The opening ceremonies for the 2024 Olympic Games aren’t for another couple days, yet we’ve already seen a controversial ending that might be tough to top.
The men’s soccer group stage kicked off on Wednesday, including a match between Argentina and Morocco. Argentina were -125 to win at DraftKings while Morocco were +370 and a draw was +260.
However, nobody could imagine the outcome would be decided – and the match resumed – over an hour after it supposedly officially ended. VAR determined that Argentina’s late game-tying goal was offsides, meaning they needed to reset the score and play the final three minutes all over again.
Argentina and Morocco were both in their locker rooms for over an hour before being told to put their kits back on and head back to the pitch. They spent 10 minutes or so warming up before officially resuming the game with Morocco ahead 2-1. Argentina couldn’t find the equalizer, handing Morocco the upset win.
It also left bettors stunned, turning the +270 draw ticket into an all-time bad beat while handing those backing the underdog Moroccans a win they'll relish forever.
The game already had quite a bit of controversy before the decision to wipe a goal off the board and replay the ending. Argentina trailed 2-1 approaching the 90th minute when the referee announced there’d be an extra 15 minutes added due to Morocco’s time-wasting antics. It was an extraordinarily inordinate amount of time, and Argentina needed every second of it and then some as they struck even in the 90+16’ minute.
Things got ugly after that as fans threw bottles and other debris onto the field while a few managed to run onto the pitch. Police in riot gear had to come out to settle the situation. Then, in the most shocking turn yet, officials overturned the equalizer.
Argentina entered the day with the third-best odds to win Olympic gold at +275, right behind France (+230) and Spain (+260). Morocco were fourth at +1100, just ahead of the United State (+1600). Argentina were also the Group B favorite at -185 while Morocco were +275.
