12 October 1965 - Chile Gets A Ticket To Europe

On 12 October 1965, Chile beat Ecuador in a playoff to qualify for their first European World Cup.

They were coming off their best showing in the tournament, finishing in third place as hosts in 1962. But they had never played in a World Cup hosted by a European country, withdrawing from Italy '34 and France '38 and failing to qualify for Switzerland '54 and Sweden '58.

To reach England for the 1966 edition, they had to get through a CONMEBOL qualification group whose other members were Ecuador and Colombia. After four games each, Chile and Ecuador had identical records, with each having two wins, a draw, and a loss. Although Chile had a better goal differential and beat Ecuador 3-1 in the last scheduled match of the group, the rules ranked the teams by points only, forcing a decision through a playoff.

The teams met in the neutral location of Lima, Peru, where Leonel Sánchez (pictured)--the hero of Chile's 1966 World Cup performance--opened the scoring in the 16th minute, followed by a goal from Rubén Marcos in the 40th minute to stake Chile to a 2-0 lead at the break. Ecuador finally managed to get on the scoreboard in the 89th minute, but it was nothing more than a consolation goal.

The 2-1 win sent Chile to England, but they were unable to recapture their form from the previous tournament and were eliminated in the group stage.

11 July 2007 - Hot Water For The Chile Six

On 11 July 2007, Chile banned six players for twenty games each and barred them from ever captaining the national team.

The Chilean Football Federation issued the bans for conduct that occurred during that year's Copa America, but declined to describe the offenses, saying only that it was a matter of "internal indiscipline." The affected players were midfielder and captain Jorge Valdívia (pictured), striker Reinaldo Navia, and defenders Álvaro Ormeño, Rodrigo Tello, Jorge Vargas, and Pablo Contreras.

The announcement came the day after Chile's elimination from the tournament by Brazil in the quarterfinals, but the underlying incident took place after their final group stage match. As several players were celebrating their progression to the knockout rounds, the six players allegedly sexually harassed two waitresses at the team hotel. After the ban, Ormeño vociferously denied any involvement in the alleged activity.

After serving a ban for ten of the originally-announced twenty matches, five of the six players signed a written  apology and were reinstated to the national team, with Valdívia and Contreras going on to make appearances in the 2010 World Cup (Tello received a call-up, but did not play). The lone holdout was Ormeño, who continued to maintain his innocence and who has never played again for Chile.

2 June 1962 - Chile Beats Italy, Literally

On 2 June 1962, Chile used a few punches, one bloody nose, and a couple of goals to beat Italy in a World Cup match.

Known as "the Battle of Santiago," the match was played before a crowd of 66,057 at the Estadio Nacional and was the second group stage match of the tournament for both teams. Anti-Italian sentiment was running high in Chile because a pair of Italian journalists had disparaged both the city of Santiago and its women before the tournament even started (worried about their own safety, the two men had to flee the country before the match).

But the first sign of trouble on the day was sparked by Italy. Midfielder Giorgio Ferrini, caught up in a tangle while trying to gain control of the ball, grew frustrated and kicked out at Chilean forward Honorino Landa, prompting Ferrini's own quick ejection after only five minutes. He refused to leave and had to be dragged off the pitch by policemen. During the confusion, Italian forward Humberto Maschio appeared to punch Leonel Sánchez in the face.

Sánchez later punched defender Mario David in the face, but was not booked. David retaliated with a flying kick to Sánchez's head that did result in an expulsion, bringing Italy down to nine men in the 41st minute. Sánchez again escaped punishment after punching Maschio in the face, leaving him with a bloody nose.

Fights continued to break out across the pitch as Chile used their two-man advantage to win 2-0 with goals from Jaime Ramírez (73') and Jorge Toro (87'). BBC commentator David Coleman later described the match as "the most stupid, appalling, disgusting and disgraceful exhibition of football, possibly in the history of the game."

Although Italy won their next game, it was not enough to get them into the next round. Chile, meanwhile, advanced to the semifinals before losing to Brazil, then won the third-place match against Yugoslavia.

3 September 1989 - This Makes Me Wonder If Professional Wrestling Is Big In Chile

On 3 September 1989, a World Cup qualifier between Brazil and Chile was halted after Chile's goalkeeper, Roberto Rojas, appeared to be struck by a flare thrown from the stands and fell to the ground bleeding. 

Playing at the Maracanã in Rio de Janeiro in their group's last qualification match, Chile and Brazil were even on points. Brazil had a better goal differential and could qualify with a draw, while Chile needed a win to advance to the World Cup in Italy. Their prospects took a hit, however, when Brazilian striker Careca scored in the 49th minute to give the hosts a 1-0 lead. 

In the 70th minute, with the score still 1-0, a Brazilian supporter in the stands threw the flare in the direction of Rojas, who fell to the ground clutching his face. He was taken off the pitch on a stretcher, with blood running down his face. Citing fears for their safety, the Chilean team walked off the pitch and the match was abandoned. 

Subsequent review of the video from the match revealed that the flare was thrown by a Brazilian supporter named Rosemary de Mello, but also showed that it never struck Rojas. Investigators determined that his injury was self-inflicted, using a razor concealed in one of his gloves. They also concluded that Chile's manager, Orlando Aravena, orchestrated the feigned injury with Rojas and team doctor Daniel Rodriguez in the hope that the officials would award the match to Chile or, alternatively, call for a replay. 

Instead, the match went down as a 2-0 victory for Brazil, while Rojas, Aravena, and Rodriguez each received lifetime bans from FIFA. In addition, team captain Fernando Astengo received a five-year ban for taking the team off the pitch, while Chile were barred from participating in the 1994 World Cup. In 2001, FIFA lifted the ban on Rojas, who was working as a trainer in São Paulo at the time. 

21 November 1973 - The Soviets Avoid A Chile Reception

On 21 November 1973, Chile beat the Soviet Union 1-0 in a World Cup qualifying play-off match. It helped that the Soviets didn't bother to show up.

For the first time ever, World Cup qualification pitted a European team against a South American team in a playoff for the final spot in the tournament. The two teams drew 0-0 in the first leg, played in Moscow on 26 September. The second leg was scheduled for the National Stadium in Santiago, which had recently been used as a prison camp during that year's Chilean coup d'etat led by US-supported General Augusto Pinochet against Soviet-backed President Salvador Allende.

The Soviets refused to play in the stadium, effectively withdrawing from the tournament. The match went ahead as scheduled, though, with the Chileans kicking off before a crowd of thousands. They passed the ball down the pitch to their captain, who kicked it in from right in front of the goal. FIFA, however, declared the match a forfeit.

Immediately afterward, Chile hosted a friendly against Brazilian club Santos and lost 5-0.

14 June 1974 - West Germany Cooks With A Red Chile

On 14 June 1974, hosts West Germany opened that year's World Cup with a 1-0 win over Chile before a crowd of 83,168 at the Olympiastadion in West Berlin. In addition to kicking off West Germany's second World Cup-winning campaign, the match also delivered the Cup's first-ever red card.

Even before it began, the tournament took on a political aspect, as several Eastern European nations qualified at the expense of higher-profile Western European sides such as England, France, and Spain. West Germany, who had won the Cup in 1954 and had recently finished in second place (1966) and third place (1970), became the standard-bearers for the West. That role was emphasized by the first match, hosted by West Germany in the enclave of West Berlin, surrounded on all sides by fellow qualifiers East Germany.

The West Germans quickly established their intentions, placing the South Americans under constant pressure. In the 18th minute, defender Paul Breitner gave the hosts the lead, blasting a shot into the top left corner of the net from over thirty yards away. Only some excellent work from Chilean keeper Leopoldo Vallejos prevented the scoreline from getting worse for his side.

In the 67th minute, Chilean midfielder Carlos Caszely, frustrated by challenge moments earlier by West German defender Berti Vogts, retaliated with a violent lunge from behind that sent Vogts to the ground and earned Caszely a straight red - the first red card issued in the history of the World Cup (red and yellow cards were introduced for the first time in the 1970 tournament, but nobody earned a red that year).

The West Germans held on for the 1-0 win on the way to their second World Cup title.

25 April 1936 - A Born Fighter

On 25 April 1936, Leonel Sánchez, Chile's record cap-holder for an outfield player, was born in Santiago.

A left winger, Sánchez began his professional career in 1953 with Universidad de Chile, where he would remain for seventeen years and win six league titles (1959, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1967, 1969). In 1955, he made his first appearance for the Chilean national team in a 1-1 draw with Brazil. He would go on to earn a team-record 84 caps between 1955 and 1968. (The record was later beaten by goalkeeper Claudio Bravo, who currently sits at 89 appearances).

He was a key member of the team that finished third in the 1962 World Cup, scoring four goals to tie five other players as the tournament's top scorer. He scored two of those goals in Chile's opening match, a 3-1 group stage win over Switzerland.

Chile's next match, played on 2 June, was the infamous "Battle of Santiago" in which several fights broke out and two Italian players were sent off. One of the Italians ejected was Mario David, who was sent off for kicking Sánchez in the head. Sánchez had first punched David, but escaped punishment. Sánchez also broke the nose of Italy's Humberto Maschio with a punch, but somehow again avoided punishment as Chile won the match 2-0. They eventually lost to Brazil in the semi-finals, but finished in third place with a 1-0 win over Yugoslavia in the consolation match.

Sánchez left Universidad in 1969 over a contract dispute and played for three other Chilean teams before retiring in 1973.

29 August 1979 - Chile Reaches Seventh Heaven

On 29 August 1979, Chile secured their record win, beating Venezuela 7-0 in the first round of the Copa América.

They started the day tied in the three-team group's last place, having only a single point after drawing with Venezuela and losing to Colombia earlier in the month. Colombia were on top with five points, but had played one match more. Venezuela, meanwhile, despite starting strong with a pair of draws, had just been beaten badly by Colombia, 4-0, before traveling to Santiago to face Chile again.

The hosts quickly established their intentions, going up 1-0 with a goal from Jorge Peredo in just the third minute. Venezuela's defense composed itself, however, and limited Chile to only one other goal before the break (Carlos Rivas, 38').

In the second half, both Rivas (54') and Peredo (59') scored again to stretch the lead to 4-0, then Leonardo Véliz (76'), Mario Soto (80'), and Patricio Yáñez (84') added strikes of their own to set the final margin at 7-0. In addition to setting a record victory, it reversed the score of their record defeat, 7-0 to Brazil in 1959.

Chile went on to finish as runners-up to Paraguay. They later matched the record scoreline with a 7-0 win over Armenia in 1997, but have not yet exceeded it.

12 October 1965 - Chile Gets Their Ticket To Europe

On 12 October 1965, Chile beat Ecuador in a playoff to qualify for their first European World Cup.

They were coming off their best showing in the tournament, finishing in third place as hosts in 1962. But they had never played in a World Cup hosted by a European country, withdrawing from Italy '34 and France '38 and failing to qualify for Switzerland '54 and Sweden '58.

To reach England for the 1966 edition, they had to get through a CONMEBOL qualification group whose other members were Ecuador and Colombia. After four games each, Chile and Ecuador had identical records, with each having two wins, a draw, and a loss. Although Chile had a better goal differential and beat Ecuador 3-1 in the last scheduled match of the group, the rules ranked the teams by points only, forcing a decision through a playoff.

The teams met in the neutral location of Lima, Peru, where Leonel Sánchez (pictured)--the hero of Chile's 1966 World Cup performance--opened the scoring in the 16th minute, followed by a goal from Rubén Marcos in the 40th minute to stake Chile to a 2-0 lead at the break. Ecuador finally managed to get on the scoreboard in the 89th minute, but it was nothing more than a consolation goal.

The 2-1 win sent Chile to England, but they were unable to recapture their form from the previous tournament and were eliminated in the group stage.

11 July 2007 - Hot Water For The Chile Six

On 11 July 2007, Chile banned six players for twenty games each and barred them from ever captaining the national team.

The Chilean Football Federation issued the bans for conduct that occurred during that year's Copa America, but declined to describe the offenses, saying only that it was a matter of "internal indiscipline." The affected players were midfielder and captain Jorge Valdívia (pictured), striker Reinaldo Navia, and defenders Álvaro Ormeño, Rodrigo Tello, Jorge Vargas, and Pablo Contreras.

The announcement came the day after Chile's elimination from the tournament by Brazil in the quarterfinals, but the underlying incident took place after their final group stage match. As several players were celebrating their progression to the knockout rounds, the six players allegedly sexually harassed two waitresses at the team hotel. After the ban, Ormeño vociferously denied any involvement in the alleged activity.

After serving a ban for ten of the originally-announced twenty matches, five of the six players signed a written  apology and were reinstated to the national team, with Valdívia and Contreras going on to make appearances in the 2010 World Cup (Tello received a call-up, but did not play). The lone holdout was Ormeño, who continued to maintain his innocence.

2 June 1962 - Chile Beats Italy, Literally

On 2 June 1962, Chile used a few punches, one bloody nose, and a couple of goals to beat Italy in a World Cup match.

Known as "the Battle of Santiago," the match was played before a crowd of 66,057 at the Estadio Nacional and was the second group stage match of the tournament for both teams. Anti-Italian sentiment was running high in Chile because a pair of Italian journalists had disparaged both the city of Santiago and its women before the tournament even started (worried about their own safety, the two men had to flee the country before the match).

But the first sign of trouble on the day was sparked by Italy. Midfielder Giorgio Ferrini, caught up in a tangle while trying to gain control of the ball, grew frustrated and kicked out at Chilean forward Honorino Landa, prompting Ferrini's own quick ejection after only five minutes. He refused to leave and had to be dragged off the pitch by policemen. During the confusion, Italian forward Humberto Maschio appeared to punch Leonel Sánchez in the face.

Sánchez later punched defender Mario David in the face, but was not booked. David retaliated with a flying kick to Sánchez's head that did result in an expulsion, bringing Italy down to nine men in the 41st minute. Sánchez again escaped punishment after punching Maschio in the face, leaving him with a bloody nose.

Fights continued to break out across the pitch as Chile used their two-man advantage to win 2-0 with goals from Jaime Ramírez (73') and Jorge Toro (87'). BBC commentator David Coleman later described the match as "the most stupid, appalling, disgusting and disgraceful exhibition of football, possibly in the history of the game."

Although Italy won their next game, it was not enough to get them into the next round. Chile, meanwhile, advanced to the semifinals before losing to Brazil, then won the third-place match against Yugoslavia.

3 September 1989 - This Makes Me Wonder If Professional Wrestling Is Big In Chile

On 3 September 1989, a World Cup qualifier between Brazil and Chile was halted after Chile's goalkeeper, Roberto Rojas, appeared to be struck by a flare thrown from the stands and fell to the ground bleeding.

Playing at the Maracanã in Rio de Janeiro in their group's last qualification match, Chile and Brazil were even on points. Brazil had a better goal differential and could qualify with a draw, while Chile needed a win to advance to the World Cup in Italy. Their prospects took a hit, however, when Brazilian striker Careca scored in the 49th minute to give the hosts a 1-0 lead.

In the 70th minute, with the score still 1-0, a Brazilian supporter in the stands threw the flare in the direction of Rojas, who fell to the ground clutching his face. He was taken off the pitch on a stretcher, with blood running down his face. Citing fears for their safety, the Chilean team walked off the pitch and the match was abandoned.

Subsequent review of the video from the match revealed that the flare was thrown by a Brazilian supporter named Rosemary de Mello, but also showed that it never struck Rojas. Investigators determined that his injury was self-inflicted, using a razor concealed in one of his gloves. They also concluded that Chile's manager, Orlando Aravena, orchestrated the feigned injury with Rojas and team doctor Daniel Rodriguez in the hope that the officials would award the match to Chile or, alternatively, call for a replay.

Instead, the match went down as a 2-0 victory for Brazil, while Rojas, Aravena, and Rodriguez each received lifetime bans from FIFA. In addition, team captain Fernando Astengo received a five-year ban for taking the team off the pitch, while Chile were barred from participating in the 1994 World Cup. In 2001, FIFA lifted the ban on Rojas, who was working as a trainer in São Paulo at the time.

21 November 1973 - The Soviets Avoid A Chile Reception

On 21 November 1973, Chile beat the Soviet Union 1-0 in a World Cup qualifying play-off match. It helped that the Soviets didn't bother to show up.

For the first time ever, World Cup qualification pitted a European team against a South American team in a playoff for the final spot in the tournament. The two teams drew 0-0 in the first leg, played in Moscow on 26 September. The second leg was scheduled for the National Stadium in Santiago, which had recently been used as a prison camp during that year's Chilean coup d'etat led by US-supported General Augusto Pinochet against Soviet-backed President Salvador Allende.

The Soviets refused to play in the stadium, effectively withdrawing from the tournament. The match went ahead as scheduled, though, with the Chileans kicking off before a crowd of thousands. They passed the ball down the pitch to their captain, who kicked it in from right in front of the goal. FIFA, however, declared the match a forfeit.

Immediately afterward, Chile hosted a friendly against Brazilian club Santos and lost 5-0.

14 June 1974 - West Germany Cooks With A Red Chile

On 14 June 1974, hosts West Germany opened that year's World Cup with a 1-0 win over Chile before a crowd of 83,168 at the Olympiastadion in West Berlin. In addition to kicking off West Germany's second World Cup-winning campaign, the match also delivered the Cup's first-ever red card.

Even before it began, the tournament took on a political aspect, as several Eastern European nations qualified at the expense of higher-profile Western European sides such as England, France, and Spain. West Germany, who had won the Cup in 1954 and had recently finished in second place (1966) and third place (1970), became the standard-bearers for the West. That role was emphasized by the first match, hosted by West Germany in the enclave of West Berlin, surrounded on all sides by fellow qualifiers East Germany.

The West Germans quickly established their intentions, placing the South Americans under constant pressure. In the 18th minute, defender Paul Breitner gave the hosts the lead, blasting a shot into the top left corner of the net from over thirty yards away. Only some excellent work from Chilean keeper Leopoldo Vallejos prevented the scoreline from getting worse for his side.

In the 67th minute, Chilean midfielder Carlos Caszely, frustrated by challenge moments earlier by West German defender Berti Vogts, retaliated with a violent lunge from behind that sent Vogts to the ground and earned Caszely a straight red - the first red card issued in the history of the World Cup (red and yellow cards were introduced for the first time in the 1970 tournament, but nobody earned a red that year).

The West Germans held on for the 1-0 win on the way to their second World Cup title.

25 April 1936 - A Born Fighter

On 25 April 1936, Chile's record cap-holder Leonel Sánchez was born in Santiago.

A left winger, Sánchez began his professional career in 1953 with Universidad de Chile, where he would remain for seventeen years and win six league titles (1959, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1967, 1969). In 1955, he made his first appearance for the Chilean national team in a 1-1 draw with Brazil. He would go on to earn a national record 84 caps between 1955 and 1968.

He was a key member of the team that finished third in the 1962 World Cup, scoring four goals to tie five other players as the tournament's top scorer. He scored two of those goals in Chile's opening match, a 3-1 group stage win over Switzerland.

Chile's next match, played on 2 June, was the infamous "Battle of Santiago" in which several fights broke out and two Italian players were sent off. One of the Italians ejected was Mario David, who was sent off for kicking Sánchez in the head. Sánchez had first punched David, but escaped punishment. Sánchez also broke the nose of Italy's Humberto Maschio with a punch, but somehow again avoided punishment as Chile won the match 2-0. They eventually lost to Brazil in the semi-finals, but finished in third place with a 1-0 win over Yugoslavia in the consolation match.

Sánchez left Universidad in 1969 over a contract dispute and played for three other Chilean teams before retiring in 1973.