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Football is, in essence, a contact sport, but only in a sense that players are allowed to tackle one another and use their bodies to win the ball from an opponent. For the most part, ‘the beautiful game’ is supposed to be just that – beautiful.
Unfortunately, there have been times during the history of football when players’ emotions have got the better of them, and tempers have boiled over. The results of these incidents range from the odd scuffle with a little pushing and shoving to scenes more worthy of the UFC.
Here are 10 of the most dramatic brawls between opponents that we’ve ever seen break out on the football pitch.
#1 Ariel Ortega vs. Edwin Van Der Sar
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We begin with a classic incident from the 1998 World Cup; an altercation that left one player flat on his back and the other leaving the pitch after being shown a red card. The match in question was a quarter-final clash between the Netherlands and Argentina, and the guilty party was Argentine playmaker Ariel Ortega.
The game was tied at 1-1 with the clock ticking down, and with just 3 minutes remaining in the second half, Ortega burst into the Dutch penalty area and attempted to dart past defender Jaap Stam. As he did so, he fell to the ground in an attempt to win a penalty – but the referee refused to fall for the trick, and immediately booked the playmaker.
With Ortega still grounded, Dutch goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar decided to stand over him and remonstrate – only for the Argentine to leap to his feet and smash the top of his head into the keeper’s chin. Van der Sar hit the ground like he’d taken a left hook from Mike Tyson – and the referee swiftly showed Ortega the red card.
Was it a headbutt worthy of such a reaction? Perhaps not, but it was certainly a shocking flash of temper from Ortega, And unlike headbutts usually seen in football – more like head-pushes – this one at least made serious contact.
#2 Roy Keane vs. Alan Shearer
Manchester United legend Roy Keane was renowned for his fiery temper and drive to win, and while it served him well during his career, on the odd occasion it got him into trouble. One such occasion saw his temper completely boil over during a clash with Newcastle United in 2003. The incident actually started off innocuously but quickly spiralled out of control.
With the Red Devils losing 4-3 and time running out, the ball went out for a throw-in. And as Keane attempted to take the throw quickly, Magpies striker Alan Shearer stood in his way to prevent it. The Irish international immediately showed a flash of temper by throwing the ball at the striker, and when Shearer remonstrated with the official, Keane blew his top entirely.
As the Irishman was shown a yellow card, Shearer appeared to mutter something to him. This resulted in Keane swinging a punch at the striker that missed but managed to knock the yellow card from the referee’s hand in the process. Naturally, it came as no surprise to see the yellow card immediately turn into a red one for the United midfielder.
Both men have spoken about the incident in the years that have followed. Shearer recently stated that he “did (Keane) up like a kipper”, while Keane admitted that he felt like he should’ve punched him “properly”, stating “you might as well get hung for a sheep as a lamb”.
#3 Francis Lee vs. Norman Hunter
Roy Keane’s punch might’ve missed his intended target Alan Shearer, but in this 1975 clash between England teammates Francis Lee and Norman Hunter, more than one blow landed. The incident occurred in a Division One match between Lee’s Derby County and Hunter’s Leeds United, and lives in infamy even today.
The bad blood between the two began to boil during the first half when Lee was apparently fouled by Hunter in the penalty area, winning his side a spot-kick. Hunter felt that the forward had dived, and during the second half, tempers frayed entirely.
An off-the-ball incident saw the two men clash, and a right hand from the Leeds defender saw Lee dropped to one knee. As their teammates came in to separate them, it appeared that the referee had sent both men off. As they walked away, the fight broke out again, this time with Lee landing a flurry of punches on Hunter that knocked him to the ground.
Both sets of players again had to step in, and finally cooler heads prevailed as Lee was led away by one of Derby’s coaches in a different direction to Hunter. This remains one of the wildest fights in football history, with the clip still being jaw-dropping today.
#4 England vs. Turkey
England’s 2003 clash with Turkey in Istanbul was always going to be a high-pressure one; a place at Euro 2004 was at stake, with the Three Lions needing to secure at least a point to go to the tournament ahead of their hosts. Nobody could’ve guessed quite how bad tempers would fray, though.
With 10 minutes of the first half remaining, England were awarded a penalty when Steven Gerrard was tripped in the box. David Beckham stepped up to take the kick only to slip, causing his shot to fly way over the crossbar. The miss triggered an ugly scene as Turkish defender Alpay – then of Aston Villa – stood over Beckham, and the two went head-to-head for a moment.
When the half-time whistle blew, things got completely out of control. Alpay chased Beckham towards the tunnel and appeared to shove his fingers into the England captain’s nose, and from there, things turned really ugly. A disagreement broke out in the tunnel and saw Emile Heskey punch Turkey’s Hasan Sas before a mass brawl saw blows exchanged on both sides.
Referee Pierluigi Collina eventually calmed things down and the match ended without further incident – but that wasn’t the end of the matter for Alpay. Just weeks after the game, Aston Villa decided to terminate his contract due to his actions.
#5 Jose Mourinho vs. Tito Vilanova
The rivalry between Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona is arguably the most legendary in football history, and matches between the two have often seen emotions boil over. One of the most controversial incidents though took place in 2011 in the second leg of the Spanish Super Cup final and saw the two sides’ managers clash violently.
With the clock ticking down and Barca leading 3-2, Real defender Marcelo hacked Cesc Fabregas to the ground with a horrendous tackle. The Brazilian was instantly shown a red card – but the two sides then broke into a melee that also saw Real’s Mesut Ozil and Barca’s David Villa – who had already been substituted – also shown the red card.
Cooler heads eventually prevailed and the incident was calmed down – but television replays had caught perhaps the most shameful moment. Real boss Jose Mourinho was seen gouging the eyes of Barca’s assistant boss Tito Vilanova.
Despite the Portuguese refusing to apologise for his actions – and largely denying all knowledge of them – he was later punished for his actions. Mourinho was banned for two games and fined €600 – while Vilanova was also fined and banned for one game for shoving Mourinho in response.
#6 Inter Milan vs. Valencia
One of the wildest brawls in football history took place in the 2006-07 edition of the Champions League. Players from Valencia and Inter Milan decided to exchange blows on the pitch directly after the final whistle. The bad-tempered round of 16 second leg at the Mestalla ended 0-0, with Valencia advancing into the quarter-finals via away goals.
The game had already seen 6 players booked, but things got really crazy when the final whistle went. Valencia’s Carlos Marchena clashed with Inter’s Nicolas Burdisso in the centre-circle, and the incident sparked a melee that soon got completely out of control.
With both sets of players flooding forward to get involved, Valencia’s David Navarro – an unused substitute – sneaked into the heart of the brawl and punched Burdisso, breaking his nose. In astonishing scenes, he then sprinted away from Burdisso’s teammates, who tried in vain to trip him up as he ran.
Stewards had to intervene to calm things down, and even after the pitch had been cleared, Inter’s players had to be held back from attempting to confront Navarro in the dressing room. The shameful scenes saw both clubs charged with improper conduct. Navarro, Burdisso and Marchena – along with Inter’s Maicon and Ivan Cordoba – were all charged with gross unsporting conduct.
#7 Joey Barton vs. Manchester City
The 2011-12 season will always be remembered for the dramatic final-day clash between Manchester City and QPR that saw City score two late goals to win the game and cement their Premier League title victory. Unfortunately, the game also saw a terrible amount of violence perpetrated by QPR’s Joey Barton.
A former Manchester City player, Barton was renowned throughout his career for some displays of bad behaviour, but his red card in this game was amongst his worst indiscretions. With 55 minutes gone, the midfielder blew his top – and was given his marching orders for an off-the-ball elbow on Carlos Tevez.
Worse was yet to come; after he’d been shown the red card, Barton completely snapped. His face contorted with rage, he kneed Sergio Aguero in the leg, causing the striker to collapse, and then headbutted Vincent Kompany. Even after he’d been restrained and led from the field, he still had to be pulled back from lunging at substitute Mario Balotelli.
The result of the incident saw Barton fined £75,000 and banned for 12 matches by the FA. Unsurprisingly, the midfielder would not play for QPR in the subsequent season, instead joining French side Marseille on a season-long loan.
#8 Arsenal vs. Ruud Van Nistelrooy
The rivalry between Manchester United and Arsenal was a thing of legend during the late 1990s and early 2000s, and one of the biggest flashpoints between the two sides came during the 2003-04 season. In a match later christened ‘The Battle of Old Trafford’, emotions boiled over thanks to a controversial penalty late in the second half.
The game was already a bad-tempered one, with 31 fouls committed in total and 4 yellow cards handed out to each side. However, things came to a head in the 80th minute when United’s Ruud Van Nistelrooy jumped for the ball and landed on Arsenal’s Patrick Vieira. Vieira aimed a kick at the Dutchman, and although it didn’t land, his reaction was such that the referee immediately red-carded the Arsenal midfielder.
With tempers now flaring, United managed to win a last-minute penalty – only for Van Nistelrooy to hit the bar with his spot-kick. The shot was near enough the final kick of the game. And as the whistle blew, the striker found himself mobbed by Arsenal’s players – with Martin Keown leaping onto his back and Lauren and Ray Parlour shoving him around like schoolyard bullies.
The incident triggered a wild melee, and in the aftermath of the game, six Arsenal players, two United players and Arsenal as a club were charged with improper conduct by the FA. All of the players involved were fined – with the Gunners receiving an FA record fine of £175,000 for failing to control their players.
#9 Arsenal vs. Manchester United
The rivalry between Arsenal and Manchester United might’ve come to a crescendo in the early 2000s. However, the first flare-up between these two giants actually came in the 1990-91 season, prior to the inauguration of the Premier League. This match saw a wild incident so bad that the FA ended up deducting points from both sides.
The incident began with a tussle for the ball just after the hour mark. Arsenal’s Nigel Winterburn lunged for the ball with a late challenge on United’s Denis Irwin – who was already challenging Anders Limpar. As Winterburn hit the ground, United’s Brian McClair appeared to kick him twice, and from there things spiralled entirely out of control.
A mass brawl ensued, with players pushing and shoving and having to be restrained by teammates. Incredibly, Gunners goalkeeper David Seaman was the only player who refused to become involved. Somehow though, when things had been calmed down, the referee decided to merely book two players – Limpar and Winterburn.
That wasn’t enough for the FA, though; both United and Arsenal were charged with bringing the game into disrepute, and were both fined £50,000. Two points were deducted off the Gunners while a solitary point was docked off United's tally.
#10 Diego Maradona vs. Athletic Bilbao
The majority of fights on the football pitch tend to end mildly; even seeing a punch actually connect is usually quite shocking. However, after the 1984 Copa del Rey final that saw Barcelona beaten 1-0 by Athletic Bilbao, legendary Argentine striker Diego Maradona lost his mind. He then unleashed the kind of striking assault usually seen in the UFC’s Octagon.
Barca’s Maradona already had history with Bilbao’s players. Defender Andoni Goikoetxea had infamously broken his ankle with a shocking tackle in 1983, and the Spanish international and his teammates hardly held back in the Copa del Rey final, fouling the Argentine on numerous occasions.
When the final whistle blew, Maradona was taunted by Bilbao substitute Miguel Sola, who apparently used xenophobic language towards him. The Argentine then blew his top entirely – attacking Sola before hitting him with a flying knee of all things, knocking him unconscious.
From there, things went completely out of control, with both teams aiming kung-fu kicks at one another all over the pitch. Their fans also began to fight in the crowd – tearing down some of the pitchside fencing. The incident caused huge controversy in Spain, and just months later, Maradona moved to Italy with Napoli in a £6.9m deal.
