I believed it then, I believe it now. South Korea fixed it's way into the World Cup semifinal in 2002, probably mostly on a combination of home-field intimidation and Asian influences with the betting.
I didn't realize this until I went over some of the posts I had made on the tournament, but there were FIVE dodgy matches in the Round of 16 in just that tournament.
Senegal-Sweden: 1-0 to Sweden, and watch at 1:05 (offside? own goal?? It did look like the Senegal player had stopped to ensure he wasn't offside. Replay at 1:22 appears good.). There were also three penalty claims waved off within about a 20-minute stretch of the first half around that effort. Senegal are able to equalize, and win 2-1 in extra time.
United States-Mexico: And this is the match BEFORE the Frings handball on (over) the line!
McBride puts the US up 1-0 after a Reyna run and a Wolfe pass. Donovan doubles the advantage in the second half, against all run of play. However, the match is marred when it appears as if Mexico could've had a goal, but a clear US hand ball denies it and send the US through.
Denmark-England: Probably the only dodgy game where the officiating did not determine the outcome, as Denmark had a goal wiped out for phantom offside, but England were 3-0 comfortably ahead in the first place.
Belgium-Brazil: Watch at :51 of this clip. 1st half, scoreless. You tell me where the foul is here.
The Brazilian is even throwing up his hands as if to wonder what the whistle was on the guy who had just "scored" on the header against him!
Watch 1:05 and onward for an even better view! There's no foul there!
But it's Brazil!! They win 2-0 and eventually play Germany in the Final.
But before we get there, the curious story of South Korea and one of the most crooked spates of officiating in the history of world soccer. A YouTube clip of the controversies is here.
We'll start, for convention's sake, with their Round of 16 match with Italy. Italy go 1-0 up on a Vieri goal in the 18th minute.
49th minute, clear foul in midfield not called. 22 for Korea pulls the Italian's shirt, then an ELBOW by the other guy.
Totti fouled all over the place in the 57th minute.
Bad tackles in both the 64th and the end of the 68th minutes against Italy by the Koreans. (Studs up to the thigh on the latter -- should be "see ya".)
Gee, I thought mugging was illegal under the rules.
Another harsh tackle right in front of the referee at the 77th minute.
Totti gets destroyed with the ball at the top of the box a minute later and the referee plays advantage -- to South Korea!
And, wouldn't you know it... After all this non-called dirty play, South Korea equalizes three minutes from full time, and we go to (then) golden-goal overtime.
Totti is mugged (for about the twelfth time in the match) in the box in the 103rd minute, and gets sent off as a result, for his second yellow -- for DIVING??? The referee instantaneously has six players in his face.
#22 for South Korea (again!) clearly knees Totti in the back of the knee. (1:59 - 2:00) Not only has he not dived, Totti has probably earned a game-winning penalty!!
110th minute: Italy, at ten men, still get someone through and apparently score the winner, but blown for offside. Watch the super-slo-mo at 2:13 - 2:14 and convince yourselves the Italian was offside.
And the Koreans get the ordained result 5 minutes later. 2-1, off to the quarterfinals.
Where they get Spain!!
Early in the match, #13 commits a harsh interference foul without call.
The South Korean #10 is clearly shirt-pulling the arm of the Spaniard shortly thereafter in clear view of the linesman -- no call, he's from South Korea after all!
South Korea's dirty, rough-housing tactics were a hallmark of this tournament, as numerous harsh tackles went uncalled in this match by the Egyptian referee or his linesmen.
And then, in the first of a number of bad calls at the goal, Spain has a goal disallowed for handball when the ball is shown in the replay to go off the KOREAN'S shoulder!!
And then probably the worst of all, a Spain cross on the line finds an unmarked offensive player on the far side, deposited for the win -- except the ball has been deemed to go out over the line (and I believe the call was actually that the ball went over the line in the air -- which was laughable if you look at the ground-level replay at about 4:15 of the clip).
Then a flagrantly bad offside call in the extra session as a Spain player gets free on the keeper.
South Korea wins on penalties.
You still want to believe the games are legitimate?
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