We all know it, sometimes during the end-of-year holidays, family meals can feel like a real trap.So here are some football stories and legends related to Christmas that will allow you to impress the ...
We all know it, sometimes during the end-of-year holidays, family meals can feel like a real trap.
So here are some football stories and legends related to Christmas that will allow you to impress the crowd and restart the conversation with auntie and uncle!
A PSG Goalkeeper Injured... Playing Scrabble 😭
We've seen some unusual injuries. But the one involving Lionel Letizi, a French goalkeeper who played for Paris Saint-Germain and OGC Nice, is probably at the top!
In 2002, just before the winter break, PSG was on a training retreat. Jérôme Alonzo, Laurent Leroy, and Lionel Letizi decided to start a game of Scrabble. A piece fell to the ground, Letizi bent down to pick it up and... threw his back out. Yes. Three weeks off. What a disaster.
Lost in the Fog 😶🌫️
Sometimes, in winter, the weather is unforgiving. On December 25, 1937, London and England were covered in thick fog, causing the cancellation of many football matches. But not the duel between Chelsea and Charlton!
The two teams played, each scored a goal, before the referee finally decided to stop the match around the 60th minute.
The players returned to the locker rooms... except for Samuel Bertram. The Charlton goalkeeper, who had seen almost nothing for many minutes due to the fog, didn't see the referee's signal and was finally alerted by a police officer, fifteen minutes later, that the match was over.
Santa Claus is... a Parachutist 🪂
On December 13, 1998, Aston Villa hosted Arsenal. The club organized a halftime show with parachutists from the Royal Air Force, including one dressed as Santa Claus.
Problem, Nigel Rogoff, the Christmas parachutist, missed his landing and hit the roof of one of the stands at Villa Park!
📸 The Guardian
Transported to the hospital, he unfortunately couldn't avoid the amputation of one of his legs...
But Rogoff and the nurse who cared for him fell in love and got married shortly after. When an unfortunate event leads to a life-changing encounter. The magic of Christmas.
Festive Spirit Among Soldiers 🙏
Football matches during World War I, legend or reality?
While no "official" match took place, several spontaneous games did occur on the Belgian front between the English and Germans, at the end of December 1914.
In several areas of the front, trees, candles, and lanterns were brought out. Without authorization, several soldiers left the trenches with a white flag and began to talk.
Drinks were shared, songs were sung, cigarettes were exchanged... and several football games were improvised. With, as reported by testimonies, tin cans used as balls.
The Santa Claus Club 🎅
Santa Claus officially lives in Lapland, a Finnish region. Thus, the city of Rovaniemi, the capital of the region, is home to Santa's workshop and house... but also his football club!
In 1992, the city's two clubs merged to form FC Santa Claus, in homage to the local figure, who delights the public with appearances on certain occasions. The club plays in the sixth division of Finnish football and has a shop in the Santa Claus village, its iconic benefactor.
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇫🇷 here.
📸 PATRICK HERTZOG
Category: General Sports
