How US Trumped 1962 World Cup interference scandal
Long before Donald Trump was US President and the Folarin Balogun case infuriated the football world and beyond, political interference and corruption scandals have dogged football’s governing body at its showpiece event.
While Trump’s comments laid bare the extent of his meddling into affairs that happened on the pitch, the US president’s openness about his discussions with FIFA boss Gianni Infantino, should spell trouble for the leader of an organisation that likes to promote “fair play” as one of its founding pillars.
Garrincha and Pele of Brazil in 1962. Getty
But this is far from the first time FIFA has found itself at the centre of a World Cup storm regarding interference from politicians.
The last time it happened was in 1962, although there have been several integrity issues to plague the body in the years since.
Mercurial Brazilian winger Garrincha, who was born with crooked legs, fathered 14 children and whose family sued his biographer over claims he had a 25cm penis, was sent off late in the semi-final against hosts Chile, for kicking an opponent in retaliation after being hacked throughout the game.
Over the first eight games of the tournament there were four red cards, three broken legs, a fractured ankle and some cracked ribs.
FIFA’s disciplinary committee ruled on a case-by-case basis on suspensions relating to red cards because they carried no automatic ban.
However, the other player dismissed in the Brazil v Chile match was suspended, and Garrincha met the same fate.
But after Chilean President Jorge Alessandri lobbied for Garrincha to play with a petition, and Peru’s President Manuel Prado reportedly phoned the referee to soften his testimony, the committee allowed him to take the field.
Garrincha played in the final, Brazil beat Czechoslovakia 3-1 and the trophy was retained by the South American nation.
Until this week, it was the only time a red-carded player played in his team’s next World Cup match.
However, Trump made it possible some 64 years later with a simple phone call.
FIFA’s disciplinary committee invoked Chapter 4, Article 27 of the Disciplinary Code to allow the American to play, and released a lengthy statement announcing that Balogun had been fined more than $55,000 in connection with the red card, which will be split between the player and the federation.
Donald Trump holds up a red card during a meeting with FIFA President Gianni Infantino in the Oval Office in 2018. AP
In relation to the call by the disciplinary committee, the FIFA president said: “What I always do, however, is respect those decisions and the autonomy of the bodies that make them.”
There are rules in the FIFA statute that allow for expulsion or suspension of national federations accused of political interference.
But it has happened throughout history as far back as the 1934 World Cup, when Italian dictator Benito Mussolini was accused of personally interfering to see Italy officiated by favourable referees.
Italy won the final 3–1 against Czechoslovakia at the ‘Stadium of the National Fascist Party’.
As for Garrincha, this week was the first time in a long time since his name was mentioned in the news.
The daughters of the legendary Brazilian sued biographer Ruy Castro for libel over claims in his biography about the football star in 1995.
Castro stated in the book that the Brazilian, who was a known womaniser, had an extraordinarily large penis.
In 2001, a Rio de Janeiro judge dismissed the lawsuit, stating that such a description was a compliment, rather than an insult.
Garrincha died in 1983 at the age of 49, due to complications related cirrhosis of the liver and pulmonary edema.
Forty-three years on, one of the greatest footballers of all-time is being mentioned in the same breath as Donald J Trump.
