Currently, modern soccer followers take for granted a great deal of the game. Although soccer has expanded to become the most popular sport on the planet, its many variations and innovations have been largely taken for granted.
There may not have been a more consequential rule change than the introduction of yellow and red cards to indicate rule violations. The two cardshave become such fixtures incontemporarytimes that it is difficult to conceive of the sport without them.
Something like a sending-off has never had such an impact on the outcome of a game. With the knowledge that even a yellow card could lead to dismissal, players are more cautious when making tackles and challenging opponents.
In which World Cup were yellow and red cards first used?
It was during the 1970 World Cup in Mexico when the first red and yellow cards were shown. The cards were an immediate success. A moment later, all spectators could clearly observe the officials’ choices.
It has been more than 50 years since they have been introduced to modern soccer thanks to English official Ken Aston.The 1970 World Cup was the first to use the cards, which were introduced as a direct response to the events of the controversial 1966 World Cup match between England and Argentina played at Wembley Stadium.
After an altercationin which the Argentinean captain, Rattin, was sent off, the idea of using colored cards to indicate a “booking” or a “sending off” was born. This allowed both the players and the fans to better understand what was going on. An interesting fact is that after the game England soccer players Bobby and Jack Charlton found out they had been “booked” without their knowledge.
Newspaper accounts of the game emphasized the controversy by claiming that the referee had issued yellow cards to both Bobby and Jack Charlton. For some reason, the referee didn’t make this clear to the public, so England’s manager Alf Ramsey went to FIFA to ask. Aston’s mind also began to wander. As a result, he started contemplating preventative measures. “I was driving down Kensington High Street when the light turned red. ’Yellow, take it easy; red, stop, you’re off’.”
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