15 iconic World Cup moments

The 'Hand of God'

One that sticks in the mind of England fans everywhere. The 'Three Lions' could have forgiven being beaten by Maradona's other goal in the game, a wonderful solo effort, but his blatant act of cheating that went unpunished still rankles to this day.

Casillas' kiss

As Spain celebrated their first World Cup triumph in 2010, Casillas saw an interview as the opportunity to show his affection for girlfriend Sara Carbonero who was in South Africa covering the game as a journalist.

Bebeto gave birth to a celebration

The 1994 World Cup saw the birth of Mattheus, Bebeto's son, and with it the birth of a new celebration. Bebeto was playing against Holland in the quarter-finals when his son was born and as he scored his side's second he raced to the corner flag to make a cradle gesture with his arms alongside teammates Romario and Mazinho, a celebration that is still seen to this day.

Pele dribbling without the ball

One of the greatest pieces of individual skill on record was performed in the World Cup semi-final in 1970. Pele invented a way of dribbling without having the ball, though he contrived to miss the chance it was a moment that will forever be remembered.

The most famous hug

After Argentina claimed their first World Cup by beating Holland in 1978 Alberto Tarantini and Ubaldo Fillol launched themselves into and embrace, with a fan racing onto the pitch to join them.

Al-Ghandour became public enemy no. 1 in Spain

Whilst everyone remembers South Korea's run to the semi-finals on home turf in 2002 not everyone remembers the controversy surrounding their win over Spain, with Fernando Morientes seeing a goal ruled out by the linesman, despite replays showing that the ball had not gone out in the build-up.

The nurse that took Maradona's failed sample

Another appearance for Maradona in this list. The Argentinian tested positive for ephedrine during the 1994 World Cup, leaving us of this image of him being interviewed following the win over Nigeria in the group stage with the nurse who would then take his sample waiting for him in the background.

Rijkaard's spit

If you weren't aware of the rivalry between Holland and Germany in 1990 then Frank Rijkaard soon cleared things up as he was caught spitting at the back of Rudi Voller's head.

Luis Enrique's broken nose

I became apparent that 1994 wasn't going to be Spain's year when referee Sandor Puhl failed to spot Mauro Tassotti breaking Luis Enrique's nose during the semi-final clash between Spain and Italy. Italy won the game 2-1, with the incident occurring in the third minute of added time.

The beginning of a tradition

Two of the great players of a generation. Pele and Bobby Moore went head-to-head at the 1970 World Cup in Mexico, representing Brazil and England respectively. The pair were considered by many to be the two best players on the planet at the time and after Jarzinho's goal secured a 1-0 win for Brazil the pair exchanged a few words and their shirts at full-time.

An historic defeat

Brazil suffered a shock defeat on home turf in the semi-finals against Uruguay in 1950, one which left a deep scar right through the 'Seleçao'. That wound was opened up again in 2014 as Germany rubbed salt into it by defeating Brazil 7-1 in the semi-finals and leaving an entire nation heartbroken.

20 cards in the Battle of Nuremberg

Referee Valentin Ivanov holds the records for the most cards shown during a World Cup match, having produced four red cards and 16 yellows during a feisty encounter between Portugal and Holland which saw both sides finish the game with nine men.

The other Escobar

Aside from the drug baron there is a much sadder story behind the Escobar name. Andres Escobar's own-goal against the USA in 1994 led to Colombia exiting the competition early, despite having been seen as one of the favourites pre-tournament. Following Colombia's failure, Escobar was shot dead, with the gunman reportedly saying 'thanks for the own-goal' before opening fire.

De Jong's Kung-Fu kick

Nigel De Jong took drastic measures to stop Xabi Alonso's creative influence in the 2010 World Cup final as he caught the playmaker plum in the chest with what can only be described as a kung-fu kick. To this day it remains a mystery that Howard Webb only produced a yellow card for the challenge.

The best and the worst of Zinedine Zidane

Zidane's final game before retiring. The stage was set for one final memorable moment and memorable it was, though for all the wrong reasons. First, the former Real Madrid man opened the scoring with a 'panenka' penalty before leaving us with this image as he headbutted Italy defender Marco Materazzi after a provocation from the former Everton man.