3 June 2002 - The Not-So-Beautiful Game

On 3 June 2002, Brazilian midfielder Rivaldo helped lead his side to a 2-1 win over Turkey in their opening match of the 2002 World Cup. Rivaldo scored the winning goal with an 87th-minute penalty kick, but he overshadowed that goal by faking an injury in second-half stoppage time that resulted in a red card for Turkey's Hakan Ünsal.

The card came in the 94th minute, with Brazil having just won a corner kick. Rivaldo stood next to the flag while Ünsal kicked the ball over to him. It hit Rivaldo in the thigh, but he immediately fell to the ground clutching his face. Although the linesman was standing right behind him, the officials bought the dive and issued a yellow card to Unsal. It was his second yellow of the match, so he was sent off.

FIFA later reviewed the incident and fined Rivaldo 11,000 Swiss francs, which was less than half a day's wage under his contract with Barcelona, his club at the time. Rivaldo expressed no remorse, however, stating "I don't regret anything. This is something that will never end in football," and claiming that FIFA simply chose to make an example of him.

Brazil went on to win the trophy, beating Germany 2-0 in the Final. Rivaldo finished the tournament tied with Germany's Miroslav Klose as the second-highest scorer with 5 goals and was selected to the All-Star squad.

28 August 2000 - Super Mario's Golden Goal

On 28 August 2000, Galatasaray defeated Real Madrid, 1-2, in the UEFA Super Cup before a crowd of 15,000 at Stade Louis II in Monaco.

Established in 1972 as the European Super Cup, the competition originally featured the holder of the European Cup against the holder of the European Cup-Winners' Cup and was played over two legs. Starting in 1998, however, the cup was contested in a single match at a neutral venue. The Cup-Winners' Cup was discontinued in 1999, so the 2000 Final was played between the UEFA Champions League holders (Real Madrid) and the UEFA Cup holders (Galatasaray).

The Turkish side drew first blood with a penalty kick in the 41st minute, as Real defender Iván Campo was flagged for fouling left back Hakan Ünsal in the box and the Turkish side's new signing, Brazilian forward Mario Jardel, converted the spot kick. Real captain Raúl scored an equalizing penalty in the 79th minute after Galatasaray midfielder Suat Kaya was called for a handball.

The match went into extra time, where Jardel decided it by slotting the golden goal past Iker Casillas from eight meters away in the 103rd minute.

19 April 1972 - One Low Can Balance Out A Lot Of Highs

On 19 April 1972, Rivaldo, the 1999 Ballon d'Or winner and World Player of the Year, was born in Paulista, Brazil.

The playmaker started his career in 1991 with Santa Cruz FC and moved to several different clubs in Brazil and Spain, including Corinthians, Palmeiras, and Deportivo de la Coruña, before joining Barcelona in 1997. In his first season there, he scored a total of 28 goals across all competitions and helped Barça to claim both the league title and the Copa del Rey.

They repeated as league champions in 1998-99, with Rivaldo scoring a total of 29 goals (24 were in the league, making him the second-highest scorer that season behind Raúl, who had 25). The following summer, he scored twice in the Copa América final to lead Brazil to a 3-0 win over Uruguay. The combination of his success with club and country led to him collecting a handful of personal accolades at the end of the year, including the Ballon d'Or, the FIFA World Player of the Year award, and the World Soccer Player of the Year award.

He remained with Barcelona until 2002, beginning a series of moves to a variety of different clubs, including Milan, Olympiacos, and his current club, São Caetano.

Despite all of success, he is remembered partly for one of football's worst dives. While playing for Brazil against Turkey in the group stage of the 2002 World Cup, Hakan Ünsal kicked the ball toward Rivaldo, who was waiting to take a corner. Although the ball struck Rivaldo in the thigh, he fell to the ground clutching his face, leading the referee to eject Ünsal from the match. Brazil went on to win the game 2-1, then proceeded to win the World Cup.

3 June 2002 - The Not-So-Beautiful Game

On 3 June 2002, Brazilian midfielder Rivaldo helped lead his side to a 2-1 win over Turkey in their opening match of the 2002 World Cup. Rivaldo scored the winning goal with an 87th-minute penalty kick, but he overshadowed that goal by faking an injury in second-half stoppage time that resulted in a red card for Turkey's Hakan Ünsal.

The card came in the 94th minute, with Brazil having just won a corner kick. Rivaldo stood next to the flag while Ünsal kicked the ball over to him. It hit Rivaldo in the thigh, but he immediately fell to the ground clutching his face. Although the linesman was standing right behind him, the officials bought the dive and issued a yellow card to Unsal. It was his second yellow of the match, so he was sent off.

FIFA later reviewed the incident and fined Rivaldo 11,000 Swiss francs, which was less than half a day's wage under his contract with Barcelona, his club at the time. Rivaldo expressed no remorse, however, stating "I don't regret anything. This is something that will never end in football," and claiming that FIFA simply chose to make an example of him.

Brazil went on to win the trophy, beating Germany 2-0 in the Final. Rivaldo finished the tournament tied with Germany's Miroslav Klose as the second-highest scorer with 5 goals and was selected to the All-Star squad.

28 August 2000 - Super Mario's Golden Goal

On 28 August 2000, Galatasaray defeated Real Madrid, 1-2, in the UEFA Super Cup before a crowd of 15,000 at Stade Louis II in Monaco.

Established in 1972 as the European Super Cup, the competition originally featured the holder of the European Cup against the holder of the European Cup-Winners' Cup and was played over two legs. Starting in 1998, however, the cup was contested in a single match at a neutral venue. The Cup-Winners' Cup was discontinued in 1999, so the 2000 Final was played between the UEFA Champions League holders (Real Madrid) and the UEFA Cup holders (Galatasaray).

The Turkish side drew first blood with a penalty kick in the 41st minute, as Real defender Iván Campo was flagged for fouling left back Hakan Ünsal in the box and the Turkish side's new signing, Brazilian forward Mario Jardel, converted the spot kick. Real captain Raúl scored an equalizing penalty in the 79th minute after Galatasaray midfielder Suat Kaya was called for a handball.

The match went into extra time, where Jardel decided it by slotting the golden goal past Iker Casillas from eight meters away in the 103rd minute.