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2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup

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2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup
FIFA U-20 World Cup Canada 2007
Coupe du Monde de Football des Moins de 20 ans 2007
2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup official logo
Tournament details
Host countryCanada
Dates30 June – 22 July
Teams24 (from 6 confederations)
Venue(s)6 (in 6 host cities)
Final positions
Champions Argentina (6th title)
Runners-up Czech Republic
Third place Chile
Fourth place Austria
Tournament statistics
Matches played52
Goals scored135 (2.6 per match)
Attendance1,195,299 (22,987 per match)
Top scorer(s)Argentina Sergio Agüero (6 goals)
Best player(s)Argentina Sergio Agüero
Fair play award Japan
← 2005
2009 →

The 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the 16th edition of the FIFA U-20 World Cup (formerly called the FIFA World Youth Championship), hosted by Canada from 30 June to 22 July 2007. Argentina defeated the Czech Republic in the title game by the score of 2–1, thus managing a back-to-back world title, its fifth in the past seven editions, and sixth overall. Argentine player Sergio Agüero was given the FIFA U-20 Golden Shoe (top scorer, with six goals) and the FIFA U-20 Golden Ball (best player of the tournament), while Japan earned the FIFA Fair Play Award.

The tournament featured 24 teams coming from six continental confederations; Canada qualified automatically as hosts, while the remaining teams qualified based on their rankings at the respective continental U-20 (U-19 in Europe's case) tournaments. UEFA (Europe) qualified six teams; AFC (Asia), CAF (Africa), CONCACAF (North, Central America and Caribbean) and CONMEBOL (South America) four teams each; and OFC (Oceania) one team.

The tournament took place in a variety of venues across the country – Toronto, Edmonton, Montreal, Ottawa, Victoria and Burnaby (Vancouver) – with the showcase stadium being Toronto's new National Soccer Stadium[1] where the final match was held. 19 years later Canada will co-host the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

On 28 June 2007, two days before the inaugural match, it was reported that 950,000 tickets had been sold,[2] making it the largest single-sport event ever taking place in the country,[3] and on 3 July, the tournament organizers sold the millionth ticket.[4] On 19 July, the semi-final match between Chile and Argentina marked this edition as the most attended in the tournament's history, with an accumulated attendance of 1,156,187 spectators, surpassing Mexico 1983's 1,155,160 spectators.[5] Attendance totalled 1,195,299 after the final match.

Bids

[edit]

Three countries launched bids to host the competition: Canada, Japan and South Korea.[6] On August 6, 2004 the FIFA Emergency Committee unanimously awarded the rights to host the event to Canada over South Korea (Japan did not submit an official bid).[7]

Venues

[edit]
Montreal Edmonton Ottawa
Olympic Stadium Commonwealth Stadium Frank Clair Stadium
Capacity: 66,308 Capacity: 60,081 Capacity: 26,559
45°33′28.8″N 73°33′07.2″W / 45.558000°N 73.552000°W / 45.558000; -73.552000 (Olympic Stadium) 53°33′34.6″N 113°28′34.2″W / 53.559611°N 113.476167°W / 53.559611; -113.476167 (Commonwealth Stadium) 45°23′55.8″N 75°41′03.6″W / 45.398833°N 75.684333°W / 45.398833; -75.684333 (Frank Clair Stadium)
Toronto Victoria Burnaby
National Soccer Stadium Royal Athletic Park Swangard Stadium
Capacity: 20,195 Capacity: 14,500 Capacity: 10,000
43°37′59.5″N 79°25′06.8″W / 43.633194°N 79.418556°W / 43.633194; -79.418556 (BMO Field) 48°25′52.6″N 123°21′14.6″W / 48.431278°N 123.354056°W / 48.431278; -123.354056 (Royal Athletic Park) 49°13′51.0″N 123°01′17.0″W / 49.230833°N 123.021389°W / 49.230833; -123.021389 (Swangard Stadium)

Qualification

[edit]
2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup final rankings.

Twenty-three teams qualified for the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup. As the host team, Canada received an automatic bid, bringing the total number of teams to twenty-four for the tournament. The final draw for the group stages took place on 3 March 2007 in Liberty Grand Entertainment Complex, Toronto.

Confederation Qualifying Tournament Qualifier(s)
AFC (Asia) 2006 AFC Youth Championship  Japan
 Jordan1
 North Korea1
 South Korea
CAF (Africa) 2007 African Youth Championship  Congo1
 Gambia1
 Nigeria
 Zambia
CONCACAF
(North, Central America & Caribbean) 		Host nation  Canada
2007 U-20 World Cup CONCACAF qualifying tournament  Costa Rica
 Mexico
 Panama
 United States
CONMEBOL (South America) 2007 South American Youth Championship  Argentina
 Brazil
 Chile
 Uruguay
OFC (Oceania) 2007 OFC U-20 Championship  New Zealand1
UEFA (Europe) 2006 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship  Austria
 Czech Republic
 Poland
 Portugal
 Scotland
 Spain
1.^ Teams that made their debut.

Match officials

[edit]
Confederation Referee Assistants
AFC Subkhiddin Mohd Salleh (Malaysia) Thanom Borikut (Thailand)
Mu Yuxin (China)
Ravshan Irmatov (Uzbekistan) Abdukhamidullo Rasulov (Uzbekistan)
Bahadyr Kochkarov (Kyrgyzstan)
CAF Mohamed Benouza (Algeria) Amar Talbi (Algeria)
Mazari Kerai (Algeria)
CONCACAF Steven Depiero (Canada) Héctor Vergara (Canada)
Joe Fletcher (Canada)
Joel Aguilar (El Salvador) Roberto Giron (Honduras)
Daniel Williamson (Panama)
Germán Arredondo (Mexico) Héctor Delgadillo (Mexico)
Francisco Pérez (Mexico)
Enrico Wijngaarde (Suriname) Anthony Garwood (Jamaica)
Ricardo Morgan (Jamaica)
Terry Vaughn (United States) Chris Strickland (United States)
George Gansner (United States)
CONMEBOL Hernando Buitrago (Colombia) Abraham González (Colombia)
Rafael Rivas (Colombia)
OFC Peter O'Leary (New Zealand) Brent Best (New Zealand)
Kaloata Chilia (Vanuatu)
UEFA Howard Webb (England) Mike Mullarkey (England)
Darren Cann (England)
Wolfgang Stark (Germany) Jan-Hendrik Salver (Germany)
Volker Wezel (Germany)
Viktor Kassai (Hungary) Gábor Erős (Hungary)
Tibor Vámos (Hungary)
Alberto Undiano Mallenco (Spain) Fermín Martínez Ibáñez (Spain)
Juan Carlos Yuste Jiménez (Spain)
Martin Hansson (Sweden) Stefan Wittberg (Sweden)
Henrik Andrén (Sweden)

Squads

[edit]

For a list of the squads see 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup squads

Group stage

[edit]
Rubin Okotie of Austria and Destin Onka Malonga of the Congo at the Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton on 2 July 2007.

The 24 participating teams were distributed between six groups of four teams each, according to a draw held on 3 March 2007. The groups are contested on a league system, where each team plays one time against the other teams in the same group, for a total of six matches per group. Each group winner and runner-up teams, as well as the best four third-placed teams, qualify for the first round of the knockout stage (round of 16).

Group A

[edit]
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Group stage result
1  Chile 3 2 1 0 6 0 +6 7 Advance to knockout stage
2  Austria 3 1 2 0 2 1 +1 5
3  Congo 3 1 1 1 3 4 −1 4
4  Canada (H) 3 0 0 3 0 6 −6 0
Source: [citation needed]
(H) Hosts
Canada 0–3 Chile
Report Medina 25'
Carmona 54'
Grondona 81'
Attendance: 20,195
Congo 1–1 Austria
Ibara 59' (pen.) Report Hoffer 7'
Attendance: 19,899
Austria 1–0 Canada
Okotie 47' Report
Attendance: 31,579
Chile 3–0 Congo
Sánchez 49'
Medina 75'
Vidal 82'		 Report
Attendance: 30,352
Canada 0–2 Congo
Report Ngakosso 26'
Ikouma 60'
Attendance: 32,058
Referee: Howard Webb (England)
Chile 0–0 Austria
Report
Attendance: 19,526

Group B

[edit]
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Group stage result
1  Spain 3 2 1 0 8 5 +3 7 Advance to knockout stage
2  Zambia 3 1 1 1 4 3 +1 4
3  Uruguay 3 1 1 1 3 4 −1 4
4  Jordan 3 0 1 2 3 6 −3 1
Source: [citation needed]
Jordan 1–1 Zambia
Deeb 41' Report Tembo 8' (pen.)
Attendance: 10,000
Spain 2–2 Uruguay
Adrián L. 71'
Capel 90+3'		 Report Cavani 47'
L. Suárez 56'
Attendance: 10,000
Uruguay 1–0 Jordan
Cavani 40' Report
Attendance: 10,000
Zambia 1–2 Spain
Njobvu 74' Report M. Suárez 30' (pen.)
Mata 40'
Attendance: 10,000
Spain 4–2 Jordan
Adrián L. 29', 32', 38'
Marquitos 79'		 Report Omran 48'
Deeb 56'
Attendance: 10,000
Uruguay 0–2 Zambia
Report Mulenga 22' (pen.)
Kola 51'
Attendance: 11,500

Group C

[edit]
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Group stage result
1  Mexico 3 3 0 0 7 2 +5 9 Advance to knockout stage
2  Gambia 3 2 0 1 3 4 −1 6
3  Portugal 3 1 0 2 4 4 0 3
4  New Zealand 3 0 0 3 1 5 −4 0
Source: [citation needed]
Portugal 2–0 New Zealand
Gama 45', 61' (pen.) Report
Attendance: 19,526
Gambia 0–3 Mexico
Report Dos Santos 57'
Moreno 67'
J. Hernández 89'
Attendance: 19,526
New Zealand 0–1 Gambia
Report Jallow 22'
Attendance: 19,526
Mexico 2–1 Portugal
Dos Santos 48' (pen.)
Barrera 66'		 Report Antunes 89'
Attendance: 19,526
Referee: Howard Webb (England)
Portugal 1–2 Gambia
Condesso 20' Report Jallow 44' (pen.)
Mansally 68'
Attendance: 28,402
New Zealand 1–2 Mexico
Pelter 89' Report Bermúdez 24'
Mares 78'
Attendance: 29,792

Group D

[edit]
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Group stage result
1  United States 3 2 1 0 9 3 +6 7 Advance to knockout stage
2  Poland 3 1 1 1 3 7 −4 4
3  Brazil 3 1 0 2 4 5 −1 3
4  South Korea 3 0 2 1 4 5 −1 2
Source: [citation needed]
Poland 1–0 Brazil
Krychowiak 23' Report
Attendance: 55,800
Referee: Howard Webb (England)
South Korea 1–1 United States
Shin Young-rok 38' Report Szetela 17'
Attendance: 55,800
United States 6–1 Poland
Szetela 9', 51'
Adu 20', 45+3', 85'
Altidore 70'		 Report Janczyk 5'
Attendance: 35,801
Brazil 3–2 South Korea
Amaral 35'
Pato 48', 59'		 Report Shim Young-sung 83'
Shin Young-rok 89'
Attendance: 35,801
Brazil 1–2 United States
Lima 64' Report Altidore 25', 81'
Attendance: 26,559
Poland 1–1 South Korea
Janczyk 45' Report Lee Sang-ho 71'
Attendance: 34,912

Group E

[edit]
The Czech Republic playing against North Korea at the Frank Clair Stadium in Ottawa on 3 July 2007.
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Group stage result
1  Argentina 3 2 1 0 7 0 +7 7 Advance to knockout stage
2  Czech Republic 3 1 2 0 4 3 +1 5
3  North Korea 3 0 2 1 2 3 −1 2
4  Panama 3 0 1 2 1 8 −7 1
Source: [citation needed]
North Korea 0–0 Panama
Report
Attendance: 26,559
Argentina 0–0 Czech Republic
Report
Attendance: 26,559
Czech Republic 2–2 North Korea
Kalouda 56'
Fenin 66'		 Report Kim Kum-il 12'
Jon Kwang-ik 89' (pen.)
Attendance: 22,200
Panama 0–6 Argentina
Report Moralez 20', 27'
Zárate 23'
Agüero 25', 62'
Di María 76'
Attendance: 23,500
Czech Republic 2–1 Panama
Kalouda 79'
Střeštík 82'		 Report Barahona 84'
Attendance: 34,912
Argentina 1–0 North Korea
Agüero 35' Report
Attendance: 26,559

Group F

[edit]
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Group stage result
1  Japan 3 2 1 0 4 1 +3 7 Advance to knockout stage
2  Nigeria 3 2 1 0 3 0 +3 7
3  Costa Rica 3 1 0 2 2 3 −1 3
4  Scotland 3 0 0 3 2 7 −5 0
Source: [citation needed]
Japan 3–1 Scotland
Morishima 43'
Umesaki 57'
Aoyama 79'		 Report Campbell 82'
Attendance: 11,500
Nigeria 1–0 Costa Rica
Ideye 75' Report
Attendance: 11,500
Costa Rica 0–1 Japan
Report Tanaka 68'
Attendance: 10,500
Scotland 0–2 Nigeria
Report Bala 49', 78'
Attendance: 10,500
Referee: Terry Vaughn (United States)
Japan 0–0 Nigeria
Report
Attendance: 11,500
Scotland 1–2 Costa Rica
Reynolds 18' Report Herrera 57'
McDonald 90+2'
Attendance: 10,000

Ranking of third-placed teams

[edit]
Pos Grp Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Result
1 A  Congo 3 1 1 1 3 4 −1 4 Advance to knockout stage
2 B  Uruguay 3 1 1 1 3 4 −1 4
3 C  Portugal 3 1 0 2 4 4 0 3
4 D  Brazil 3 1 0 2 4 5 −1 3
5 F  Costa Rica 3 1 0 2 2 3 −1 3
6 E  North Korea 3 0 2 1 2 3 −1 2
Source: [citation needed]

Knockout stage

[edit]
 
Round of 16Quarter-finalsSemi-finalsFinal
 
              
 
11 July – Edmonton
 
 
 Austria2
 
14 July – Toronto
 
 Gambia1
 
 Austria (aet)2
 
11 July – Toronto
 
 United States1
 
 United States (aet)2
 
18 July – Edmonton
 
 Uruguay1
 
 Austria0
 
11 July – Burnaby
 
 Czech Republic2
 
 Spain (aet)4
 
14 July – Edmonton
 
 Brazil2
 
 Spain1 (3)
 
11 July – Victoria
 
 Czech Republic (p)1 (4)
 
 Japan2 (3)
 
22 July – Toronto
 
 Czech Republic (p)2 (4)
 
 Czech Republic1
 
12 July – Edmonton
 
 Argentina2
 
 Chile1
 
15 July – Montreal
 
 Portugal0
 
 Chile (aet)4
 
12 July – Ottawa
 
 Nigeria0
 
 Zambia1
 
19 July – Toronto
 
 Nigeria2
 
 Chile0
 
12 July – Toronto
 
 Argentina3 Third place
 
 Argentina3
 
15 July – Ottawa22 July – Toronto
 
 Poland1
 
 Argentina1 Austria0
 
12 July – Montreal
 
 Mexico0  Chile1
 
 Mexico3
 
 
 Congo0
 

Round of 16

[edit]
Austria 2–1 Gambia
Prödl 45+1'
Hoffer 81'		 Report P. Gomez 69'
Attendance: 18,721
United States 2–1 (a.e.t.) Uruguay
Cardaccio 87' (o.g.)
Bradley 107'		 Report L. Suárez 73'
Attendance: 19,526
Spain 4–2 (a.e.t.) Brazil
Piqué 43'
J. García 84'
Bueno 102'
Adrián L. 120+1'		 Report Lima 39'
Pato 41'
Attendance: 10,000
Japan 2–2 (a.e.t.) Czech Republic
Makino 22'
Morishima 47' (pen.)		 Report Kúdela 74' (pen.)
Mareš 77' (pen.)
Penalties
Yasuda soccer ball with red X
Aoki soccer ball with check mark
Makino soccer ball with check mark
Morishima soccer ball with red X
Kashiwagi soccer ball with check mark		 3–4 soccer ball with check mark Fenin
soccer ball with check mark Kúdela
soccer ball with check mark Suchý
soccer ball with red X Pekhart
soccer ball with check mark Okleštěk
Attendance: 11,500
Zambia 1–2 Nigeria
Kola 33' Report Elderson 3'
Akabueze 57'
Attendance: 22,531
Argentina 3–1 Poland
Di María 40'
Agüero 46', 86'		 Report Janczyk 33'
Attendance: 19,526
Chile 1–0 Portugal
Vidal 45' Report
Attendance: 24,687
Mexico 3–0 Congo
Dos Santos 23' (pen.)
Esparza 85'
Barrera 90+4'		 Report
Attendance: 40,204

Quarter-finals

[edit]
Austria 2–1 (a.e.t.) United States
Okotie 43'
Hoffer 105'		 Report Altidore 15'
Attendance: 19,526
Spain 1–1 (a.e.t.) Czech Republic
Mata 110' Report Kalouda 103'
Penalties
Mata soccer ball with check mark
Adrián G. soccer ball with check mark
Valiente soccer ball with red X
J. García soccer ball with check mark
Piqué soccer ball with red X		 3–4 soccer ball with check mark Fenin
soccer ball with check mark Suchý
soccer ball with check mark Kúdela
soccer ball with check mark Pekhart
Attendance: 26,801
Chile 4–0 (a.e.t.) Nigeria
Grondona 96'
Isla 114' (pen.), 117'
Vidangossy 120+2'		 Report
Attendance: 46,252
Referee: Howard Webb (England)
Argentina 1–0 Mexico
Moralez 45' Report
Attendance: 26,559

Semi-finals

[edit]
Austria 0–2 Czech Republic
Report Mičola 4'
Fenin 15'
Attendance: 28,401
Referee: Howard Webb (England)
Chile 0–3 Argentina
Report Di María 12'
Yacob 65'
Moralez 90+3'
Attendance: 19,526

Match for third place

[edit]
Austria 0–1 Chile
Report Martínez 45+1'
Attendance: 19,526

Final

[edit]
Czech Republic 1–2 Argentina
Fenin 60' Report Agüero 62'
Zárate 86'
Attendance: 19,526

Goalscorers

[edit]

With six goals, Sergio Agüero was the top scorer in the tournament. In total, 135 goals were scored by 84 different players, with one of them credited as own goals.

6 goals
5 goals
4 goals
3 goals
2 goals
1 goal
1 own goal

Awards

[edit]

Source:[8]

Golden Ball Silver Ball Bronze Ball
Argentina Sergio Agüero Argentina Maximiliano Moralez Mexico Giovani dos Santos
Golden Shoe Silver Shoe Bronze Shoe
Argentina Sergio Agüero Spain Adrián López Argentina Maximiliano Moralez
FIFA Fair Play Award
 Japan

Final ranking

[edit]
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Final result
1  Argentina 7 6 1 0 16 2 +14 19 Champions
2  Czech Republic 7 2 4 1 10 8 +2 10 Runners-up
3  Chile 7 5 1 1 12 3 +9 16 Third place
4  Austria 7 3 2 2 6 6 0 11 Fourth place
5  Mexico 5 4 0 1 10 3 +7 12 Eliminated in
Quarter-finals
6  Spain 5 3 2 0 13 8 +5 11
7  United States 5 3 1 1 12 6 +6 10
8  Nigeria 5 3 1 1 5 5 0 10
9  Japan 4 2 2 0 6 3 +3 8 Eliminated in
Round of 16
10  Gambia 4 2 0 2 4 6 −2 6
11  Zambia 4 1 1 2 5 5 0 4
12  Uruguay 4 1 1 2 4 6 −2 4
13  Congo 4 1 1 2 3 7 −4 4
14  Poland 4 1 1 2 4 10 −6 4
15  Portugal 4 1 0 3 4 5 −1 3
16  Brazil 4 1 0 3 6 9 −3 3
17  Costa Rica 3 1 0 2 2 3 −1 3 Eliminated in
Group stage
18  South Korea 3 0 2 1 4 5 −1 2
19  North Korea 3 0 2 1 2 3 −1 2
20  Jordan 3 0 1 2 3 6 −3 1
21  Panama 3 0 1 2 1 8 −7 1
22  New Zealand 3 0 0 3 1 5 −4 0
23  Scotland 3 0 0 3 2 7 −5 0
24  Canada (H) 3 0 0 3 0 6 −6 0
Source: rsssf.com
(H) Hosts

Controversies

[edit]

Nigerian accusations of racism

[edit]

The quarter-final match between Chile and Nigeria took place on FIFA's "Say No To Racism Day." During extra time, Chile's Jaime Grondona scored at the 96th minute, but Nigerians claimed that it was offside. Despite their protest, referee Howard Webb allowed the goal to stand, and the goalkeeper Ikechukwu Ezenwa received a yellow card for his protest. Replays showed that a defender was out of place, and it was not offside.[9][10]

After the game, Nigerian coach Ladan Bosso accused Webb of racism in a press conference, stating that "the officiating, I think FIFA has a long way to go to beat racism because that official showed racism." When asked directly if he felt Webb was a racist, Bosso responded by stating that "It's good for FIFA to bring in the fight against racism, but they have to follow it to the letter so that the implementation will be done."[10] The coach was fined CHF 11,000 and banned for four months, as the disciplinary committee found him guilty of "offensive behaviour" under the terms of article 57 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code.

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) was also sanctioned for allowing the players to wear T-shirts with religious statements under their game jerseys. This was a violation of the regulations of the tournament, which state: "Players and officials are not allowed to display political, religious, commercial or personal messages in any language or form on their playing or team kits..."[9]

Chilean clash with police

[edit]

On 19 July 2007, there was a clash between Chilean players and police officers following the semi-final match between Chile and Argentina. The Chilean players were angry with referee, Wolfgang Stark, claiming that he had "lost control of the match early on"[11] and complained about receiving seven yellow cards and two red cards,[12] with a total of 53 fouls committed.[13] After the game, Stark and his colleagues were surrounded by Chilean players, and Toronto Police Service members had to intervene to restrain them. Stark was escorted off the pitch and into the dressing room tunnel by the police, due to fears that he would be attacked by the crowd or Chilean players.[14] Afterwards, there was a brawl between several players and delegates of the Chilean team and police outside Toronto's National Soccer Stadium.[15]

According to Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair, the altercation began when Chilean players got into a scuffle with a rival fan.[16] He added that "members of the Chilean team then decided to direct some of their aggressive behaviour towards my officers... The job of my officers was to respond in a firm, but fair, manner to end that violence. They are trained to do so, and that is what they did."[16] The Chilean players, however, stated that Isaías Peralta walked towards Chilean fans located behind a security fence, but was stopped by about ten policemen. They further stated that a heated discussion took place, and Peralta (who speaks no English) was verbally and physically abused by the policemen.[17]

Peralta was tasered by a police officer and lost consciousness for 20 minutes.[17] Subsequently, other players became involved in a struggle with the police, but eventually returned to their bus and closed the doors. Eyewitnesses reported that players on the bus threw objects at the police through the windows and attempted to grab officers from inside the damaged bus.[18] Three minutes later, Harold Mayne-Nicholls, the president of the Chilean National Association of Professional Football (ANFP), asked the players to exit the bus and board a different one. As the players were leaving the bus, the police then took them back to the stadium.[19]

FIFA spokesman, John Schumacher, stated that "the Chilean players were detained by the police to de-escalate the situation that was taking place in front of the stadium. Ten Chilean team members were detained over three hours and then released without charges."[20] The following day, FIFA president Sepp Blatter expressed at a press conference in Toronto that the incident was "regrettable" and that he "apologised in the name of FIFA."[21] The ANFP hired a Toronto-based law firm to pursue legal action against the Toronto police.[19]

The incident was on the front page of every major Chilean newspaper. Following the incident, the Canadian embassy in Santiago received a bomb threat, and angry Chileans protested outside the embassy holding signs that read "Racist Canada."[22] Chilean President Michelle Bachelet described the incident as "particularly serious because, in our view, the Chilean delegation suffered unjustified aggression"[21] and lodged a formal protest with the Canadian government.[23] In response, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper remarked that "international soccer matches are hotly contested and often become very emotional. As you know, there are processes in Canada by which the authorities review these kinds of incidents and I don't intend to comment further."[23]

According to reports in Canadian media, a Chilean team member punched a female police officer in the face before Peralta was tasered.[24][25] An internal review led by Superintendent Jim Ramer determined that officers acted professionally and with "an immense amount of restraint" during the conflict outside BMO Field, in which Chilean players "punched, kicked, spat on, and kicked" police and security staff. The report stated that the violence began when two individuals not involved in the game confronted each other. Security guards attempted to intervene, followed by police, when a Chilean player punched a female police officer in the face. From that point, the report stated that the violence escalated, with Chilean players dismantling armrests and footrests from the bus seats and smashing windows in order to spit and throw objects at police, including D batteries, clothes hangers, and cans of deodorant. Four officers were reportedly injured by projectiles. FIFA agreed to pay for the $35,000 cost of damages to the team's rented bus.[24]

Mayne-Nicholls, who was a witness to the incident, stated that "I didn't see any Chilean player hitting any officer except between all the struggling." Patricio Bascuñán, the president of the Salvador Allende Cultural Society of Toronto, called for an independent review.[24]

Grondona was suspended for nine months at all levels, including domestic and international play, and fined CHF 7,000 (including procedural costs) for assaulting match officials. The Chilean football association was fined CHF 15,000 for "team misconduct."

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "National Soccer Stadium" was the temporary name of the BMO Field during this tournament, as FIFA prohibits sponsorship of stadia unless the stadium sponsor is also an official FIFA sponsor.
  2. ^ "FIFA U-20 World Cup surpasses 950,000 spectators". CanadaSoccer.com. 28 June 2007. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 1 July 2007.
  3. ^ "History made with Canada 2007 ticket sales". FIFA. 1 March 2007. Archived from the original on 15 July 2007. Retrieved 1 July 2007.
  4. ^ "Fast starts for Mexico, Portugal". FIFA.com. 3 July 2007. Archived from the original on 6 July 2007. Retrieved 4 July 2007.
  5. ^ "Canada sets U-20 World Cup attendance record". CBC Sports. 20 July 2007. Retrieved 22 July 2007.
  6. ^ "Canada a lock for 2007 FIFA world youth championship". www.cbc.ca/sports/. CBC Sports. 27 May 2004. Retrieved 12 March 2023. Japan and South Korea are also bidding against Canada
  7. ^ "FIFA World Youth Championship 2007 Awarded to Canada" (Press release). FIFA. SportCal. 6 August 2004. Retrieved 12 March 2023.
  8. ^ "FIFA U20 World Cup Canada 2007". FIFA. 2007.
  9. ^ a b "Don't blame the ref". CBC News. Retrieved 29 October 2010.
  10. ^ a b "Nigerian coach levies racism charge against ref". CBC News. 17 July 2007. Retrieved 29 October 2010.
  11. ^ Woolsey, Garth (20 July 2007). "Beautiful game turns ugly". The Star. Toronto. Retrieved 22 April 2010.
  12. ^ FIFA.com Archived 21 January 2016 at the Wayback Machine
  13. ^ [dead link]"Chileans fight with police after loss". CNN. Associated Press. 20 July 2007. Archived from the original on 15 August 2007. Retrieved 25 May 2013.
  14. ^ Molinaro, John F. (19 July 2007). "Argentina advances to FIFA U-20 final". CBC News. Retrieved 29 October 2010.
  15. ^ [Reuters: Chile soccer players clash with Toronto police; 20 July 2007]
  16. ^ a b Chilean officials blame police for melee Archived 11 January 2008 at the Wayback Machine, tsn.ca. Retrieved 20 July 2007.
  17. ^ a b Campbell, Morgan; Toronto Star: CSA seeking witnesses to Chile brawl; 24 July 2007 Archived 28 September 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  18. ^ "Chile officials say Toronto police to blame for soccer team's post-match brawl Archived 12 January 2008 at the Wayback Machine" Canadian Press. Retrieved 21 July 2007.
  19. ^ a b La Tercera Archived 1 June 2013 at the Wayback Machine 21 July 2007 edition
  20. ^ La Tercera Archived 3 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine 22 July 2007 edition.
  21. ^ a b "Chile football players face FIFA probe after brawl [dead link]", Reuters. Retrieved 21 July 2007.
  22. ^ "Toronto melee a global dust-up Archived 22 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine", thestar.com. Retrieved 21 July 2007.
  23. ^ a b Babage, Maria, T.O. cops under scrutiny[usurped], Slam.ca, 20 July 2007
  24. ^ a b c Powell, Betsy; Dale, Daniel; Toronto Star: Officers cleared in soccer scuffle; 31 July 2007 Archived 22 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  25. ^ Dale, Daniel; Toronto Star: Chilean player admits officer was punched; 30 July 2007 Archived 22 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine
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