One of the most famous World Cups of all time is the 2006 World Cup in Germany. Beyond the performance of the teams, the final between France and Italy took the spotlight of the entire tournament due to the controversial headbutt that Zidane gave to Materazzi, which inevitably resulted in his expulsion.
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Despite the fact that 16 years have passed since the final of the 2006 World Cup in Germany, Zidane's headbutt to Italian player Materazzi continues to generate curiosity among football lovers. For this reason, the football icon declared to the French newspaper L'Équipe in June 2022 about the reason for his anger on that occasion.
Zidane explained that during the time of the match between France and Italy, his mother was not feeling well, so his sister stayed by her side: "He (Materazzi) did not talk about my mother. He often said that he did not insult my mother, it is true, but he did insult my sister, who was with my mother at that time."
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What did Materazzi say about Zinedine Zidane's headbutt?
In 2020, Marco Materazzi referred to Zinedine Zidane's controversial headbutt in the 2006 World Cup in Germany and stated that it took him by surprise, as if he had expected it, they probably would have ended up fighting in the locker room.
"We had contact in the area. He scored the goal for France in the first half and the coach (Marcello Lippi) asked me to mark him. After the first clash, I apologized to him and he reacted badly. In the third clash, I frowned at him and he told me: 'I'll give you my shirt later.' I replied that I preferred his sister rather than his shirt," Materazzi explained when asked about the reason for the headbutt.
Zidane's expulsion marked the end of his football career. Photo: EFE
Despite the speculation that the Italian had insulted Zidane's mother, Materazzi reiterated that he would never stoop so low as to insult his mother: "My mother died when I was 15, so I would never have gone so low as to insult his mother."
However, beyond Zidane and Materazzi's versions, public opinion criticized both players because the former faced the last match of his career and added to France's defeat in the 2006 World Cup final, while the latter was criticized for the insults he directed towards the Frenchman's family.