Top 10 Weirdest Things to Happen at a Sports Event

I understand baseball games can get boring at times, especially when it’s a pitchers duel with little to no scoring. I played baseball for 15 years growing up and at times I felt myself wandering off if I was not always involved in the play. However, on April 16, a game that featured the New York Mets and the Cleveland Indians was anything but a boring game. The final score was 7-5 with numerous big plays and home runs. Even with all of the scoring, one couple decided to have a little more “fun” in the stands and appeared to be having sex while security just looked on.

Now I get it, the couple was bored and wanted some entertainment, but really, did they think they weren’t going to get spotted? This event sparked my interest however, and led me to think of the top 10 weirdest things that have happened at a sporting event.

#10 – Manu Ginobili Swats down a black bat on Halloween 2009

Back in 2009 on Halloween, Manu Ginobili, a member of the San Antonio Spurs, took it upon himself to become the bat exterminator. A black bat had flown into the arena and was flying around the court for a solid 30 seconds until Manu slapped it out of the air and carried it off the court.

#9 – Randy Johnson Kills a dove with a fast ball

In a 2001 contest, pitcher Randy Johnson hit a dove that literally flew into Johnson’s fastball that clocked in at nearly 100 mph. The dove seemed to explode midair after being hit by the pitch.

#8 – Referee tries to tackle a quarterback during an LSU football game 2008

During an LSU versus South Carolina college football game in 2008, one referee tried to impact the game in a new way instead of just making calls. Instead of jumping out of the way like most refs do, this one in particular tried to shoulder tackle the quarterback. It is still unknown as to why the ref tried to do this, but he lands himself at number eight on my list.

#7 – Manti Te’o gets Cat-fished

I know this particular one didn’t actually happen during an actual game, but c’mon, you can’t leave Te’o out of the discussion of weirdest things to happen to an athlete. This event occurred for years, and the girl that Te’o thought he was talking to for so long ended up being a man named Ronaiah Tuiasosopo.

#6 – Jets’ Strength Coach Sal Alosi trips Nolan Carroll, who was running downfield on punt coverage.

This one is probably one of the dumbest things you could do as a coach in an NFL game. There are cameras literally everywhere on the field to make sure the NFL captures everything they possibly can. So, when the Jets former strength coach wanted to make an impact on the game by tripping Nolan Carroll, the whole stadium saw along with everyone watching the game. His bonehead decision lands him at number six on my list and on the unemployment line as well.

#5 – Luis Suarez bites Branislav Ivanovic

Back in 2013 Luis Suarez decided it was a good idea to bite Branislav Ivanovic during a soccer game. Luckily for Suarez none of the referees saw the bite during the game so he wasn’t penalized until after the game had ended. Suarez went on to score the tying goal in a 2-2 game, but eventually received a 10 match suspension and a fine to go along with it.

#4 – Zinedine Zidane headbutts Marco Materazzi in World Cup Final

Another soccer incident occurred back in 2006 when Zinedine Zidane got fed up with a comment Marco Materazzi said about Zidane’s sister. Zinedine promptly head-butted Materazzi right in the chest. This occurred with 10 minutes left in the match. Zidane’s team, Real Madrid, was down by one goal. Real Madrid would eventually end up losing and the only punishment handed down from this incident was a red card, as Zidane ended up retiring.

#3 – Mike Tyson bites off a piece of Evander Holyfield’s ear

Anybody that knows anything about Mike Tyson knows that he has a short temper, and he has always been a bit crazy. Well, in a boxing match against two all-time greats in 1997, Tyson leaned in and bit a piece of Evander Holyfield’s ear off during the match. The match ended soon after as the referee charged in to separate the two men and disqualified Tyson.

#2 – The 1919 Chicago White Sox blow the World Series

Almost a century ago in 1919, the entire Chicago White Sox baseball team threw the World Series in large part because they hated their team owner Charles Comiskey. Comiskey was apparently a legendary scrooge that made sure his players made the absolute least amount of money possible. “Chick” Gandil was apparently the ringleader of the entire operation, and used his connections to the “criminal underworld” to ensure a huge payday for all involved. Everyone involved ended up being banned for life from playing professional baseball.

#1 – The Malice at the Palace

Coming in at number one on my list is the Malice at the Palace incident from 2004 when the Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, and fans had an all-out brawl in the middle of an NBA matchup. This one might be the most damaging on-court incidents in American sports history because the fans got involved. What started as a scuffle between Pacers’ hot head Ron Artest, now known as Meta World-Peace, and the Piston’s Ben Wallace, escalated when a fan threw a beer at Artest while he was laying on the scorer’s table. Artest rushed into the stands to confront the man who threw the beer with his teammates close behind him. What ensued was all out madness, and one of the worst moments in NBA history. The list of punishments is below as well as a link to the YouTube video as well.

Punishment’s – 86-game suspension (Ron Artest), 30-game suspension (Stephen Jackson), 15-game suspension (Jermaine O’Neal), six-game suspension (Ben Wallace), five-game suspension (Anthony Johnson), one-game suspension (Reggie Miller), one-game suspension (Chauncey Billups), one-game suspension (Derrick Coleman), one-game suspension (Elden Campbell)