Charting the worst football fouls of all time

Fair is foul and foul is fair. Committing a foul was once considered immoral: something to be heartily ashamed of. But as early as 1911, CB Fry said: “In football, it is widely acknowledged that if both sides agree to cheat, cheating is fair.” A foul can now be considered part of a transaction: “Good foul to give away,” Gary Neville might say approvingly.

A foul is sometimes seen as an act of self-sacrifice: taking one for the team. Only the aggrieved make much outcry. As Marcel Proust said: “One becomes moral as soon as one is unhappy.” Here are 20 great fouls that have helped to shape the moral climate of football.

1. Willie Young on Paul Allen

FA Cup final 1980

Allen of West Ham United was through on goal, Young of Arsenal cut him down. He got a yellow card. As a result the rules were changed: now “denying a clear goal-scoring opportunity” gets you a red. West Ham still won 2-1.

2. João Morais on Pelé

World Cup 1966

Pelé of Brazil was carrying a knee injury; Morais of Portugal targeted that knee and cut him down twice. Pelé stayed on the pitch, there being no substitutes back then, but he could hardly walk. Portugal qualified from the group, Brazil didn’t. Portugal were beaten by England in the semi-finals. Morais’s foul helped England to win the World Cup.

3. Federico Valverde on Alvaro Morata

Spanish Super Cup 2020

It’s 0-0 in extra time when Atletico Madrid’s Morata was clean through on goal; Valverde of Real Madrid chopped him down and was sent off. The scores stayed level, Real won on penalties and Valverde was made man of the match. The tactical foul was now a thing to be celebrated.

4. Andoni Goicoechea on Diego Maradona

La Liga 1983

Goicoechea of Bilbao broke Maradona’s ankle with a tackle in a match against Barcelona. He got a ten-match ban and earned the nickname The Butcher of Bilbao: an acknowledgment that committing fouls is part of a footballer’s job. Goicoechea reportedly kept the offending boot in a glass case.

5. George Best throws mud at referee

Home Nations Tournament 1970

Best, playing for Northern Ireland, was repeatedly fouled by Scottish players. Getting up from the muddy pitch once again he asked the referee for protection. The referee told him to shut up and get on with it. Best threw mud at him, apparently to show him what he was going through. He was at once sent off: when in doubt, punish the victim.

6. Claudio Gentile on Diego Maradona

World Cup 1982

Italy met Argentina in the competition’s second group phase and Gentile man-marked Maradona. In the course of the match he committed 23 fouls: thoughtful, intelligent, scientific fouling. It was Maradona who got the yellow card – for protesting. Italy won 2-1 and went on to win the World Cup.

7. Paul Gascoigne on Gary Charles

FA Cup Final 1991

Carried away by the occasion, Gascoigne of Tottenham Hotspur made a hideous lunge on Charles of Nottingham, Forest, but wasn’t even shown a yellow card. He ruptured a cruciate ligament – his own. He had to leave the pitch. Forest won 2-1.

8. Eden Hazard on ball-boy

League Cup semi-final 2013

Chelsea were trailing Swansea and wanted plenty of quick ball. The Swansea ball-boy Charlie Morgan, aged 17, had earlier boasted that he was “needed for time-wasting”. He flopped onto the ball. Hazard tried to reach it and was sent off for appearing to kick him. Swansea won 2-0 on aggregate; Morgan is now a multi-millionaire from his vodka business.

9. Sergio Ramos on Mo Salah

Champions League Final 2018

Salah had already scored 44 goals for Liverpool that season, but he was forced out of the final against Real Madrid after a tangle with Ramos. Ramos held onto his arm and appeared to twist it as they fell: Salah’s shoulder was dislocated. No foul was given; Salah had to leave the pitch; Real won 3-1.

10. Benjamin Massing on Claudio Caniggia

World Cup 1990

Cameroon were clinging to a 1-0 lead over the world champions Argentina, on the brink of the greatest upset in football history. A couple of minutes left, Caniggia sprinted down the wing and Massing scythed him down. Cameroon, down to nine men, held on.

11. Rivaldo fakes it v Turkey

World Cup 2002

Corner to Brazil. Hakan Unsal of Turkey kicked the ball rather petulantly to Rivaldo. The ball struck his thigh; Rivaldo went down clutching his face. Unsal was sent off; Brazil won 2-1; Rivaldo scored the winner from the spot and went on to win the World Cup. He said afterwards: “People have to be cunning.”

12. Bruce Grobbelaar v Roma

European Cup Final 1984

The match went to penalties and Grobbelaar, the Liverpool goalkeeper mimed acute terror, wobbling his legs absurdly. He could have been booked for ungentlemanly conduct. Bruno Conti, bemused, fired over the bar; Francesco Graziani missed; Liverpool won.

13. Lauren James on Michelle Alozie

World Cup 2023

This is the only entry from women’s football: but as in every other aspect of the game, they’re making up for lost time. James of England stamped on her opponent Alozie of Nigeria and was sent off. Oscar Wilde said: “Football is all very well for rough girls, but is hardly suitable for delicate boys.”

14. David Beckham on Diego Simeone

World Cup 1998

The genius of Simeone, the Argentinian captain was not in flattening Beckham of England, but in ruffling his hair afterwards. Beckham kicked out at him – idiotically, but scarcely more than a tap – and Simeone went down as if shot. He got a yellow card, Beckham a red. Argentina won on penalties.

15. Luis Suarez on Giorgio Chiellini

World Cup 2014

Suarez of Uruguay committed an original foul on Chiellini of Italy by biting him. It was the third time he had been in trouble for biting. He was banned for nine matches: the longest ban in World Cup history. It reflected public distaste rather than physical damage.

16. Roy Keane on Alf-Inge Haaland

Premier League 2001

Keane of Manchester United boasted in his autobiography that his knee-high tackle on Haaland of Manchester City was a premeditated act of revenge; Haaland had earlier accused him of faking an injury. Haaland never played a full 90 minutes again. Keane was fined £5,000 and an extra £150,000 after admitting it was deliberate: the first for the foul, the second for sins against public relations.

17. Zinedine Zidane on Marco Materazzi

World Cup Final 2006

Materazzi insulted Zidane’s sister (it is said); Zidane floored him with a head-butt to the chest. He was sent off; it was his last act as player. He said later he would “die rather than apologise.” Italy won on penalties.

18. Eric Cantona on Matthew Simmons

Premier League 1995

Simmons, a Crystal Palace supporter, ran 11 rows down to taunt Cantona after he’d been sent off. Cantona went for him with a head-high kick but didn’t make much contact. Cantona was given two weeks in prison, commuted to 120 hours of community service. Simmons was fined £500, and then another £500 for assaulting the prosecuting counsel.

19. Diego Maradona v England

World Cup 1986

Maradona, 5 ft 5 in, of Argentina beat the England goalkeeper Peter Shilton, 6 ft 0 in, by using his hand to tip the ball over his head and into the net. Argentina won the match and eventually the World Cup. Maradona said it was “un poco con la cabeza de Maradona y otro poco con la mano de Dios.”

20. Harald Schumacher on Patrick Battiston

World Cup semi-final 1982

Battiston of France was clear on goal; Schumacher, West Germany’s goalkeeper, sprinted out and leapt into him. He made much better contact than Cantona: Battiston was knocked unconscious, lost two teeth, suffered three cracked ribs and was stretchered off. The referee awarded a goal-kick. Battiston, a substitute, had to be substituted. West Germany won on penalties but lost the final to Italy.

Photograph by PA Images