These sports mistakes by players, officials, and even fans, cost teams dearly. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the biggest blunders in sports history.
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00:00 "That's awfully close to fan interference right there. The umpire's all over it."
00:04 Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the biggest
00:08 blunders in sports history. These can be from players, officials, or even fans.
00:14 "Hopefully it's Bill Buckner in '86 World Series, but he was a pretty good player. Leave it at that."
00:20 Number 20. Sven Kramer changes lanes.
00:25 A famous Dutch skater, Kramer holds a number of accolades, including numerous Olympic gold medals.
00:31 And he would have added to this number if it weren't for a major blunder at the 2010 Games
00:36 in Vancouver, Canada. Kramer set a new Olympic record in the 5,000-meter event,
00:40 and looked to continue his dominance in the 10,000-meter. He did indeed finish in first
00:45 place, and he set another Olympic record in the process. But he was tragically disqualified owing
00:51 to an illegal lane change he made late in the race. Instead, runner-up Lee Seung-hoon was awarded gold
00:56 and credited with a new world record. The blunder was blamed on Kramer's coach,
01:01 who had given him incorrect directions during the race.
01:04 Number 19. Steven Gerrard slips.
01:07 By 2014, the heyday of Liverpool FC had long passed. The team dominated the Premier League
01:13 for much of the '70s and '80s, but hadn't won since the 1989-90 season. Enter manager Brendan
01:20 Rogers, who led the team on an incredible run. Some believed that Liverpool was destined to win
01:25 their first title in 24 years, and that remained a possibility until the legendary game with Chelsea.
01:31 "Oh, and Gerrard slips, and Demba Ba's in here. Out comes Mini Lai, but Ba…"
01:36 Steven Gerrard mishandled a simple pass and slipped on the pitch, allowing Chelsea player
01:42 Demba Ba to take the ball and score. A win against Chelsea would have knocked them out
01:46 of the running. Instead, Liverpool lost both the game and the title, crushing all hopes of
01:51 a comeback that was decades in the making. Number 18. Phil Mickelson uses a driver.
01:57 A legendary golfer with three Masters wins, Phil Mickelson knows what he's doing. But you
02:03 wouldn't know it judging by this famous blunder. Mickelson was poised to win the 2006 U.S. Open,
02:08 and if he did, it would have been his third straight major tournament victory. Needing par,
02:13 Mickelson made the curious decision to tee off with his driver. Many experts,
02:18 including the commentators, did not agree with this choice. They were right to be worried,
02:22 as the shot veered way left and ended up near a hospitality tent.
02:26 "Doesn't like this one." "Going way left, way, way left.
02:30 Oh, what a bounce out into the rough to the right, but I don't think that'll leave him much."
02:37 "Off of the hospitality tent."
02:39 It completely ruined the rest of the hole, and Mickelson finished with double bogey.
02:44 Owing to the costly mistake, Mickelson finished in second place behind Jeff Ogilvie.
02:48 Number 17. J.R. Smith runs out the clock.
02:52 Time management is an important aspect of many sports, and J.R. Smith made one of the worst
02:58 clock-based errors in the history of basketball. Smith's Cleveland Cavaliers were playing the
03:02 Golden State Warriors in Game 1 of the NBA Finals. Both teams were tied with just 4.7
03:08 seconds left on the clock. Smith handled a rebound and, believing that they were winning,
03:13 proceeded to run out the clock.
03:15 "Hill misses. Rebound goes to the Cavs. J.R. Smith brings it back out. Throws to the hill.
03:20 Hill shot blocked. And will go to overtime."
03:24 He eventually realized his mistake, but it was too late, and the Cavs didn't have time
03:30 to score a basket. The game would go into overtime, and the Cavs lost 124 to 114.
03:36 "You talk about a sleep at the wheel. I gotta tell you something right now.
03:39 That is as inexcusable of a mistake as you can possibly make."
03:43 Number 16. Fred Merkle runs off to celebrate.
03:47 How do you earn yourself the nickname "Bonehead"? Well, let us tell you. Rookie Fred Merkle was
03:52 playing for the New York Giants, who were in a major pennant race with the Chicago Cubs.
03:57 They were playing the Cubs on September 23, 1908, when Merkle made the biggest mistake of his short
04:02 career. There were two outs, with Merkle on first base and the winning run on third. Al
04:07 Bridwell hit a single, and the runner advanced home, seemingly winning the game.
04:11 "Thinking the game was over, thousands of fans rushed the field and headed towards the one exit
04:17 in center."
04:18 However, Merkle ran off to celebrate without touching second base, and was subsequently
04:22 thrown out, which invalidated the winning run. The game ended in a tie, and the Giants would
04:28 go on to lose the pennant by just one game.
04:30 "The New York Times famously calling the Merkle mistake a 'bonehead play.'"
04:35 Number 15. Jackie Smith literally drops the ball.
04:39 Even Hall of Famers have the odd blunder. It was January 21, 1979, the night of Super Bowl XIII.
04:46 Jackie Smith and his Dallas Cowboys were playing the Pittsburgh Steelers,
04:49 and were down 21-14 in the third quarter. On third down, quarterback Roger Staubach
04:55 passed to a wide-open Smith for what should have been an easy catch.
04:58 "Wide open, and dropped. That's from Jackie Smith."
05:04 But Smith dropped the ball, prompting announcer Verne Lundquist to call him, quote,
05:09 "the sickest man in America."
05:10 The Cowboys settled for a field goal and ended up losing the game 35-31.
05:16 Smith was largely blamed for the loss, and he entered a period of isolation and depression.
05:21 For his part, Staubach does not and has never blamed Smith for the drop.
05:26 Number 14. Roberto Baggio misses a penalty kick.
05:29 Italy's top scorer played exceptionally well at the 1994 World Cup, scoring five goals and
05:35 even receiving the silver ball. But his performance was marred by one of the most
05:39 shocking upsets in the tournament's history. Italy was playing Brazil in the final,
05:44 and the two teams had gone to a penalty shootout after a nil-nil score.
05:47 Brazil was up 3-2 on penalties, and Baggio was the last to shoot for Italy.
05:52 Responsible for the decisive shot and nading a goal, Baggio stepped onto the pitch. He reeled,
05:58 took the shot, and the ball sailed right over the crossbar, giving Brazil the win.
06:03 The miss impacted Baggio for years, and he claims that he, quote, "never got over it."
06:13 Number 13. Colorado is given a fifth down.
06:17 Just say the words "fifth down game" to any Missouri Tigers fan and watch the steam come
06:22 out of their ears.
06:23 "With seven people out there, surely one of them should have been able to count to four."
06:27 The infamous game occurred on October 6, 1990, with the Tigers playing the Colorado Buffaloes.
06:33 Colorado trailed 31-27 with just a few seconds to go and the ball close to Missouri's end zone.
06:39 Owing to multiple factors, the crew lost track of the downs,
06:43 and Colorado was accidentally given a fifth chance to score.
06:46 In American football, teams are given four downs to move the ball 10 yards.
06:50 Fifth downs are simply not a thing, but an exception was made in this game.
06:55 With their special fifth down, Colorado scored a touchdown and won the game 33-31.
07:01 Number 12. Lindsey Jacob Ellis eats it.
07:12 Look, we've seen enough fail videos to know, never, ever, ever celebrate early,
07:17 especially in a race.
07:19 One of the most dominant snowboarders ever, Jacob Ellis made her first Olympics appearance in 2006.
07:24 She was competing in the snowboard cross final and was three full seconds ahead of runner-up
07:29 Tanya Frieden. To celebrate her win and, quote, "share her enthusiasm with the crowd," Jacob
07:34 Ellis performed a method grab on one of the final jumps. However, this little trick cost her dearly.
07:40 The Americans back, oh! Grab her! Jacob Ellis is down! Oh, look at her! This is incredible!
07:47 Frieden! Frieden! Unbelievable!
07:53 Jacob Ellis landed awkwardly and fell to the snow, allowing Frieden to pass her and win the gold.
07:58 Winning it all at your first ever Olympics would be quite the boast.
08:02 Instead, Jacob Ellis ate a little humble pie. Or snow pie, really.
08:06 Number 11. Chris Webber calls timeout.
08:10 And here we come to another time-based basketball blunder. While playing for Michigan in the NCAA
08:15 Men's Division I Championship, Chris Webber called a costly timeout that didn't actually exist.
08:20 His team was down two points with 11 seconds left. Stuck in the corner with the ball,
08:25 Webber called for a timeout.
08:26 Michigan will have to bring it.
08:28 Oh, he walked! He walked and the referee missed it.
08:31 Webber brings it into the front court. They have no timeouts remaining.
08:34 Oh, he causes too many timeouts! That's a technical foul!
08:36 He called a timeout. Michigan doesn't have any.
08:39 Unfortunately, Michigan had no timeouts remaining.
08:42 So, Webber was given a technical foul and possession was given to North Carolina.
08:47 They ended up winning both the game and the championship.
08:50 A win that came largely on the back of Webber's unfortunate error.
08:54 Maybe in the rush of the moment, Jim, going down there trying to beat two men,
08:57 realizing it was 11 seconds on the clock. He just blanked out in regard to the fouls.
09:01 Number 10. DeSean Jackson lets go of the football.
09:06 McNabb loading up deep for DeSean Jackson. He holds it in! Oh, wow! Did he get over the goal line?
09:12 Sometimes all it takes is one ego to ruin an absolutely brilliant play.
09:17 In this game against the Dallas Cowboys,
09:19 Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb threw a stellar pass to DeSean Jackson,
09:23 who made an incredible over-the-shoulder catch. An easy touchdown seemed certain,
09:28 until Jackson celebrated too early and let go of the ball before breaking the plane of the end zone.
09:34 Not only was dropping the ball foolish, but it ruined what would have otherwise been
09:38 a sensational throw from his quarterback. Hopefully, after this premature celebration,
09:43 Jackson learned a lesson or two about hubris.
09:45 Number 9. Jean van de Velde's triple bogey.
09:55 He's going to be at least three shots ahead.
09:57 It's easy to collapse when you've got so much riding on your shoulders.
10:01 Jean van de Velde was posed to be the upset victor of the 1999 Open Championship. And if he had won,
10:08 he would have been the first French player to win a major championship in nearly a hundred years.
10:12 He had a three-shot lead going into the final hole, but it seems the pressure got to him,
10:24 as he ended up making a series of rookie mistakes. Hitting the ball into the grandstands,
10:29 a stone wall, knee-high rough, a water hazard, and finally, the sand bunker.
10:34 He ended up scoring a triple bogey and cost himself the historic victory.
10:39 Number 8. Jim Marshall runs the wrong way.
10:45 We all have brain farts sometimes. Luckily for us, these embarrassing mistakes aren't broadcast
10:56 to millions of people. Jim Marshall played with the Vikings for nearly 20 years and had a Hall
11:01 of Fame-worthy career. But he will forever be known for one thing, the infamous wrong-way run.
11:08 During a game against the 49ers, Marshall picked up a fumble and proceeded to run
11:12 66 yards in the wrong direction, resulting in a safety for the 49ers.
11:26 While the Vikings would proceed to win the game, Marshall's place in history was officially set,
11:31 and many people now consider his infamous run to be one of the worst plays in NFL history.
11:36 "One of the 49er players came up and said, 'Thanks, Jim.'"
11:40 Another famous running blunder occurred at the 1929 Rose Bowl, when UC Berkeley's Roy
11:45 Regals ran in the wrong direction and earned himself the nickname "Wrong-Way Regals."
11:50 Number 7. Leon Lett's premature celebration.
11:54 "Fumbles, picked up by Leon Lett. Can he go all the way?"
11:58 Leon Lett has certainly had an interesting career. He has made a few mistakes,
12:03 like the time he famously fumbled a blocked field goal during the 1993 Thanksgiving Classic.
12:08 But possibly his most famous mistake came in Super Bowl 27,
12:12 which saw Lett's Cowboys against the Buffalo Bills.
12:15 "It's a 60-yard run. He's being chased by Beebe. What's out? Did he get across? No."
12:23 After the Bills quarterback fumbled the ball,
12:25 Lett picked it up and ran it all the way to the end zone.
12:28 However, like Deshaun Jackson, he celebrated too early by slowing down and lowering his hand,
12:34 resulting in the ball being smacked away before Lett could breach the end zone.
12:38 This is the Super Bowl. You simply can't make those kinds of mistakes.
12:42 Number 6. Loras Karius' terrible goalkeeping.
12:46 Bad goalkeeping is obviously embarrassing, like the time Peter Ankleman accidentally
12:51 allowed Olaf Melberg's throw-in. Enter Loras Karius. Karius found himself on the receiving
12:56 end of some truly hateful comments and death threats after the UEFA Champions League final
13:01 against Real Madrid. The first mistake occurred when he tossed the ball directly into Karim Benzema's
13:07 foot, allowing for an avoidable goal. Later, he mishandled a shot from Gareth Bale,
13:13 leading to Madrid's 3-1 victory and leaving his fans in utter shock.
13:17 For me, it's not the answer, and I think, unfortunately, that's bye-bye Karius for me.
13:21 Sports psychiatrist Steve Peters declared it would take Karius three months to mentally
13:26 recover, while former goalkeeper Ray Clements said that Karius would never truly get over
13:32 his costly mistakes. It's not about him and the mistakes he might have made, it's about us as a
13:38 team. We've got here together as a team, and we'll lose as a team as well.
13:42 Number 5. Jim Joyce ruins Armando Galarraga's perfect game.
13:47 26 up, 26 down. Here comes number 27.
13:53 A perfect game is a very rare thing in baseball. To achieve one, a pitcher cannot allow a single
13:58 runner on base through all nine innings, and only 20 pitchers had accomplished that feat prior to
14:03 Galarraga's game. On the very last out of the game, the Tigers successfully threw out the
14:08 Indians' base runner, but umpire Jim Joyce incorrectly called him safe and ruined Galarraga's
14:15 perfect game. Both Galarraga and Joyce were praised for their responses, as Galarraga showed
14:24 no animosity towards Joyce, and Joyce later admitted to his incorrect call. Now that's what
14:30 we call sportsmanship. And there's nobody that feels worse than I do.
14:34 Number 4. Steve Smith's own goal.
14:36 Own goal nets in the playoffs are probably the most embarrassing thing in hockey.
14:44 Just ask Martin Brodeur. Luckily for Brodeur, his team went on to win the Stanley Cup.
14:50 Steve Smith wasn't so lucky. During Game 7 of the 1986 Smites Division Final,
14:55 Smith tried to clear the puck with 14 minutes remaining in the game. Unfortunately, the puck
15:00 hit the goalie's stick and ricocheted into his own net, costing the Oilers the game and the series.
15:07 The worst part? It was Smith's 23rd birthday. While fans were upset, the Oilers won the Stanley
15:13 Cup the next year, and Wayne Gretzky let Steve Smith have the first skate with the trophy.
15:19 "Things happen. It's an honest mistake that he would love to have back, but,
15:22 you know, it's part of sports."
15:24 Number 3. Steve Bartman intercepts a foul ball.
15:27 Steve Bartman is still a sore subject for many a Cubs fan. The Bartman incident occurred during
15:41 Game 6 of the National League Championship. The Cubs were five outs away from winning their first
15:45 pennant since 1945 when Bartman accidentally intercepted a foul ball that may have been caught
15:52 by Moises Alou. The Cubs collapsed after this event and ended up losing the series. Bartman
15:58 was subsequently pelted with food and escorted out by security, and six police cars were posted
16:04 at Bartman's house to prevent further acts of violence. The remains of the ball are now in
16:09 the Chicago Sports Museum, and the Bartman seat has become a tourist attraction at Wrigley Field.
16:14 Number 2. Andres Escobar's own goal.
16:21 Most of these mistakes are minor when compared to Andres Escobar's.
16:31 Everyone else on this list was able to walk away from their mistake. Escobar wasn't as fortunate.
16:36 During the 1994 FIFA World Cup, Escobar accidentally deflected the ball into his own net,
16:42 contributing to Colombia's eventual loss and elimination from the tournament.
16:46 After returning to Colombia, Escobar was murdered by the bodyguard of a drug cartel
17:03 in retaliation for his mistake. The murderer served 11 years in prison.
17:07 While the murder tarnished Colombia's reputation, Escobar himself was and continues to be hailed
17:16 as a national hero.
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17:38 Number 1. Bill Buckner's missed ground ball.
17:43 Just the name Bill Buckner is enough to send a Red Sox fan into fits.
17:57 And his infamous past ground ball is easily one of baseball's most legendary plays.
18:02 In the 1986 World Series, the Red Sox were leading the Mets three games to two,
18:07 and Game 6 was tied in extra innings. Mookie Wilson hit a slow ground ball to Buckner,
18:12 who let it pass through his legs, allowing the Mets to score and win both the game and
18:18 eventually the series. While Buckner received death threats after the game,
18:25 he also received a two-minute-long standing ovation at the Red Sox' 2008 home opener,
18:30 signifying that the past was in the past.
18:32 What's the biggest sports blunder you've ever witnessed? Let us know in the comments below.
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18:58 [outro]