South Korea

South Korea is presented as the underdog opponent that knocked Italy out of the 2002 World Cup. The match gives the book a concrete example of how shared expectations shape interpretations of events: after controversial officiating helped Italy’s defeat, many Italian fans saw not merely error but a coordinated plot against their team.

The World Cup match

In the summer of 2002, Italy entered the match heavily favored. The team scored an early goal and held a 1–0 lead for most of the game, but South Korea equalized late and then scored again in overtime, eliminating Italy. Italy’s performance was described as mediocre, while several poor officiating decisions—including one that disallowed a goal—added to the sense that the result might have been different under other circumstances.

From defeat to conspiracy

Italian fans blamed the referee, Byron Moreno, but notably did not treat him simply as incompetent. Many instead believed he had acted as part of a wider conspiracy, perhaps involving FIFA, to prevent Italy from getting what they deserved. Italian newspapers, a government minister, and team star Francesco Totti voiced suspicions that the elimination had been arranged. No proof of an anti-Italian conspiracy or of Moreno’s alleged misconduct emerged in the weeks after the match, yet the conviction persisted.

A case of established expectations

The book sets the reaction against the prevailing culture of Italian soccer, where accusations of corruption and favoritism were routine. Teams regularly alleged that referees had been bought and objected to particular officials; refereeing disputes were prominent in the press and on television. In that setting, fans’ interpretation of the South Korea match was predictable: a bad decision could readily be read as evidence of criminal intent. The episode shows how a crowd’s reading of an event can be shaped not only by what happened on the field, but also by the assumptions already surrounding the institution.