Just read on FOX that FIFA is fining Costa Rica $17,000 and forcing then to play their next match vs Panama behind closed doors! The reason? The ref reported dangerous objects being thrown on the field at the Mexican players with the intent to injure. I believe this deserves a spot here in this forum because I would hope that this is a new, let's be more professional attitude/let's get tough on this stuff, by our governing bodies. Objects being hurled at our players in Saprissa has been going on for a while and we just accept it assuming that nothing will be done by criminal Jack and FIFA. This is one hell of a message and it got my attention. I can not remeber this happening in our region in 25 years. If someone knows of any situations I would love to know. Did our money rich Mexican friends press the issue? It was in the refs match report by FOX reporting account so I don't think so. I can only hope this is the way it is going to be from now on. It would be great to see our region become more professional, and to be less of a joke when it comes to stuff like this. It would be great to know that our guys just might not have bags of urine and batteries tossed at them. Just maybe. I am absolutely amazed a ref in our region reported somehting like this!!!!!!!! CR is appealing the "harsh" penalty saying it was only a small portion of the crowd at the end of the game...as if that justifies it Would love to know what people think. Article is up on the FOX website if you want to check it out. Professionalism, responsible action and respectability expected in our region? I still can't believe it. Truely am blown away by this.
The next thing you know, the football fields will look like real pitches and not something more suitable to raising pigs.
It is a positive step. I'll take referee improvement first over livestock suitable fields. Wow, first the US qualifies in 90, progressing steadily until we reach the final eight 12 years later, and now this!!!!! This is a historic achievement in CONCACAF! I can go to bed knowing that the world can truely change. Even things that seem impossible.
FAS at Águila (El Salvador) on Saturday night. The amount of crap flying out of the stands was unreal. Second game I've seen with the Águila fans going berserk. It's not across the board; in certain stadiums fans are allowed to act like jackasses. The teams, leagues and federations are going to have to clean it up. TV exposure and money is going to force the issue.
From http://sports.myway.com/news/03082005/v1204.html But they didn't do shiite to Mexico when bottles of urine are being thrown at US players in Azteca. Very nice.
Hopefully this will resonate throughout the region and we wont have to see this crap at Guatemala, El Salvador or Azteca either.
I was watching a report on the Chivas-Cienciano match the day they played and the television reporter was interviewing some played on Chivas when he got whacked in the nose with something thrown from the stands. He immediately started bleeding. The Chivas player looked like he was thinking "better you than me dude." Throwing things is ridiculously horrendous. Any fan caught throwing crap should be banned for life from that stadium.
Yeah, when they slap Mexico with a fine for after our next game with them , then I'll believe that they've finally become professional. Its always easy to punish the little guys.
Wow. I find this so hard to believe. I always thought that Central Americans, especially those advanced and thoughtful Costaricences, had a way of expressing their passion for and appreciation of the game from which we could all learn. I always thought that American claims of unruly spectators and complicit local police were racist fabrications. I'll have to tell this one to my professor of multicultural sensitivity. I hope that this doesn't ruin his day.
Does Soldier Field get any more games after the bottles thrown during the Mexico-Uruguay friendly last year?
What about the cell-phone hurling Mexicans at Giants in the summer of 2005? And Cantor blamed the ref for ending the game exactly on the 90 minute mark. Ironies abound.
I was watching an Argentine match on Gol the other day and they showed the direct hit and splatter of an object on the side of the head of a striker. To me that was disturbing enough but what really torked me was that Max Breatos and his co announcer (Chilian guy-I don't know his name) were making jokes about it saying the person who threw the object had a great arm and was a dead-on shot.. I guess it's been such an accepted part of fan behavior south of the border Max et al think it's normal. SICK. I don't think FIFA's action in the CR matter will have any impact on te behavior of those who throw objects. They will not change until their consciousness is raised above the level of irresponsible children and I'm afraid that will take many more reincarnations.
Christian Bozzo was the announcer, didn't think he was Chilean, thought he was Argentine but i might be wrong; Martin Palermo for Boca was the player hit with what looked like a big chunk of ice. Bozzo and Bretos did make light of the ice throwing, but in between the silly jokes, both of them did repeatedly mention that there was no excuse for the ice having been thrown. quite frankly, i preferred not listening to a pompous sermon about hooligans-this, bring back the draft-that, South American supporters are ungentlemanly, blah, blah, blah... making light of it while commenting that it should not happen really was not such an irresponsible approach. I don't think either of the announcers can fairly be characterized as accepting that ice-throwing during a match is okay...
If I recall correctly BOZZO stated he grew up in Chile. You are correct that both Max and Chris did say there was no excuse for the object being thrown. My onjection was that they made light of the matter. Being hit in the side of the head like that is no laughing matter and any and all remarks pertaining to such an eveny should be clear and to the point--this is criminal behavior.
Then I suggest that you should never have opened this thread. I take exception to your characterizing those who are disturbed by the type of criminal behavior being discussed here as offering "pompous sermons". To speak out against irresponsible and criminal behavior is responsible. I was offered the following early in life and have tried to honor it's wisdom. "The only things necessary for evil to succeed in the world is for good men and women to do or say nothing".
Substitute "evil" for "stupitidy" and that's why Bush is in office. Somoeone mentioned that this was like picking on a small fish. In this region Costa Rica is definitely not a small fish. I am still very surprised. The previous picture says it all as the players are leaving the field. It had to be super blatant in this region for such action to be taken. I am shocked and started this thread becuase playing in an empty stadium here is unusual as hell. Unheard of until someone can find a precedent for me. It seems that the object hurling is jsut understood to be part of the game around here and that is sad. TV money and a higher profile will eventually change this as stated before..................eventually. Still, I'm shocked something was actually done. To me this ranks up there with Villanova beating Georgetown, the Miralce on Ice and the US run to the final 8. That's how little I have seen over the past 3 decades from CONCACAF & FIFA around here. That's how little respect I have for them. Total surprise. Let's see what happens on appeal. There are times when people in charge can make a profound statement and actually try to change things. This is one of them. Let's see. Believe it when I see it.
US fans need to take note here. We're not exactly innocent either. I've had bottles and such go flying by me at US games over the last several years. Last year's Honduras game at Gillette, the WCQ in Columbus vs Costa Rica in 2000 both spring immediately to mind as games where stuff was thrown on the field from the US supporters sections.
The US will be OK as long as we don't let any University of Maryland basketball fans into the matches.
Point taken, and FIFA should act against ANY Nats team and fans. ANY! Just keep the Indiana Pacers away from our matches.
AS Roma was penalized for their fans' actions against Anders Frisk (Swedish referee) last fall. Anders was hit in the face with a coin while going off for halftime of a UEFA Champions League match. The match was terminated and Roma played their last two matches in an empty stadium. Hopefully, these punishments will send a message to fans and teams that this behavior will not be tolerated. I hope CONCACAF explains that the penalty was this light because no one was hurt.
Indeed we should always strive to keep our behavior acceptable. But I'm not about to get indignant over the one empty plastic bottle that ended up on the field. Do enlighten me as to what happened at Gillette with Hondie. Seriously. None of this, I suspect, even compares to the behavior of Guatemala supporters at RFK in 2000. It is ironic that the local fed is responsible for even those fans.