Roberto Rojas - 1989 World Cup Qualifying Incident

1989 World Cup Qualifying Incident

In 1989, Rojas was in goal for Chile's 1990 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Brazil at Rio de Janeiro's Maracanã stadium. Chile, down 1-0, would be eliminated from the upcoming World Cup if they lost. Around the 70-minute mark, Rojas fell to the pitch writhing and holding his forehead. A firework, thrown from the stands by a Brazilian fan named Rosemary de Mello, was smoldering about a yard away. Rojas had deliberately cut himself with a razor hidden in his glove in an attempt to have the match nullified and possibly have Brazil penalized by FIFA. Rojas, his head bloodied, was carried off the field; his teammates then refused to return claiming that conditions were unsafe. The match was unfinished.

Video evidence later showed that Rojas had not been hit by the firework. His head injury was discovered to have been self-inflicted with a razor blade hidden in his glove. FIFA awarded Brazil a 2-0 win, effectively eliminating Chile from the 1990 World Cup. As a consequence, Chile was banned from the 1994 FIFA World Cup and Rojas was banned for life, along with the coach Orlando Aravena and the team doctor Daniel Rodriguez.

A Chilean inquiry found that Aravena had ordered Rojas and Rodriguez by walkie-talkie to remain on the ground and that Rojas was to leave the field on a stretcher. The team's co-captain, Fernando Astengo, was banned from football for the next five years for deciding to remove the team from the field.

In 2001, following a request for a pardon, Rojas' ban was lifted by FIFA.