| Disgrace of Gijón (Schande von Gijón) Scandal of Gijón (فضيحة خيخون) The Match of Shame (le Match de la honte) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 El Molinón, the venue for the match | |||||||
| Event | 1982 FIFA World Cup | ||||||
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| Both teams advance to second round Algeria eliminated from 1982 FIFA World Cup on goal difference | |||||||
| Date | 25 June 1982; 43 years ago (1982-06-25) | ||||||
| Venue | El Molinón,Gijón | ||||||
| Referee | Bob Valentine (Scotland) | ||||||
| Attendance | 41,000 | ||||||
TheDisgrace of Gijón (Spanish:Desgracia de Gijón) is one of many names given in hindsight to the1982 FIFA World Cup football match played at theEl Molinón stadium inGijón, Spain, on 25 June 1982, in whichWest Germany beatAustria 1–0. Both teams advanced to the next round while Algeria was eliminated by having the lowest goal difference mainly due to having played its last game a day earlier, unable to achieve the four goal victory margin that would’ve seen them through regardless of what happened in this match. InGerman, the match is known asNichtangriffspakt von Gijón (lit. "Non-aggression pact of Gijón") orSchande von Gijón (lit. "Disgrace of Gijón"),[1] while inAlgeria it is calledفضيحة خيخون (faḍīḥat Khīkhūn, "Scandal of Gijón"), and inFrenchle Match de la honte (lit. "The Shameful Match"); it has also been satirically referred to as theAnschluss (a reference to theNazi German annexation of Austria in 1938).[2]
The Algerian team had beaten two-time World Champions and reigning European Champions Germany 2–1 in the first round, then had lost to Austria 2–0, before beating Chile 3–2. As the last game of the first-roundGroup 2 was scheduled a day later, the two German-speaking teams had an advantage in knowing that a West German win by less than three goals would qualify both, while any other result would see either Austria or West Germany eliminated. After a German goal early in the game, the match remained competitive before the teams in the second half started to "defend" the 1–0 score as there was little benefit for each side in trying harder. Many spectators, mostly Algerians, were not happy about the perceived lack of effort, and accused the West German and Austrian teams of manipulation.[1]
Despite widespread condemnation and a formal complaint lodged by Algeria – who were consequently eliminated –FIFA ruled that neither team had broken any rules. Following this match, along with similar controversy regarding Argentina vs Peru in the previous World Cup alongside Northern Ireland vs Spain later on in the same tournament, FIFA subsequently revised the group system for future tournaments so that the final two games in each group would be played simultaneously.[3] This change made it highly impractical for teams to engage in any form of match-fixing, since they would not know what result was required ahead of time.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Austria(Y) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | +3 | 4 | One match left |
| 2 |  Algeria(X) | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 4 | Undecided (Matches finished) |
| 3 |  West Germany(Y) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 3 | +2 | 2 | One match left |
| 4 |  Chile(Z) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 8 | −5 | 0 | Eliminated |
Algeria began their campaign by recording a surprising 2–1 win over West Germany on the opening day, described as the "greatest World Cup upset sinceNorth Korea beatItaly in1966",[4] and as "one of the biggest shocks in World Cup history".[5] Algeria became the first African or Arab team to defeat a European team at theFIFA World Cup. They then went on to lose 2–0 to Austria before beating Chile 3–2 in their final match. Algeria's victory over Chile made them the first ever African or Arab team to win twice at a World Cup.[5]
As Algeria played that final match the day before West Germany met Austria, the two European teams knew what result they needed in order to qualify for the next round. Any West German win by one or two goals would see both West Germany and Austria qualify based on goal differential tiebreaker. A West German victory by four goals or more would see West Germany and Algeria qualify. A West German win by exactly three goals would send Austria and Algeria to the next tiebreaker (goals scored), where Austria would need to score at least two goals in defeat to advance in this scenario. West Germany would not advance without a victory.
After ten minutes of furious attack, West Germany succeeded in scoring through a goal byHorst Hrubesch after a cross from the left. After the goal was scored, the team in possession of the ball often passed between themselves in their own half until an opposition player came into the vicinity of the ball, then the ball was passed back to the goalkeeper. Isolated long balls were played into the opposition's half, with little consequence. There were few tackles, and both sets of players flamboyantly missed with apparently no attempt at accuracy whenever they shot on goal. The only Austrian player who seemed to make any effort at livening the game up wasWalter Schachner, although he had little success, while one of the few serious attempts on net was made byWolfgang Dremmler of West Germany.[1]
This performance was widely deplored by all observers. West GermanARD commentator Eberhard Stanjek at one point refused to commentate on the game any longer. Austrian commentator Robert Seeger bemoaned the spectacle, and asked viewers to turn off their television sets.George Vecsey, aNew York Times journalist, stated that the teams "seemed to work in concert", although he added that proving such would be impossible.[4]El Comercio, the local newspaper, printed the match report in its crime section.[6]
Likewise, many spectators were not impressed and voiced their disgust with the players. Chants of "¡Fuera, fuera!" ("Out, out!"), "¡Argelia, Argelia!" ("Algeria, Algeria!"), and "¡Que se besen, que se besen!" ("Let them kiss, let them kiss!", which is commonly used at weddings) were shouted by the Spanish crowd,[7] while angry Algerian supporters waved banknotes at the players. The match was criticized even by the West German and Austrian fans who had hoped for a hot rematch of the1978 World Cup match, the "Miracle of Córdoba", in which Austria had beaten West Germany; one West German fan burned the national flag in protest.[8][9]
| West Germany | 1–0 | Austria |
|---|---|---|
Hrubesch 10' | Report |
        West Germany |    Austria |
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| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Germany | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 3 | +3 | 4 | Advance tosecond round |
| 2 | Austria | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 4 | |
| 3 | Algeria | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 4 | |
| 4 | Chile | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 8 | −5 | 0 |
With West Germany's 1–0 victory, they joined Austria and Algeria with four points in three matches. The teams were separated by goal difference, with West Germany and Austria progressing to the next round of the tournament at the expense of Algeria. Thematch-fixing saw Austria give up their opportunity to be first in the group (by winning or drawing the match) in exchange for a sure opportunity to advance. The bargaining positions of the two teams were affected by West Germany being in danger of elimination if they failed to win, but also being the better team.[10] By coming second in the group, Austria's second-stage group was France and Northern Ireland. West Germany's opponents were hosts Spain and England who had previously beaten France. Also, for three of the starting players (Horst Hrubesch for West Germany,Josef Degeorgi andRoland Hattenberger for Austria), an additional incentive to avoid aggressive play was that they had been previously booked in their respective teams' first two games. Under the rules then in force, an additional yellow card for any of them in the final group match would have resulted in them serving an automatic one-match ban to start the second round.
After the match, the West German team went back to their hotel where they were met by furious spectators who threw eggs and other projectiles at them; the West Germans returned fire with water bombs.[11] German and Austrian television commentators were so appalled at the match that they urged viewers on live television to stop watching the match and watch something else. The Algerian football officials lodged an official protest. In addition, the president of theAlgerian Football Federation opined that refereeBob Valentine should have intervened and his failure to do so was worthy of complaint;[12] however, FIFA considered that no rules were broken as a result of the match, and declined to take any action. Both teams denied any collusion during the match.[13] West Germany managerJupp Derwall defended his team from the criticism, pointing out that Uli Stielike and Karl-Heinz Rummenigge were both unfit.[14] The West Germans made it tothe final, where they lost toItaly 3–1. Austria fell at the next group stage, to the benefit of eventual fourth-place finishersFrance. As a result of the game, from theWorld Cup 1986 onward, the final pair of group matches in World Cups always start simultaneously.[15]
Later journalists took another look at the match, wondering if claims of "non-aggression" are exaggerated. InThe Irish Times, Rob Smyth wrote: "The 10 minutes after Hrubesch's goal would even be described as exhilarating in some cultures, withWolfgang Dremmler forcing a fine save fromFriedrich Koncilia (the second and final shot on target in the match) andPaul Breitner missing two good chances. The game slows down towards half-time, principally because the hitherto dominant Germany start to play on thecounterattack. Hrubesch would have had a clear shooting chance in the 57th minute had he not hopelessly miscontrolledFelix Magath’s expert chip. As late as the 77th minute, when the game was losing what edge it had,Bernd Krauss broke into the box and forced a desperate clearance fromHans-Peter Briegel. A goal then would have put West Germany out."[16] Almost all participants denied an outright agreement to fix the match. Austrian player Reinhold Hintermaier described the situation on the pitch as follows: "It somehow took on a life of its own – everyone just thought that they wanted to get ahead."[17]
1982 FIFA World Cup finalists | |
|---|---|
| Champions | |
| Runners-up | |
| Third place | |
| Fourth place | |
| Second group stage | |
| First group stage | |
