Suddenly a hole appears: international finds himself stuck on the pitch | OneFootball

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.

It was supposed to be a magnificent football evening: floodlights, fans, flags, and a home game against Denmark. But instead, on June 6, 2022, the Austrian national team experienced a real drama in several acts.

Even before the kickoff, there was the first bizarre incident: before the ball could even roll, the power went out.

It was as if the Ernst Happel Stadium had personally decided to indulge in romantic candlelight rather than provide a stage for Nations League football. A silent protest against the controversial UEFA format, so to speak.

In any case, the match between Austria and Denmark was only kicked off after a 90-minute delay. The interim would have been enough for at least part of "Sissi"!

Final whistle overshadowed by "hole incident"

But anyone who thought it would finally be all about football was sorely mistaken. The 1-2 defeat of the Austrian team was quickly forgotten after the final whistle!

As soon as the game was over, Danish striker Andreas Skov Olsen couldn't believe his football boots: right in the center circle—where the game usually begins—a hole appeared out of nowhere.

Not a harmless molehill, but a knee-deep crater, more commonly seen in the Salzburg region or Tyrol. Skov's half lower leg disappeared into it! Luckily, only the foot got stuck and not the entire team.

TV cameras captured the spectacle and filmed some Danes descending into the newly formed abyss of the Ernst Happel Stadium. Meanwhile, other players stood around the hole like archaeologists at an excavation.

The rain was to blame!

The later explanation? Rain! Lots of rain. So much that the pitch apparently decided to slowly sink into the earth's core. Perhaps it had seen enough—and just wanted to hide in light of the weak performance of "red-white-red".

However, the Austrian Football Association reassured the public: The problem would be resolved, and specialized technicians would examine the pitch, according to the association.

And indeed: a few days later, the second home game against France could take place as planned. The mysterious hole had disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared.

📸 Christian Hofer - 2022 Getty Images