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.
On 1 June 1921, the clubs from the newly-created Irish Free State broke off from the Irish Football Association and formed their own separate association and national team.
Prior to the split, football in the whole of Ireland was governed by the IFA, formed in 1880 and headquartered in Belfast. But several clubs in the southern part of the island--partitioned off as the Irish Free State in 1920--felt that the IFA did not adequately represent their interests (the conflict predated the partition as evidenced by the formation of the southern Leinster Football Association in 1892).
Matters came to a head in 1921. Three Dublin-based clubs--Bohemians, St. James' Gate, and Shelbourne--withdrew from the IFA-controlled Irish League, but continued to play in the Irish Cup. Shelbourne reached the final that year, drawing with Belfast club Glenavon in Belfast, and asked for the replay to be held in Dublin. The IFA refused the request, so Shelbourne refused to play, forfeiting the cup.
That June, a group of representatives from several southern clubs met at Molesworth Hall in Dublin and agreed to form a separate governing body called the Football Association of Ireland and a new national team. Initially, both the FAI and the IFA claimed authority over the entire island, leading to the unusual situation in 1950 when four players played for both associations' national teams at that year's World Cup. That led FIFA to step in and limit the authority of the two groups, so the FAI governs the Republic of Ireland and the IFA controls Northern Ireland.
Since then, the FAI have gotten the better of their northern neighbors, compiling a record of four wins, two losses, and four draws.
On 31 May 1961, Benfica won their first European Cup, beating Barcelona 3-2. It was the first final for both teams and the first European Cup not won by Real Madrid.
Since the first European Cup Final in 1956, Real Madrid had won it five straight times. But in the 1960-61 competition, they were eliminated in the first round by Spanish rivals Barcelona, who then advanced to the final with wins over Spartak Hradec Králové and Hamburg (the latter in a playoff). They had also beaten Lierse in the premilinary round. Benfica, meanwhile, reached the final with wins over Hearts, Újpesti Dózsa, AGF, and Rapid Wien.
In the final, played before a crowd of 33,000 at the Wankdorf Stadium in Bern, Barcelona took the lead with a header from forward Sándor Kocsis in the 20th minute. But Benfica quickly rallied and were up 2-1 at the break thanks to a goal from captain José Águas (pictured) in the 30th minute and an own goal from Barcelona goalkeeper Antoni Ramallets (32'), who attempted to knock the ball away, but sent it off the bar and across the goal. Ramallets and the other Barcelona players argued that the ball did not cross the line, but the referee did not hesitate to award the goal.
A powerful 55th-minute volley from inside-left Mário Coluna extended Benfica's lead and proved to be the decisive goal, as Barcelona left winger Zoltán Czibor pulled one back in the 75th minute to set the final margin at 3-2 in favor of the Portuguese.
Benfica returned to the final six more times, but won it only once more, repeating as champions in 1962. Barcelona returned seven times, winning it in 1992, 2006, 2009, 2011, and 2015.
On 30 May 2011, Swansea returned to the English top flight for the first time since 1983 by beating Reading in a promotion playoff.
It was the culmination of a rapid rise through the lower divisions for Swansea, who were in League Two in 2005. They were promoted to League One for the 2005-06 season, then to the Championship for the 2008-09 season. Reading, meanwhile, returned to the Championship that season after a two-year spell in the Premier League.
In the summer of 2009, Reading manager Steve Coppell resigned and was replaced by Brendan Rodgers. Rodgers lasted just over six months in the job before the club announced his departure by mutual consent in December 2009. Then, at the end of the season, Rodgers took charge of Swansea.
In the 2010-11 season, he led Swansea to a third-place finish while Reading finished in fifth. The two teams advanced in the League One promotion playoffs to meet in the final at Wembley. There, playing before a crowd of over 86,000, Swansea roared to a 3-0 lead at the break with goals from Scott Sinclair (21' (pen), 22') and Stephen Dobbie (40'). A Swansea own goal four minutes into the second half closed the gap to 3-1, then Reading's Matt Mills scored in the 57th minute to bring Reading within one.
That was as close as they got, though, as Sinclair completed his hat-trick with an 80th-minute penalty kick to seal the 4-2 victory. The win made Swansea the first Welsh team to play in the Premier League and they did well, finishing their first season there in 11th place.
On 29 May 2011, DC United beat Portland 2-3, but not without a little penalty kick controversy.
Portland, in their first MLS season, were hosting DC at Jeld-Wen Field. In the 64th minute, with DC leading 0-1, the referee awarded a penalty kick to Portland after defender Dejan Jaković dragged Portland striker Kenny Cooper down in the box. Goalkeeper Bill Hamid guessed correctly and blocked the shot, but was flagged for coming off his line too early.
Cooper took the re-kick with Hamid blocking the shot again, but the keeper was once more flagged for coming off his line. Replays confirmed the linesman's call on both shots, though the second one was slightly more subjective, as Hamid's movement was relatively minor. For the third attempt, Portland replaced Cooper with Jack Jewsbury, who buried the kick to level the score.
The ordeal turned out to be a minor footnote as DC won 2-3 after Chris Pontius converted a penalty kick of their own and Josh Wolff added a late cushion.
On 28 May 1980, Nottingham Forest repeated as European Cup champions, making them the first team to win the tournament more times than their domestic league.
Forest won the previous tournament over Malmö, while Hamburg were making their first appearance in the final. Both had ousted prior champions in the semifinals, with Forest beating three-time winners Ajax 2-1 on aggregate and Hamburg eliminating six-time winners Real Madrid 5-3. The latter was particularly poignant, as the final was played at Madrid's home ground, the Bernabéu.
Forest's Trevor Francis, who scored the winning goal in 1979, was out injured, but they found another hero in winger John Robertson (pictured). In the 20th minute, Robertson played the ball to forward Garry Birtles, who held it up under pressure, then sent it back to a charging Robertson, who fired it low to the keeper's left, just edging it inside the post. It turned out to be the winner as the game ended 1-0.
It was part of a period of English dominance in the tournament, with Liverpool winning it in 1977 and 1978, Forest in 1979 and 1980, then Liverpool again in 1981 and Aston Villa in 1982 for six straight English wins. Hamburg broke the streak in 1983 when they returned to the final and beat Juventus 1-0.
On 27 May 2007, Pachuca won their fifth Primera División title, beating América 3-2 on aggregate in the Clausura final.
Pachuca had a slightly easier road to the final than América; their semifinal opponent, Cruz Azul, whom they had beaten 3-1 in the first leg, was suspended for the second leg by the FMF for fielding an ineligible player. So Pachuca enjoyed some additional rest while América completed their semifinal victory over Guadalajara.
In the final, Pachuca hosted the first leg and won 2-1, with both of their goals coming from Juan Carlos Cacho. But in the second leg, América drew level on aggregate with a 69th-minute free kick from Cuauhtémoc Blanco. Then, with time winding down, Pachuca sent the ball into a crowded box where it somehow found its way through several América defenders to Cacho, who tapped in the winner.
It was another victory in a tremendous eighteen-month period for Pachuca, who had already won that year's CONCACAF Champions League to go along with the previous season's Clausura and Copa Sudamericana and would go on to win the 2007 North American Superliga.
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.
