5 examples of cruel retribution for the defeat of the national team

It happens that the loss of a national team leads to the most tragic consequences not only for fans, but also for the athletes themselves. This post contains the tragic consequences of the failures of national teams.

The loss of the DPRK national team at the World Cup in South Africa became the reason for the arrest of the head coach of the national team. By order of the authorities, Kim Jong Hun was sent to a concentration camp, where he was forced to do hard physical labor for 14 hours a day. The North Korean leader believed that Kim Jong Hun committed a crime, which resulted in a defeat by the Portuguese team with a score of 0:7. Kim Jong Hun admitted that it was his personal mistake, and thereby saved the lives of the football players who were about to be shot.

After the 1966 World Cup, when the North Korean team reached the quarterfinals, all players except one striker were sent to camps for losing.

In 2013, the Chinese national football team lost to Thailand with a score of 1:5. The fans, who already felt humiliated, blocked the bus with the players and showered them with insults for a long time. When the bus finally broke onto the road, riots began. All this happened on the birthday of the Secretary General of the Communist Party and Chairman of the People's Republic of China Xi Jinping, he turned 60 years old. The holiday was hopelessly ruined, but the head of state was finally convinced that it was time to clean up football.

Soon, two former presidents of the Chinese Football Federation and a former captain of the national team went to prison for 10 and a half years. Four more national team players received up to 6 years in prison and large fines. Referee Liu Yong, who was twice recognized as the best in Asia and worked at the 2002 World Cup, was even threatened with the death penalty.

Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, after the failure of his team at the World Cup in South Africa, started a serious reorganization of football in the country. He banned the national team from participating in competitions for the next 2 years. The Nigerians took last place in the group at the tournament, lost to Argentina (0:1), Greece (1:2) and drew with South Korea (2:2). Also, the executive committee of the federation apologized to the fans and the government of the country for the failure at the World Cup.

The payback for the lost match of the Honduras national team to its eternal and fundamental rival - the national team of El Salvador - was a real war. Within a month, the football teams of the two countries had to play two matches to reach the final part of the 1970 FIFA World Cup. In El Salvador and Honduras, matches were accompanied by riots with casualties. Emotions ran high, and real hysteria arose in the press of both countries.

On June 24, 1969, El Salvador began mobilizing its armed forces. Despite its transience (the war lasted only six days), the conflict was costly for both sides; total losses amounted to several thousand people.

The match against Yugoslavia at the 1952 Olympics was a matter of principle for Joseph Stalin: the leader wanted to teach the presumptuous leader of the union country, Josip Broz Tito, a lesson. The match ended in a draw with a score of 5:5, and a replay was held in the city of Tampere. The Soviet athletes lost this game with a score of 1:3. When the players returned home, two decisions from the Kremlin awaited them: the first was about the disbandment of the CDSA team (the main backbone of the team was from this team) and the second was about depriving some players and coach Boris Arkadyev of the title of Honored Masters of Sports.