beat Madrid to the punch, but the player's contract situation complicated matters. Eventually it was agreed that both teams would share his services, with him playing one season at one club, and the next at the other. Barcelona pulled out of the deal after Di Stefano struggle to adapt in Spain, but were made to regret the decision as he won five consecutive European Cups with Madrid in years to come. To this day, the dispute over his transfer is argued about between the rivals.
Diego Maradona's Drug Habits
Diego Maradona was an unstoppable force when in his prime in the 1980s. He almost single-handedly won the World Cup for Argentina in 1986, and guided his team to the final in Italy four years later as well. However, in 1994, the man known as 'Dios' or God played only two games, where he scored once against Greece, but was sent home after failing a drug test. It was later found out that Maradona was struggling with an addiction to several recreational drugs including, amongst others, marijuana and cocaine. He later managed to recover from his addiction, after a twenty-year struggle in 2004.
Ciudad Deportiva Reclassification
In the year 2000, new Real Madrid president, Florentino Perez, who had previously made a fortune in the construction industry was able to organise with the Spanish government to reclassify the land upon which Real Madrid's training complex was located into a commercial property zone. He was able to sell the land for a monster sum of €480 million, which allowed the club to clear its debts and fund the transfers of Galatico superstars such as Luis Figo and Zinedine Zidane.
Calciopoli scandal
In the year 2006, Italian police uncovered a scandal that involved several teams from the country's professional leagues, including champions, Juventus. Other major teams, such as AC Millan, Fiorentina, Lazio and Reggina were found to be guilty in a scandal that allowed games to be rigged through clubs selecting favourable referees. The primary antagonists were Juventus directors Luciano Moggi and Antonio Giraudo. The Italian champions were fined and relegated to Serie B, and the effects of the scandal continue to plague Italian football to this day.
Qatar FIFA World Cup 2022
On 2 December 2010, it was announced that Qatar would be the hosts of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, after FIFA President Sepp Blatter endorsed the Arab nation as a suitable host for the tournament. Questions have been raised over the weather conditions for a tournament to be hosted in the middle of the summer, where temperatures will be as high as 50 degrees in summer months. Compromises such as changing the tournament dates to winter months and scheduling matches for late in the evening have been proposed, but it is a forgone conclusion that the World Cup bid involved foul play, as many reputable media outlets have shown that many FIFA executives accepted bribes to vote in the country's favour in the process of selection.
There have been some serious underhanded techniques employed over the years!
Which controversy do you think was the biggest?
