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The Beautiful Game

Phil Brennan

Tuesday, March 17th, 2026

1 Leave a comment on verse 1 0 Do you recall the Hand of God?
Yeah, Maradona, the cheating sod.
A ghostly touch, a thief’s delight,
Yet Argentines still cheer that night.

2 Leave a comment on verse 2 0 Or when Zidane’s head met Materazzi,
A legend’s end, so bold, so brashly.
One final act, all reason lost,
A rash act at France’s World Cup’s cost.

3 Leave a comment on verse 3 0 Cantona soared, his fury untamed,
A kung fu kick, forever famed.
Provoked or not, he crossed the line,
A moment raw, yet so divine.

4 Leave a comment on verse 4 0 Two Liverpool legends brought disdain
Carra spitting at a girl, a shameful stain,
But worse to come down Anfield’s lane,
Suárez bit once, bit twice and bit again.

5 Leave a comment on verse 5 0 Yet brighter tales still shine above,
The game is cruel, but still we love.
Denmark’s dream, is a wonderous story,
From the beach to European Champion’s glory.

6 Leave a comment on verse 6 0 Or Leicester City’s rise, a fairy tale,
From relegation fears to scale,
The peak of English football’s scene,
A triumph carved in fields of green.

7 Leave a comment on verse 7 0 Through light and dark, the stories we tell,
Of football’s heaven, football’s hell.
From shedding tears of joy or shame,
We will forever love the beautiful game.

Notes

For better or worse, it will always be the beautiful game…

Source: https://footballpoets.org/poems/the-beautiful-game-14/