The 2014 World Cup in Brazil is now in full swing, and the U.S.A. kicks off its opening game against Ghana on Monday. So, it’s a perfect prompt for a roundup of those noble moments when cheeky canines decide to get in on the action and invade a pitch while a game is in full flow!
With an assist coming courtesy of the wonders of YouTube, here are six of the best:
A classic of the form in the literal sense, this video features a handsome-looking canine chap who moseyed onto the pitch during an Argentinian club game between River Plate and Rosario Central, and calmly dropped his business on the fresh green grass. The obligatory chase to scoop him up and off the pitch naturally ensued with the crowd cheering on his every move.
Undeterred by the prospect of frolicking to a near-empty stadium, this slick duo of Labs leapt onto the pitch during a Galatasaray game in Turkey. Good spirits were in order as the players seemed to welcome their new canine teammates.
Faithful football fans attending this game in Bolivia got more action than they had banked on when a trio of dogs managed to sneak onto the pitch. One player, Cristaldo, even came off the loser in a scuffle with one of the pups, much to the crowd’s rapturous applause.
Introducing perhaps the world’s most skillful canine pitch invader, here a police dog ditches his crowd control duties in favor of stealing the match ball. Impressive dribbling skills to boot.
The year: 1988. The occasion: Crystal Palace versus Blackburn Rovers. The incident: A goal-mouth scramble goes awry when a confident canine strides into the middle of the action. To which the English commentator ponders, “Do you, like me, sometimes wonder why on earth people bring a fine-looking dog like that to a ground like this?”
Finally, the most famous dog pitch-invasion of all time took place during the 1962 World Cup, when a small black pup introduced himself to the crowd during the quarterfinal between England and Brazil. After running rings around a couple of Brazilians, English striker Jimmy Greaves got down on all fours and and drew the dog in before scooping him up. Legend has it that not only did the dog pee on Greaves, but that Brazilian opponent Garrincha eventually adopted the cheeky mutt. A classic World Cup miracle.
Are you watching the World Cup? Are you waiting for dogs to invade the pitches? Tell us about your World Cup fever in the comments!
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