Zidane & Materazzi: FIFA suspends & fines both players

[TimB4Last]

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/soccer/07/20/zidane.banned.ap/

ZURICH, Switzerland (AP) -- Zinedine Zidane was banned by FIFA for three games Thursday for head-butting Italy defender Marco Materazzi during the World Cup final. Now retired, the former France captain will serve his punishment by doing community work.

Materazzi was suspended for two matches for provoking Zidane with insults.

World soccer's governing body also fined Zidane $6,000 and Materazzi $4,000 after a disciplinary committee heard the French player's account of what led to the incident.

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I'll return to comment later, but I think the punishments were along the lines of what I predicted.

[SueB]

I wonder if FIFA was possibly influenced by the fact that one of their biggest World cup sponsors (Adidas) also happens to have a longterm sponsorship deal with Zidane.

[Inquirer]

"As Zidane has retired, the commission has noted Zidane will also make himself available to Fifa for humanitarian activities with children and adolescents."

which, translated from Mandarine into English, means Zidane will act guest of honor at 3 days of FIFA youth event without asking a refund.

How harsh. After all, he only attacked a man . It's not like it had been a whale or some specimen of the thousand species of insects that are becoming estinct each year. :cool:

[JFPIV]

Not going to be many players left in these tournaments if FIFA hands down two match bans for every guy that tries to verbally get under his opponents skin.

[Fan123]

It's b/c the guy he insulted was Zidane. If it was anyone else, no one would have cared enough. I guess they also want to make sure Materazzi doesn't play against France on September.

[TimB4Last]

I wonder if FIFA was possibly influenced by the fact that one of their biggest World cup sponsors (Adidas) also happens to have a longterm sponsorship deal with Zidane.

Impossible! Ok, barely possible. Yes, possible. Quite possible, actually. I would say very, very possible, but not at all probable. Ok, fifty-fifty, at best. More probable than not, now that I think about it. Highly probable, actually. Almost certain. Positively, absolutely 100% for sure.

Don't twist my words: As I said - IMPOSSIBLE!

[Zuras]

Not going to be many players left in these tournaments if FIFA hands down two match bans for every guy that tries to verbally get under his opponents skin.


I think this is just a bit of Karma from the Frings send out off the Italians plotted for.

[TimB4Last]

Not going to be many players left in these tournaments if FIFA hands down two match bans for every guy that tries to verbally get under his opponents skin.

Has BigSoccer decided to enforce the FIFA Code of Conduct? If so, there won't be many posters left here, either!

[Shackleton]

"As Zidane has retired, the commission has noted Zidane will also make himself available to Fifa for humanitarian activities with children and adolescents."

which, translated from Mandarine into English, means Zidane will act guest of honor at 3 days of FIFA youth event without asking a refund.

How harsh. After all, he only attacked a man . It's not like it had been a whale or some specimen of the thousand species of insects that are becoming estinct each year. :cool:

In all fairness to FIFA (can't believe I'm going to defend them), what do you suggest they do? It's not like they have the authority to put him in jail. :rolleyes:

[Shackleton]

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/soccer/07/20/zidane.banned.ap/

ZURICH, Switzerland (AP) -- Zinedine Zidane was banned by FIFA for three games Thursday for head-butting Italy defender Marco Materazzi during the World Cup final. Now retired, the former France captain will serve his punishment by doing community work.

Materazzi was suspended for two matches for provoking Zidane with insults.

World soccer's governing body also fined Zidane $6,000 and Materazzi $4,000 after a disciplinary committee heard the French player's account of what led to the incident.

I'm a little surprised Materazzi received as severe of a penalty as he did. Like others, I'm suspect he got the punishment he did because it was the WC Final and a superstar on the other side. But, it's hard to be too critical of FIFA when we still haven't heard exactly what Materazzi said and/or did to "repeadly provoke" Zidane.

The article also states that "Both players stressed that Materazzi's comments had been defamatory but not of a racist nature." Glad to see that explicitly cleared up for Materazzi's sake.

[Fulham Fan]

It's b/c the guy he insulted was Zidane.
That's not it. It's because it was the World Cup final. Zidane had already missed a match in this tournament - which could have been his last match ever. FIFA obviously were willing to let that stand. But they had to do something after the final to appease the French fans and critics of Italy. These bans and fines are virtually meaningless and so soccer will go on as it always does.

[peong]

CNN's report

Chuck Roberts after report by Larry Smith on Zidane's ban:

"FIFA.... never heard of it."

[Inquirer]

In all fairness to FIFA (can't believe I'm going to defend them), what do you suggest they do? It's not like they have the authority to put him in jail. :rolleyes:

How about a serious fine and banning him from FIFA promotional activity for some significant time, say a year? Do you realize they are saying that as a punishment for using violence in the field they'll make him a role model at youth events? What a role model precisely? Looks more like a pat on the shoulder and a hearty bravo, to me.

[TimB4Last]

In all fairness to FIFA (can't believe I'm going to defend them), what do you suggest they do? It's not like they have the authority to put him in jail. :rolleyes:

No, they don't. I just think FIFA missed an opportunity to give Zidane a big symbolic suspension, eight or ten games maybe. Zidane's headbutt, provoked or not, was deliberate. It was also on the game's biggest stage.

I think Materazzi got two games with a view of keeping him out of Paris on September 6. I think FIFA did better here, because without specifying how or where FIFA drew the line, players in the future will know that such a line exists, however vaguely drawn and rarely enforced.

[Unico10]

How about a serious fine and banning him from FIFA promotional activity for some significant time, say a year? Do you realize they are saying that as a punishment for using violence in the field they'll make him a role model at youth events? What a role model precisely? Looks more like a pat on the shoulder and a hearty bravo, to me.

EXACTLY.

I have no problems with Materazzi getting suspended (although it opens a gigantic can of worms)... but Zidane's slap on the wrist is just pure idiocy.

Should have been 5 or 6 games vs 2 for Materazzi and since he cannot serve them because he retired, the fine should have been $100,000+

If it was some no name player from a weak conference, would have been looking at months of suspension. Pretty lame, really.

[OFFMason]

Nothing that anyone says deserves a head butt, be an adult about it.

Why end a career like that?

He crossed the line and turned a conversational conflict into a physical one.

[DaveyGorgeous]

I understand the punishment was supposed to be symbolic but i mean cmon... a three-match ban for thrusting your head into another man's chest? Totti got 3 games for spitting last world cup; spitting and headbutting are violations to be punished equivalently? That seems ridiculous... and his fine amount seems very very low... $6,000?!? For something the whole world (practically) witnessed? Might as well have let him go without a fine... seems absurd to me...

And Materazzi's ruling... ok, if they are going to render such a punishment, they have now "opened up a can of worms" as someone else said...

I'm not saying he shouldve been fined hundreds of thousands of dollars or gotten banned for live... but a simple 5 or 6 match ban and $20grand or so would seem more proportional...

Get your act together FIFA

[DaveyGorgeous]

Also both players denied the insults were racist

..............

[celito]

It's b/c the guy he insulted was Zidane. If it was anyone else, no one would have cared enough. I guess they also want to make sure Materazzi doesn't play against France on September.

I agree. If it hadn't been such a big name player and not in the Final, FIFA would have done nothing to Materazzi. Not that I approve of his behaviour.

[Shackleton]

http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/07/20/sports/soccer.php

Interesting point of view.