Biggest World Cup heartbreaks

Final 2010 - Netherlands vs Spain.

I think I can speak for my whole nation that we were absolutely devastated after our defeat.
I didn't watch the Highlights until 2 months ago and damn it still hurt. The loss wasn't just devastating for the fans, some players took it really hard. I'm sure if Sneijder had won the world cup his career would've looked much different.
The coach: Van Marwijk couldn't function normally for a year~. Van Bommel almost had a mental break down after being randomly confronted by the images of Robben missing the chance by a toe... Most heartbreaking moment for me for sure.
 
RuudRuud said:
Final 2010 - Netherlands vs Spain.

I think I can speak for my whole nation that we were absolutely devastated after our defeat.
I didn't watch the Highlights until 2 months ago and damn it still hurt. The loss wasn't just devastating for the fans, some players took it really hard. I'm sure if Sneijder had won the world cup his career would've looked much different.
The coach: Van Marwijk couldn't function normally for a year~. Van Bommel almost had a mental break down after being randomly confronted by the images of Robben missing the chance by a toe... Most heartbreaking moment for me for sure.
Click to expand...

Makes you wonder how bad the fallout from the 7-1 was fro Brazil @Charles Miller
 
Last edited:
TheRedDevil95 said:
I'm obviously too young to have experienced it, but the World Cup in Mexico in 1986 will always be remembered for one particular pass from former red Jesper Olsen in Denmark. He basically gifted Spain an open goal (I can't link to the video because of the limitations of a newbie on this forum).

It was the most exciting Danish national team ever. They played some beautiful football and even though it was the first time Denmark was part of a World Cup, we won our group and was up 1-0 against Spain in the Round of 16 when this happened. Spain went on to win the match 5-1.
Click to expand...
That certainly wasn't much fun. To be fair to Jesper, we(Denmark) didn't really collapse until Sepp took off Henrik Andersen.

Denmark - Brazil '98 quarterfinal. I really that Denmark team could have done something, if it wasn't for a complete brainfart in defense, that let brazil get back on top after we equalized.
 
Italy-Spain in 1994 I was rooting for Spain in the cup and after a slow start they outplayed Italy and were very unlucky to lose at the end.

Argentina-England in 1998 - I was a big fan of England's national team back then and with Beck's red and Campbell's disallowed goal and to lose on penalties was awful.

Korea-Spain in 2002 - Felt wretched for the Spanish here. This world cup was open as none of the pre-tournament favorites seemed to fancy it and to be absolutely blatantly robbed like that was unfair.

Not one particular moment but always felt for the Dutch being so close so many times. It kind of felt like a formality that Germany would win the last one but I didn't like seeing them go out on pens in the semi's after coming so close in 2010.
 
KirkDuyt said:
Robben missing that chance in 2010 and Iniesta scoring.

I know Nigel de Jong should've been send of, but just before Iniesta scored, Sneijder shot a freekick into the wall Spain put up resulting in an obvious corner. However, Webb gave a goal kick and Spain scored the winner in the 118th minute. Feck you Howard Webb.
Click to expand...

This. Hands down.
 
2002 Rivaldo's corner kick dive vs Turkey.

Special mention for 2009 Henry handball vs Ireland. *I know it wasnt at the wc itself*
 
Peyroteo said:
France-Portugal semi in 2006. After losing the final in 2004 we outplayed France in the semifinal but missed too many chances, don’t think I’ll ever get to see us in a WC final.

I’ll never forgive Ricardo Carvalho for that penalty and I'll never forget how certain everyone was that there was absolutely no chance Zidane would have missed it.
Click to expand...
I remember Figo missing a header from a few yards out after a Ronaldo freekick in that game. :(
 
do.ob said:
Makes you wonder how bad the fallout from the 7-1 was fro Brazil @Charles Miller
Click to expand...
In the first weeks it was devastating. Nobody could believe something like that could happen. But the world cup was in the middle of a political crisis that lasted some years and lead to the impeachment of the President, so i think the focus of the people was not in the sport after some months. Only when Brazil was playing some friendly or the Copa America the ghosts were back.

In the long term that defeat had the opposite impact of Brazil losing in 1982. When Brazil lost to Italy in 1982 it changed the style for decades since the coaches started to use a defensive approuch. After that defeat to Germany now theres a consensus in the media and the coaches are under huge pressure to play the traditional Brazilian football.
 
kambinks said:
1994 when Roberto Baggio skied it. Back then I only got to watch the Italian league and it was a highlights show and 1 full match almost everyday. The only heroes I knew then were the 3 Holland greats in Ac milan, Roberto Baggio, along with sampdorias keeper who seemed unbeatable at the time with my limited football knowledge. When he skied the penalty its like a god lost his powers and was just a mere mortal. Would never have thought that'd happen.

Didn't knew much about everything else since i was like 9 at that time but one of my first recollections of watching football and was one of my biggest disappointments.
Click to expand...

That penalty miss almost brought me to tears. Baggio was my hero at the time. Still one of my favorite all time players.
 
Baggios penalty for me, still saddens me 24 years later
 
The Zidane headbutt. I wanted Italy to win but I didn't want his career to end like that (even if it was spectacular) and it also killed the last 10 minutes of extra-time when France had looked like the fresher side.

As an Ireland fan the only tournament that I can remember them at was 2002 so Ian Harte's penalty miss and Kilbane's rebound followed by losing on a shoot-out against Spain obviously stands out. It's weird that the tournament would have opened up for us if we had got through, playing South Korea in the quarter finals and the prospect of a semi-final against an unconvincing German side who we had already matched in the group stages.
 
Someone is very close to be the king of football only one match away in 1998.Almost presented his country with 6 stars and rival pele.
 
The referees in Korea 2002, and the confirmation years later that everything had been premeditated and not simply human errors. Until that moment I was so naive to think that these scandals were not possible in elite matches
 
Brazil obviously for all their brilliance in 82 beaten by a resolute Italian side but my real sympathy was with France getting knocked out by Germany. That game had everything and will always remember Battison getting floored by Schumacker, missing teeth, brocken ribs and not even a foul given. To see that France team with Tigana, Platini, Giresse and the Brazilian team of Socrates, Zico, Falco go out of the tournament was heartbreak for them but on the flip side showed the sheer will to win, organization and discipline, determination of those great German and Italian sides of 82.

Outside of that and they were an awful heartbreak were the vuvuzelas of 2010.
 
Thierry Henry diving/cheating ways during pretty much all of his France career. Some of these tournaments Henry made a dive in each of the elimination games that lead to France winning the game somehow, it was disgusting.
 
RE Ghana vs Uruguay

Wasn’t a Ghana player offside before the Suarez handball?
 
Losing to the (cheating) Italians in 2006 when we were clearly better and imagining Zidane finishing his career with a WC instead of a red card. fecking Buffon (for saving that header) and fecking Materrazi
 
Scotland have contrived to feck it up every time - probably the worst single moment was Taffarel's wonder save in the 90th minute for Brazil in the final group game in 1990.
IFC 1905 said:
In my time, losing to Germany at Penalties in 2006.

I'd bet my house that team would've won the WC if they went through germany.


And of course the final. But that one in 2006 hurt me more.
Click to expand...
Aye, you were were a country mile ahead of every other team in the group stages. Perhaps the sexiest football the World Cup saw since Brazil in 1982.
The Purley King said:
I remember 86 and even worse in terms of a kick in the nuts, Italia 90. We deserved to win that semi-final.....
More recently, 98 vs Argentina. Was watching the game in the pub and when Campbell scored, everyone went ballistic, pints everywhere, people falling over, jumping on each other. Took about a minute of celebrations and everyone picking themselves up, when someone noticed that the score hadn't changed from 2-2 and Argentina almost scored whilst England players were still celebrating.
Was fecking heartbreaking!
Click to expand...
Darren Anderton's 100m recovery run there to block the goal was the stuff of legend.
Zlatattack said:
England Argentina in 1998.

1. Beckham getting sent off for a pussy like reaction. If he'd have decked Simeone i wouldn't have minded so much.

2. Sol Campbells goal being ruled offside.
Click to expand...
Blame Shearer. He elbowed Roa when the keeper went to claim it.
 
Always supported England till the 2010 wc, their 2006 elimination at the hands of Portugal hurted ne very much. Beckham crying still comes to my mind. Rooney's red card and them missing penalties was bad.
 
Baggio’s penalty in 94’ and I didn’t even watch it I was only 5. Perhaps it was to do with England not qualifying but I’ve read and watched the history of that final and I feel for him every time I see that pen played back.

More recently Ghana v Uruguay 2010. I Remember rooting for Ghana and watching it with a fellow Liverpool fan and saying “ what a cheating cnut he should be banned rest of the tournament, watch Ghana miss this now!” and they did, and we went and signed Suarez 6 months later.

Anything to do with heartbreak with England is pre-2002, now it’s just predictable got fed up of them long time ago.
 
I didn't even know the 1998 World Cup was going on until halfway through. Then I watched Colombia onwards and as a spoiled child was convinced England were going to win the whole thing simply because I wanted them to.

God dammit that was the roughest night of my life.
 
Platt scoring in 1990 after Belgium hit 3 posts in regulation and carried play.

Wilmots goal being disallowed in 2002 Against Brazil.
 
In qualifying the henry handball vs Ireland.

Gyan missing that penalty was heartbreaking. Suarez wouldn't have gotten so much flack if he hadn't behaved like he did post match. Uruguay also behaved disgracefully after the bite which is a shame as I like their manager and fancy them again this year to be dark horses.

Oliver Khan spilling the ball to Ronaldo was a shame as he had a great tournament
 
Last edited:
Charlie Foley said:
On the list of shit things Suarez does that was pretty low down. Also wasn't the free a dive and there was an offside in the build up.
Click to expand...
Lay said:
RE Ghana vs Uruguay

Wasn’t a Ghana player offside before the Suarez handball?
Click to expand...

It doesn't fit the narrative so brushed under the carpet.

Blatant dive
sbAPh3.gif


Blatant offsides (plural, far from borderline)
kKIwDL.gif


But no, it was ratface Suarez who cheated Africa out of winning its first World Cup (in a quarter final). And he even had the cheek to celebrate his team not getting knocked out!

:rolleyes:
 
Thought so. I recall having many arguments about how a Ghana goal would have been unjust.
 
Sweden losing to Senegal from a Golden goal in Japan 2002. Anders Svensson had just hit the post after a helicopter turn in the area and then Senegal scored.
 
Devil77 said:
Sweden losing to Senegal from a Golden goal in Japan 2002. Anders Svensson had just hit the post after a helicopter turn in the area and then Senegal scored.
Click to expand...

Great one. One of the most exhilarating end-to-end sequences I’ve ever seen. The Svensson move would have been one of the best WC goals in history, instead shortly after they lost after a very nice play by Senegal.
 
Must be the quarterfinal against West Germany in 1970. Losing 3-2 after leading 2-0 and West Germany getting the winner in extra time through their goal machine Gerd Muller.
Our reserve GK Peter Bonetti got the call up after Gordon Banks went down sick before the game. Bonetti, one of the best in the business, had a nightmare on the night.
On paper we had a great team and as defending champions we thought we could go all the way. When you're younger you take defeats harder. I was 17 then and not only me but you almost felt the whole country going into mourning.
 
antohan said:
But no, it was ratface Suarez who cheated Africa out of winning its first World Cup (in a quarter final). And he even had the cheek to celebrate his team not getting knocked out!

:rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Ratface Suarez did cheat Ghana out, though. Deliberately handling the ball is a world away from an offside.

It's immaterial if he was punished for it - it's still cheating.
 
VP said:
Ratface Suarez did cheat Ghana out, though. Deliberately handling the ball is a world away from an offside.

It's immaterial if he was punished for it - it's still cheating.
Click to expand...
The dive and then the offside would have cheated Uruguay out. Notice the circle stays at the end on one of the offside guys, that's the one whose effort Suarez stopped.

The fair/just thing would have been for nothing at all to happen and the lino not making up a foul when Adiyah went down like a sack of potatoes with nobody anywhere near him.

All in all, Uruguay eventually going through was the fair outcome, except that it had to play the semi Suarez-less (and down three other players injured in what should have been red card incidents, one played almost the entire ET with a broken foot, another spent more than 5 minutes unconscious after the equivalent of a spear tackle).

If anyone was cheated out of a shot at the World Cup it was Uruguay.
 
AllezLesDiables said:
Platt scoring in 1990 after Belgium hit 3 posts in regulation and carried play.

Wilmots goal being disallowed in 2002 Against Brazil.
Click to expand...
Right enough, Belgium were the better team. Although didn't Barnes have a goal wrongly disallowed too?
 
That last world cup when Ivory Coast gave away last minute penalty to Greece. Greece qualified ahead of them (and played Costa Rica of course) so IC's golden generation denied a knock out world cup game once again.
 
antohan said:
The dive and then the offside would have cheated Uruguay out. Notice the circle stays at the end on one of the offside guys, that's the one whose effort Suarez stopped.

The fair/just thing would have been for nothing at all to happen and the lino not making up a foul when Adiyah went down like a sack of potatoes with nobody anywhere near him.

All in all, Uruguay eventually going through was the fair outcome, except that it had to play the semi Suarez-less (and down three other players injured in what should have been red card incidents, one played almost the entire ET with a broken foot, another spent more than 5 minutes unconscious after the equivalent of a spear tackle).

If anyone was cheated out of a shot at the World Cup it was Uruguay.
Click to expand...
:lol: Yes, poor Suarez and Uruguay, were the victims
 
You must log in or register to reply here.