Zidane made me root for Italy

I was rooting for France in last night's World Cup Final.  At least, I was until the team captain, Zinedine Zidane viciously headbutted Marco Materazzi. Perhaps after Materazzi made an ethnic slur against Zidane.

Watch the footage.

I was personally humiliated that I'd been standing in a public place cheering for a team whose captain had committed such a brutal, thuggish, and seemingly disproportionate act of violence. I was glad when the French lost because of Zidane's abject failure as a captain, a sportsman, and a human being. When I watch the footage, I don't see an uncontrollable fit of passion, I see premeditation.

As much as I wanted the French to win, I felt like it was a moral victory that you can't be that much of a dick in front of one billion people and get away with it.

Zidane didn't just have a personal lapse, he fucked up as team captain. His vicious outburst revealed a catastrophic weakness for the French side. The team deserved to lose for what he did.

Asad Raza has an excellent post on the Zidane incident.

Helmut considers the incident in the context of Zidane's career.

Comments

[John Lucid]

I'm glad the French lost because I'm sure that's what Bill O'Reilly wanted, but I bet he respected the French captain's head butt. If there's one thing the Falafel King likes, it's thuggery and bullying. And telling terrorists to blow up San Francisco. And sexually harrassing his coworkers. And vibrators. And loofahs
Okay, that's more than one thing, but you know what I mean.

And falafels.

[Helmut]

Lindsay,

Zidane has had a long career as one of the finest and fairest players in the game. His headbutt was stupid, yes. Provoked, yes. If you had been paying attention to the crap the French team has been through for years and during this World Cup (e.g., the Spanish fans throwing bananas on the field and making monkey noise prior to their match; the coach Aragones yelling insults at them during the match), you might put this in a different context. Many Italian fans and players are as bad as the Spanish. They always have been. Materazzi himself - the headbuttee - has a reputation as a dirty player.

The move was stupid because it ruined the game. The French were clearly superior.

The shy and soft-spoken Zidane has during his entire career - which I have followed not as a fairweather fan - played with elegance and dignity, respect, and calm. The French team - of course, with exceptions - has almost always played with a strong sense of fairplay. I've seen it even in the second- and third-tier French leagues. They play a clean, lovely game.

The headbutt is so unlike Zidane, that the event remains a mystery.

[The Phantom]

John

You may want to scratch the "Lucid" from your name

[1984 Was Not a Shopping List]

It was such a tightly-balanced game. Perfectly on a knife-edge, through two extra-time periods. He may have believed he could get away with it, but if he had hoped for a blind ref, he should have reflected that the last blind ref ruled against France (in France vs. Portugal, when the French player was faulted in the 86th minute for hitting a Portuguese player's foot with his groin). An absolutely colossally stupid move.

I was rooting for England, which of course went out because of Rooney apparently losing his temper. I love the French and the Italians equally, and both played superbly, until that moment, but yes, it felt like a moral victory that the Italians took it.

[ianqui]

Lindsay, I totally disagree with your analysis of the incident. What Zidane did was stupid and regrettable. It maybe made France lose face, and his fans may think he cost them the game, and that's too bad. But is it better for Materazzi to have uttered something potentially heinous and get away with it because it was verbal rather than physical? Not that I condone physical violence, but actually, what Zidane did was calculated to not be very violent at all--just a visual act of response to a provocation. And it's only because it was visual that he got a red card. Does anyone ever get a red card because of what they say? I don't know, because I don't follow football, but the verbal act is no less reprehensible than Zidane's headbutt. Yet, Materazzi felt absolutely no repercussions.

You can be angry at both of them, but you can't single out Zidane for his action.

[Barbara]

I actually was rooting for Italy because I don't like games in which one team wins via PK, and while Italy ultimately won because of PKs, it scored an actual goal in regulation time, whereas France's only score was via PK (and based on a somewhat questionable call at that).

Still, I like Zidane and I can't understand what made him react so -- it wasn't even "in the heat of the moment," not really, as it seemed as if he was already walking away and then he turned around and really let the Italian player have it. Not a good ending to the game at all.

[Ohplease]

Before you get on your highhorse, do you know what the Italian did and said to provoke that? Zidane had hurt his shoulder in a collision earlier in the game. The Italian defender had shaken his shoulder and then pulled his nipple (you may laugh, but running for 2 hours leads to seriously chaffed and sensitive nipples), plus combining that with an insult. And it wasn't the Italian thug's first act of aggression. It is a real pity Zidane didn't keep his cool, but I'm with the French coach Domenech, the referee should have done more to protect this genius striker from typical Italian thuggery

[Lindsay Beyerstein]

I was aware of some of the ugly racial incidents in this year's World Cup, but I admit, I wasn't following them closely. To me, the idea that a pro's pro like Zidane would lose it over some trash talk on the field is unfathomable, and unacceptable. It's an amateurish failing that I simply wouldn't expect at that level of competition, especially from a guy like Zidane who (with notable exceptions) generally kept a pretty good hold on his temper.

I'm furious at Zidane for letting his team down at the critical moment. Being a great player means that you perform when it counts, mentally and physically. He was the team captain, he occupied a position of trust and leadership. Yet, he cracked. From a strategic perspective, this incident will go down in sports history as one of the greatest fuckups of all time, alongside Buckner botching the World Series for the Red Sox.

Add to that the fact that Zidane did something vicious and immoral. If Marco Materazzi uttered a racial slur, he should be sanctioned as well.

[1984 Was Not a Shopping List]

>The French were clearly superior.

Hmm, well...

It did seem out of character, though as I was reading about it yesterday, it emerged that there had been a couple of other incidents like this in Zidane's career. But provoked by racism or not, it's basic: if the opposing player provokes you as a tactic, to throw you off-balance, you only reward him by losing your balance!

[Lindsay Beyerstein]

Maybe someone can clarify the sequence of events: According to the ABC announcer who was broadcasting live, the ref didn't initially appear to have seen the headbutt. The announcer said that nothing was going to happen because the ref didn't see it. Then all of a sudden, the ref had seen it. What actually happened? Was the ABC announcer misreading the ref. Or, or did some other linesman or official come forward to say that he'd seen it?

[The Minstrel Boy]

growing up as a person of mixed heritage in rural arizona in the 50's i can only imagine what zidane has endured in the way of insults, slights, and slurs. i agree with you lindsey, it was shameful. if he was provoked, he played into it. he did fail his team. cost them the game? nobody knows that, or will ever be able to know that because zidane took himself out. provocation and head games are part of sport for better or worse. zidane lost personally by capping a brilliant career with a stupid act.

[1984 Was Not a Shopping List]

>But is it better for Materazzi to have uttered something potentially heinous and get away with it because it was verbal rather than physical?

It's the oldest trick in the book. Taunting. Yes, refs can only call things they can see, and so verbal abuse can't be policed like that. I did hear about the nipple-pulling incident, and that should have been sanctioned, but:

>Being a great player means that you perform when it counts, mentally and physically.

is true. It means that verbal abuse, and even a bad ref call, are just another set of obstacles to be hurdled.

[1984 Was Not a Shopping List]

>Then all of a sudden, the ref had seen it. What actually happened? Was the ABC announcer misreading the ref. Or, or did some other linesman or official come forward to say that he'd seen it?

When I read about it yesterday, I think it was on the Fox Sports website, they said that the ref had taken a minute to confer with the other refs before carding him.

[Nat]

Materrazzi hit the ground like he was shot. That was 10% head butt and 90% dive. It was stupid in that it hurt his team, but it was not stupid in that it hurt Materrazzi.

Now the prior head butt in the WC, Figo's vs. the Dutch, was about 2% head butt and 98% dive.

Both deserved the cards they received, but mostly for stupidity. The tackles from behind are much more dangerous to the well being of a player and not called nearly enough.

[The Phantom]

--is true. It means that verbal abuse, and even a bad ref call, are just another set of obstacles to be hurdled.--

Correct. Trash talk of the "mother" variety goes on in every NBA game.

If there was a racial comment --ie anti Algerian--or a quasi racial comment --"harki"--that is not an excuse to physically assault the other player. You can do great bodily injury with a head butt.

And Zidane has a rap sheet of physical assaults under his belt. I am told that he head butted another player once before. And did the Saudi who he stomped twice in a match call him an ethnic slur also?

[1984 Was Not a Shopping List]

>Correct. Trash talk of the "mother" variety goes on in every NBA game.

Every sports player should be required to watch the football game in the movie M*A*S*H: "His sister's name is Gladys. Use it!"

[Helmut]

Zidane's mother is dying. If the insult was about his mother,I probably would have headbutted Materazzi too. Does that make me "immoral," Lindsay?

"Harki" is considered an extremely offensive insult.

Whatever it was the headbutt was still stupid, as I said above, because it plays into the hands of the opponent as many have pointed out. There is, however, an ongoing context and severity to the insults. My wife is French and white, and I've seen it over and over, even in liberal DC, including at a pub during the final yesterday ("fuck you, French bitch"). Sure puts me in a headbutting mood.

BUT... does anyone here remember de Rossi's intentional elbow to Brian McBride during the US-Italy match? McBride left the field with blood streaming down his face. De Rossi had a four-game suspension and went on to play in the final, including making one of the penalty kicks. Not a peep about immorality there. And racist insults weren't involved in the McBride case - simply an intent to harm.

It was reported that the fifth referee - who uses video - reported the foul down to the field refs. If so, that's contrary to FIFA rules, which explicitly state no video replays (for now).

[ersatz]

Maybe someone can clarify the sequence of events: According to the ABC announcer who was broadcasting live, the ref didn't initially appear to have seen the headbutt. The announcer said that nothing was going to happen because the ref didn't see it. Then all of a sudden, the ref had seen it. What actually happened? Was the ABC announcer misreading the ref. Or, or did some other linesman or official come forward to say that he'd seen it?

I believe that the ref didn't see the headbutt as it happened, but they caught it being replayed on the Jumbotron. I think that technically the ref is not allowed to do this (make calls after the fact), but the headbutt was so egregious that few people are complaining.

That said, if it was a racist comment that provoked Zidane, then f--- Materazzi.

[1984 Was Not a Shopping List]

Well Helmut, I find a cheap shot during a game a cheap shot, no matter who's doing it.

In a pub, it's completely different (although, sad but true, however you're provoked, if you bite at it, you're liable to end up in jail, so unless it's really a matter of honour, I say don't bite at it). Also, someone suggested that the word uttered might have been "terrorista"--that would have made me mad and gotten under my skin if I were him. There are insults that can get under my skin, like anybody's. But he knew what would happen: he'd get carded if it was noticed, and this game (which was much closer than you say it was! and although I love the French, the French didn't clearly dominate, my friend) would be effectively thrown.

Don't bite.

[Lindsay Beyerstein]

Of course it would be immoral to headbutt another player for trash-talking your mom. Just because you feel like headbutting someone doesn't excuse you following through on that impulse. I don't care how immoral the provocation is. Violence is not an appropriate response to taunting, especially not in professional sports.

Maybe you want to argue that Zidane was so enraged that he just lost it. Okay, fine. If so, then the headbutt was weakness, incompetence, and dereliction on Zidane's part. Weakness is disgraceful especially when your weakness lets other people down. I don't like the narrative that "it's unfortunate that this incident will reflect badly on Zidane's career." That makes it sound as if this lapse wasn't part of his career! He has earned more accolades and triumphs than just about anyone in the game. He has won the respect and affection of countless fans and atheletes. He also fucked up colossally and lost France the World Cup. That's a major black mark against his career.

[Helmut]

Lindsay,

I understand your pacifist position. I don't agree with it, though. I think violence in the Zidane case was stupid for the reasons listed. But I'm not sure we can say that a violent response is never justified more generally speaking. I'm not sure you want to go that far, but it sounds like it at times.

I'm not excusing Zidane either. I'm saying that there's a larger context here in which to understand it as anomalous. And that there's a bit of the double-standard going around when we forget all about de Rossi. The reason for the double-standard, however, is that we know Zidane is better than the headbutt showed. Thus, the shock (and perhaps, thus, the who-cares about de Rossi).

I'm not sure his fuck-up lost the Cup either, except perhaps symbolically. Even after he went out, the French played better with a man down than the Italians.

1984 - I didn't say France dominated. I thought they were the superior side overall. Italy clearly dominated the first half. But France had the upper hand for the following 115 minutes until the PKs. Football is football, however, and one never knows with PKs.

Oh, and don't worry, I didn't headbutt the person who insulted my wife.

[1984 Was Not a Shopping List]

I'm glad of that, although I almost feel that I would have headbutted him for you. But in the outside world, as in football, it seems most often that these goads are manipulative tactics. Perhaps always--all it is is animals pissing to mark their territory.

France did take more shots on goal, and the one that happened toward the end of the second half just before Ribery was sent off, could have won it for them.

[1984 Was Not a Shopping List]

Excuse me, that was at minute 99...

[Lindsay Beyerstein]

I'm not a pacifist. I just don't think that verbal insults justify physical violence. If someone uses an ethnic against your girlfriend, it's not okay to call them an equally hateful slur, even if you know that they will feel utterly degraded by it. Likewise, it's not okay to physically assault someone in retaliation for a racial slur or other insulting remark.

[ianqui]

All I want is for the people taking Lindsay's side to agree that IF Materazzi called him a terrorist or a harki or insulted his dying mother, that's JUST as maintunsportsmanlike as what Zidane's response was. It seemed like Zidane's headbutt was (intentionally?) not that powerful, and therefore not as bad as, say, de Rossi's elbow to MacBride. Again, I am NOT excusing Zidane, but why is there no outrage against Materazzi? If it eventually does come out that he said one of those things, will people start being more vocal about his "inexcusable action"?