It is difficult to provoke bad memories to an entire country when you are the referee who led the final of the only world that said country has won. It is hard but not impossible. Howard webb is a clear example of this. In South Africa, Webb had already addressed the Selection before the final in the first match of the group stage, in which The Red fell before Switzerland with a controversial goal preceded by an offside play, but what happened in the final deserves a separate chapter.
“It was a nightmare,” Webb revealed years after refereeing the final. His decisions allowed the Dutch to practice an excessively rough game that, among other niceties, led to De jong he will kick the chest to Xabi Alonso in the first part and was punished only with yellow. With that ribbon, the oranje had a lot of wide sleeves. Fortunately, Iniesta made us not remember that as one of the dark moments in the history of Spain.
The British had the privilege of being the first referee to lead the final of the Champions and that of the World Cup the same year despite the fact that its methods and merits were widely discussed in England. Not so for the FA and the UEFA, for which it was indisputable. In fact, his first major tournament was just two years earlier, in the Euro 2008, where his raucous performance in the Austria-Poland It did not prevent him from continuing to be one of the referees of reference for the European organization.