Big bets, underdogs, titles were stolen, football has a long history of the unthinkable happening. It could be that unpredictability that makes the sport so very watchable. Even when a huge team like Inter Milan are going up against a semi-professional side, there's still that inkling of hope in the faces of the fans of the underdogs. Human courage, athleticism, and sheer determination have managed some incredible things. We've rounded up some of the most unlikely upsets in football history for you to reminisce about.
Just when it looked like Leicester City might need to hang up their boots, they achieved the unthinkable
The 1.6 Million to 1 Accumulator, That Came In
The dream, of course, is to predict a fallout of this scale happening and to have a bet on it. Thanks to the global community that we now live in, betting on football occurring anywhere in the world is totally possible. Sites like AsiaBet help those in the continent of Asia to bet on football not just in their home nation, but internationally too. They provide information on the legality of online betting, as well as information on the sites offering the best bonuses. With it being simple to open an account and place a bet, the difficult part is sniffing out that underdog team that maybe doesn't quite deserve the odds they've been given. If we all knew how to do that though, then the game would be up pretty quickly. Incredibly though, one man did somehow work it out and landed an accumulator worth £500,000. Mike Gibbs made the bet back in 2001, placing 30 pence on an accumulator. The bet required many teams to win matches, as well as tournaments, and had odds of 1.6 million to one. Bets like this are the exception that proves the rule, but it does go to show that when it comes to football, absolutely anything can happen.
Winning Without Entry
When Denmark failed to qualify for the Euro 1992 cup, it was surely unthinkable that they would win?
It's one thing to land a long odds accumulator, but it's quite another to win a tournament that you didn't even qualify for. In fact, the most unusual Inter Milan news is covered at Bleacher Report, but nothing compares to the events of the Euro 1992 cup. Denmark would go on to win the cup, but the only reason that they ever got to play in the tournament was that Yugoslavia was disqualified. Despite securing a space to play, the civil war in Yugoslavia meant that it was impossible for the team to carry on. Denmark finished right behind them in the qualifiers, so took their place. To see the outsider of all of the teams even make it to the final would be incredible, but they did it. During the final, they beat Germany by two goals to nil and took home the title. In terms of underdog wins, it doesn't get much more unlikely than that.
Even The Most Faithful Supporter
English football fans are special in their devotion to their teams. Regardless of their home team's track record, their fans will stick by them through thick and thin, which is what makes this victory so very special. Back in 2016, Leicester City was priced at 5000 to 1 to win the Premier League title. It's about as close to 'no chance' as a bookmaker can write. Fans of the club were understandably worried, it seemed almost certain that relegation would be on the cards, so most were hoping for nothing more than to remain in the league. The season had a slightly shaky start, where Leicester would concede some goals and notch a couple of losses, yet during the second half of the season, the team was on fire. Jamie Vardy, Leicester's striker would be the top goal scorer in the league, netting an impressive 24. Not only that, he'd break a Premier League record by scoring in 11 games back-to-back. This determination, along with a goalkeeping performance that was second to none from Kasper Schmeicel saw the team rise to victory. Not victory by the skin of their teeth either, an outright win of the Premier League by a staggering ten points. Gary Lineker, a former striker for the club and lifetime fan summed it up best when he was caught teary-eyed, saying it was the biggest sporting shock of his lifetime.
