We all make mistakes, mistakes happen. Unfortunately for Andreas Escobar, his mistake scoring an own goal at the 1994 World Cup meant he ended up losing his life. In what has been dubbed as the “deadliest own goal”, one footballer was murdered for a mistake hundreds of footballers have made.
Colombia had been earmarked to be one of the main contenders in the 1994 World Cup but a shocking start ion the group stages meant an early exit for the squad. On 22 June Colombia faced off against USA, Escobar who played as defender stretched out to deflect the ball but it went in the wrong direction and straight into the goals. Team USA ended up winning the game 2-1 and Colombia was eventually eliminated and sent home.
On July 1st Escobar went out with some friends for drinks, at 3:00 am the next morning Escobar was alone in the car park when he was confronted by a group of men. He was shot 6 times and after each shot, his attackers shouted GOAL. Escobar died 45 minutes later, his murder was widely believed to be punishment for the own goal.