5. Argentina’s derby goes into exile | 2018
The biggest Superclasico in history, the Copa Libertadores final, became official proof that the continent needs therapy. River Plate fans pelted Boca Juniors’ team bus with stones and pepper spray. Players vomited in the locker room and some were taken to hospital, while thousands of ordinary fans sat inside the stadium waiting for kickoff. Boca refused to take the field, and the match was not merely moved to another stadium or city. It was shipped to another continent and played at the Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid. In Argentina, officials concluded that South American football apparently cannot function without arrests and emergency-room evacuations.
River won and celebrated at the expense of its bitter rival, but what everyone remembers is the nuclear-level chaos.
4. Africa Cup of Nations explodes | 2024
Morocco enjoyed what many saw as home-style refereeing throughout the Africa Cup of Nations, and in the 98th minute of the final was awarded a highly questionable penalty. Senegal finally snapped and began walking off the pitch, with coach Papa Thiaw heard saying, “I am not staying here.” Officials panicked. Star forward Sadio Mane stepped in as an unlikely mediator and convinced his teammates to return. The chaos ended with poetic justice. Brahim Diaz tried a clumsy Panenka and missed. Pape Gueye scored a stunning extra-time goal, and Senegal lifted the trophy over Morocco and the referee.
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Security forces separate Morocco and Senegal players after the penalty whistle
(Photo: Youssef Loulidi/ AP)
3. Serena Williams loses control | 2018
Everything was set for Serena Williams to win her 24th Grand Slam title in the US Open final, but Naomi Osaka stunned the world and Williams unraveled. Chair umpire Carlos Ramos issued a warning for coaching, then docked a point for racket abuse.
When Williams screamed “thief,” Ramos escalated the situation and handed her a controversial game penalty. The score jumped to 5-3, and Arthur Ashe Stadium shook with boos. Osaka stood there in tears, unable to understand why the greatest victory of her career felt like a televised funeral.
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Williams called him a “thief.” Chair umpire Carlos Ramos
(Photo: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
2. Drama and politics in Athens | 1995
Europe was reshaping itself after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the war in Yugoslavia. Tiny Lithuania reached the EuroBasket final but felt the referees were killing them to hand Serbia the gold. After Arvydas Sabonis was whistled for his fifth foul, the Lithuanians walked off the court. In a rare act of sportsmanship, Serbian star Sasha Djordjevic, who scored 41 points, pleaded with them, saying, “Please do not leave.” They returned, Serbia won, and the controversy did not end there. Croatia took bronze, but its players stepped off the podium moments before the Serbs climbed on.
1. Olympic disgrace in Munich | 1972
The United States men’s basketball team had never lost an Olympic game, until officials decided the Soviet Union would win. The Americans led by one point with three seconds left. Referees and scorekeepers gave the Soviets three separate chances to replay the final three seconds, citing claims that the clock had not been started correctly. On the third attempt, Aleksandr Belov scored the winning basket.
Those three seconds contained every possible form of deception, from an illegal substitution to a clock literally jumping backward to create more time. The Americans refused to accept their silver medals, which remain locked in a Swiss vault. No one is coming to collect them.