Tag
Controversial
Italian for “biscuit”, it is a term used when two teams enter a final group game or league fixture knowing a particular results – usually a draw – eliminates a third side and suits both the teams playing just fine. It originates from historical horse-racing cheats, where targeted horses were fed a ‘biscuit’ laced with sedatives prior to a race. In football, sometimes teams genuinely play for a point and there is no outright collusion. If a scoreline suits both sides it’s natural they play to that result. The term is rooted in Italian football but applies wherever groups are involved.
The classic biscotto – before the word existed – was West Germany 1-0 Austria at the 1982 World Cup. When West Germany scored early, both sides knew a 1-0 scoreline would send them both through to the next phase at Algeria’s expense. The crowd booed, the Algerian FA lodged a complaint but the result was upheld. It led to future tournaments changing format where all last group matches kick off simultaneously. A modern twist saw Algeria play Austria at the 2026 World Cup, where a 2-2 going into injury time would send both teams through. Instead, Algeria scored in injury time, before a dramatic 96th minute equaliser from Austria locked in the script. 3-3, both went through.
The standard that VAR is supposed to use before overturning referee decisions. In theory, VAR should only intervene if the original call was clearly wrong. In practice, nobody agrees on what's clear or obvious, especially for handball and soft penalties. The phrase has become a punchline for whenever VAR makes a controversial call that seems subjective rather than definitive.
A goal awarded despite the ball not crossing the line, or denied when it clearly did. Before goal-line technology, these caused huge controversies. Lampard's shot against Germany in 2010 clearly crossed the line but wasn't given; Luis Garcia for Liverpool against Chelsea in the Champions League semi-final in 2005; Geoff Hurst's 1966 World Cup final goal probably didn't cross but was given. Technology has mostly eliminated ghost goals, but the term lives on.
When VAR rules a player offside by millimetres, usually because their armpit or sleeve is beyond the last defender. The technology can draw lines to this precision, but it feels absurd to disallow goals for body parts you can't even score with. Fans mock it, but it's technically correct under the rules. Led to calls to give attackers the benefit of the doubt.