Who is the villain of the 2010 World Cup?
Who is the villain of the 2010 World Cup?
By Eric Beard
In 2006, Marco Materazzi stood out to many as a villain for his unbecoming words that caused Zinedine Zidane to lose his cool, sparking the infamous headbutt. However, this time around, there are all sorts of villains. From the FIFA administration’s reluctance to provide referees with the tools to make correct decisions to absolutely atrocious calls made to handballs to cursed celebrities, South Africa has been the home to a whole lot of controversy. Here’s my list of 2010’s villains that were present in Africa.
Sepp Blatter and FIFA
Always happy to be the centre of attention, Blatter and his stubborn, old-school ideas have made neutrals and supporters of the likes of the United States, England, and Mexico outraged. Goal-line technology, in some form, is needed in football. At least when the stakes are this high. But Blatter, in his dictator-esque role, is no stranger to stubborn, illogical thought. Conservative in his ways, the winners of matches have been placed in jeopardy because of his reluctance to use some sort of video replay at the game’s biggest stage. Sepp, this is a disgrace to football.
The Referees
From Jorge Larrionda (Germany-England) to Koman Coulibaly (United States-Slovenia) to Carlos Batres (Spain-Paraguay), blown calls have never been in such abundance in a World Cup. Sure, they’re only human and they’re not getting too much help from FIFA as there could be extra officials on the touchlines or even instant replay, but some of these mistakes have been unforgivable. It’s a hard job to be the man in the middle, but to many, these men are nothing but villains who don’t have to explain themselves.
