Ghosts of Gijon linger as new World Cup format encourages collusionPublished on: June 25, 2026 11:51 AM
Pakistan, June 25 -- Algeria have waited 44 years for a shot at World Cup revenge against Austria, but the clash is one of many in the final round of group games where sides could settle for a mutually beneficial outcome.
Austria's 1-0 defeat to West Germany at the 1982 World Cup has lived on in World Cup infamy as "the disgrace of Gijon" after the teams played out a result that would take both through at the expense of Algeria on goal difference. After worldwide condemnation and a fruitless formal complaint by Algeria, FIFA decided that in subsequent tournaments the final two games in each group would be played simultaneously.
But the expansion to a 48-team tournament, and with it the return for the first time since 1994 of some third-...
Click here to read full article from source
To read the full article or to get the complete feed from this publication, please
Contact Us.