The six biggest sh*thouse teams in World Cup history after Paraguay antics | OneFootball

The World Cup gifts us the good, the bad and the ugly when it comes to clashes of styles.

Plenty of teams have got involved with the dark arts over the years, but who are the most memorable World Cup sh*thouse teams?

Argentina 1990

Argentina went into the 1990 World Cup as defending champions after a 1986 run that contained possibly the peak sh*thouse moment in tournament history: Diego Maradona’s Hand of God.

But they were also a brilliant team with some players capable of the sublime, as seen with Maradona’s incredible solo goal in that same quarter-final against England.

Four years later, Maradona’s power on the wane, Argentina’s run to the final featured a more cynical approach on the whole.

The 1990 Argentina side amassed the most red cards in a World Cup campaign at the time and they finished the final with nine men.

South Korea 2002

At face value, a country like South Korea reaching the World Cup semi-finals, knocking out Spain and Italy along the way, was an incredible story for the 2002 co-hosts.

But beneath the surface, the way they got there drew scrutiny, with accusations of favourable treatment from referees.

Whether there was any corruption is a mystery that remains unsolved. It may have just been refereeing incompetence.

Regardless, the approach from Guus Hiddink’s South Korea side was physical and intense against their higher-ranking opponents.

Uruguay 2010

If Diego Maradona is the first man that comes to mind when you think of World Cup hand balls, Luis Suarez might just be the second.

His handball on the line to deny a certain Ghana goal in the 2010 quarter-final was one of the tournament’s defining moments.

Ghana missed the resulting penalty, a sent-off Suarez celebrated like a madman from the tunnel and Uruguay went on to win on penalties.

“I don’t apologise for it,” Suarez said 12 years later as the countries prepared to face off again in the World Cup. “I apologise if I injure a player but I took a red card for the handball.

“It wasn’t my fault because I didn’t miss the penalty.”

Paraguay 2026

Paraguay gained some admirers with their elimination of Germany in this year’s round of 32. Less so when they lost to France in the round of 16 – and it wasn’t simply because of the scoreline.

Having deployed some rough tactics throughout the game, it was astonishing that no Paraguay players were booked. There were several opportunities for them to be.

Kylian Mbappe scored the winner with a penalty for France, later declaring: “They thought we’d show up in tuxedos to play, but we know how to play dirty football too. We’ve shown we’re not just a team that knows how to play attacking football.”

They certainly had to dig deep to weather the storm against Paraguay, whose antics were widely described as embarrassing by pundits.

West Germany 1982

Epitomised by the Disgrace of Gijon, which wasn’t so much a reliance on the dark arts as it was opportunism, West Germany were eventual runners up in the 1982 World Cup.

The disgraced game in question was their final group game against Austria. With the other final game in their group already having been played, West Germany knew once they’d taken the lead – as did Austria – that the result staying the same would put both sides through and knock out Algeria.

West Germany were happy to play ball as the match descended into farce, neither team trying too much to change a result that benefited them both.

It prompted FIFA to decide the last group games should be played simultaneously in future.

Later in the 1982 tournament, in the semi-final against France, West Germany keeper Harald Schumacher knocked Patrick Battiston unconscious after charging out of his goal – and escaped unpunished.

Netherlands 2010

The stud marks from Nigel de Jong’s boot on Xabi Alonso’s chest might only just have faded away. And he still only got a yellow card for it.

For a nation once known for their attractive Total Football approach, the Netherlands were caught up in a different style in 2010.

Their final against Spain was one of the most ill-tempered in World Cup history, with nine yellow cards handed out to their side – including two that made a red for John Heitinga – and five to their opponents.