Saddest moments in football history

Football is a game of love and its impact transcends beyond the players and spectators to most times include entire communities and countries. That is why when nations gather for international tournaments like the FIFA World Cup, African Cup of Nations, Copa America and UEFA Euros, millions stay glued to their television sets all through the tournament. But the game is not just the happy side as it has recorded some of the saddest moments in football history.

Today, our list focuses on some of the most heartbreaking moments from football. Each of the incidents on our list shocked the core of the game and has created lasting scars that can never be repealed. So without much ado, let’s get down to number one:

Estadio Nacional/Lima Disaster, Peru, 1994

The Estadio Nacional Disaster also known by its twin name Lima Disaster is on record as the worst disaster in football history. It is not for wanting of names that it appears on our list as one of the saddest moments in football history. The Lima Disaster occurred on May 24, 1964, in Peru’s national stadium, located in the city of Lima.

A riot broke out during the Tokyo Olympic Games qualifier between Peru and Argentina leading to the loss of at least 328 lives. Some accounts post the number at 400 with injuries reportedly clocking a record.

What happened?

Argentina took the lead and held on as the game wore on. However, with 6 minutes of regulation time to play, Peru got an equalizer. Uruguayan referee Ángel Eduardo Pazos waved off the goal to the dismay of the home supporters. At least 45,000 people were in the stadium that day for the match. As the football fans invaded the pitch, the police reacted by shooting teargas into the crowd. With the pandemonium now in full swing, many hurdled for the exit but the large numbers embarking on the panic exit meant slow progress was made by those exiting.

All the people who died were as a result of the stampede at the stadium’s gate with most of them as a result of asphyxia or internal haemorrhaging. The stadium had solid corrugated steel shutters at the bottom of tunnels that connected the street level and connected by several steps to the seating areas above. When the crowds were rushing out, they met the gates locked as is usual for stadium gates. Those from behind who didn’t know the gates were locked kept pushing and finally the pressure swung the gates open. Of all those who stayed in the stadium, no one died. Do you see why it places first on our list of the saddest moments in football history?

Accra Sport Stadium/ May 9 Disaster, Ghana, 2001

Commonly referred to as the May 9 Stadium Disaster in Ghana, the West African country and the footballing community were thrown into shock when on May 9, 2001, Ghana witnessed one of its darkest days in history. It is the worst stadium disaster in Africa by way of casualties and would go down as one of the saddest moments in football history in West Africa. It was a match between two of Ghana’s most successful clubs; Accra Hearts of Oak and Kumasi Asante Kotoko.

What happened?

Hearts of Oak took the lead and was defending their lone goal lead. However, Kotoko who was playing away from home equalized and thought they were close to securing a draw. Amid the celebration, Hearts of Oak scored to restore their lead. Displeased by the late results, some of the Kotoko supporters started picking out the stadium chairs and hurling them at the pitch. The match officials stopped the match.

Before the match, authorities had sensed the tension and acted by stationing riot police in the stadium. However, what was meant to be a measure to ensure the safety of everyone ended up being the catalyst of the worst football disaster in Africa. Police fired teargas into the crowd and as people rushed for the gates, a great stampede erupted. Official records reported 126 lives lost on that fateful day with several hundred others injured and some maimed permanently.

Hillsborough Disaster, England, 1989

The Hillsborough disaster is one of the worst in European football history. A match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest on April 15, 1989, ended up as one of the saddest moments in football history in England and Europe. It recorded 97 deaths and 766 non-fatal injuries. The match was eventually rescheduled and restaged at Old Trafford nearly a month later with Liverpool winning and going on the win the FA Cup that season.

What happened?

With the match scheduled to start at 3:00 pm on the day, many football fans arrived at the stadium hoping to watch their teams play. However, due to some limited traffic congestion along the way, some of the Liverpool fans arrived just minutes before kick putting pressure at the entrance. The police alerted the match officials requesting that the match be delayed by 20 minutes to allow the fans at the entrance to enter but the request was declined.

As the match proceeded to kick off at the scheduled time, the police opened gates that would normally be used for exit in an attempt to ease the pressure at the gates. The pressure at the gates was caused by the late arrivals, people presenting tickets at the wrong gates and those who attempted to enter without tickets and were denied but could not exit due to the people behind them.

When they entered, most of them passed through turnstiles that led them to an overcrowded section (pens 3 and 4) where people were pressed against each other. There were no police around as has always been the case to direct them to other unoccupied sections. Three minutes after play had started, Liverpool’s Peter Beardsley hit the crossbar and that caused excitement among the fans. The reaction led to more pressure which ultimately led to one of the metal crush barriers of pen 3 breaking. Its impact caused others to also break. The casualties were largely from those who were still trapped in the pens and many died from complex asphyxia.

Dasharath Stadium Disaster, Nepal, 1988

Dasharath Stadium Disaster is one of football’s deadliest disasters having claimed at least 93 lives and leaving more than 100 others injured. The incident took place on March 12, 1988, during a match between Janakpur Cigarette Factory and Muktijoddha Sangsad KC  of Bangladeshi for the 1988 Tribhuvan Challenge Shield.

What happened?

Just like some of the ones before this, security at the venue failed the crowd. Nepal is noted for hailstorms during that time of the year. While the fans were watching the game, a hailstorm came lashing out at the supporters. To take cover, most of the supporters run towards the west stand. However, the police pushed them back. This forced the crowd to the south end but unfortunately, a crush developed in the tunnel exit through the terrace as the people could not exit due to the locked gates. The crush at the tunnel caused the fatalities.

Estadio Doroteo Guamuch Flores Disaster, Guatemala, 1996

Only overshadowed by the incidents listed here before it, the Estadio Doroteo Guamuch Flores disaster on October 16, 1996, is one of the saddest moments in football history. It happened during a match between Guatemala and Costa Rica. The two nations locked horns in a 1998 FIFA World Cup qualifier in Guatemala City. At least 83 people died and more than 140 others were injured.

What happened?

The stadium’s capacity was overshot as many counterfeit tickets were sold to people. Reports stated that at least 50,000 people tried to enter the stadium that day for the match though the maximum capacity was 37,500. The large crowd together with the stadium’s inappropriate design which was incapable of managing disasters led to a stampede and suffocation.

Following the disaster, media reports said the high number of counterfeit tickets made it impossible for authorities to control the attendance. FIFA banned the stadium from hosting football matches until after it had been redesigned to meet required safety standards. That ban lasted for over 2 years.

And here we bring to an end our today’s list. While the list is not exclusive, these are our top picks for today. Nonetheless, there are other disasters which would comfortably make this list of the saddest moments in football if we expanded it more.

Some of the most notable ones at the Port Said Stadium disaster in Egypt, the Bradford City Stadium fire disaster in England, the Heysel Stadium disaster in Belgium, the Ellis Park Stadium disaster in South Africa and the Kanjuruhan Stadium disaster in Indonesia among others. Perhaps, we may expand this list later to give details of more football disasters.