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last update: 21-07-2010

News and other related stuff

21-07-2010In the briliant movie The Damned United Brian Clough speaks of Billy Bremner being a diver. This was set in 1968!

16-07-2010Another example of a diving amateur.

12-07-2010The Dive Of the 2010 World Cup (by Abdul Kader Keïta) made it to the New York Times front page.

30-06-2010The excellent blog Brow Beat (part of Slate.com) posts Dives of the Day during the 2010 WC. Great job!

30-06-2010NFL Hall of Famer John Riggins is certainly no soccer fan. Well put.

07-05-2010Croatian footballer given yellow card for diving... as he collapsed and died of a heart attack! Story is all over the internet, but turns out to be fabricated.

03-04-2010The videos now autostart at the right time.

21-03-2010This site got picked up in South Korea after a message on Soccer World. Hi to all Korean soccer friends, hope you enjoy.

13-03-2010Hip hip..! This website celebrates its one year anniversary. Fixed a bug, video pop-ups work better now.

04-01-2010Updated a some videos that were no longer available. If you have any video or information, feel free to contact me.

30-11-2009You should never shout at an opponent, especially not in beach soccer.

10-11-2009These guys sure know their diving: how to dive and cheat!

08-10-2009Amateurs also like to dive.

28-08-2009Arsene Wenger got angry after the Eduardo dive against Celtic. Interesting, in this list are more dives by Arsenal players then by any other team.

15-03-2009An interesting view on the matter was well expressed by a Blackburn fan.

15-03-2009To me, a dive is when a player goes down deliberately, trying to gain benefit from this, e.g. a free kick, penalty, booking, etc. On most occasions you can tell a dive from a foul when the diver pulls both his hands up in the air and stretches his body, sometimes even turning, before going down. He needs to think of this before the contact, otherwise you won't have time to do so. That is intentional cheating. I don't like cheating.

14-03-2009After the Pedersen and Holla dives in march 2009 I created this list. Diving is disgraceful and unsporting but in the end, it's up to the referee to decide.

Recent dives

player date team opponent reward sanction view remarks
Xavi 11-07-2010 Spain Netherlands       Trips and wants a penalty (arms up)
Joan Capdevila 11-07-2010 Spain Netherlands       Watch on Brow Beat
Mesut Özil 07-07-2010 Germany Spain     Watch on Brow Beat
Arjen Robben 06-07-2010 Netherlands Uruguay yellow     Watch on Brow Beat
Edinson Cavani 06-07-2010 Uruguay Netherlands       Looking for the penalty
Mark van Bommel 02-07-2010 Netherlands Brazil       Simulating against Dani Alves
Kaká 02-07-2010 Brazil Netherlands       Multiple dives
Gregory van der Wiel 02-07-2010 Netherlands Brazil   yellow    
Joan Capdevila 30-06-2010 Spain Portugal red     Watch on Brow Beat
Robert Vittel 28-06-2010 Slovakia Netherlands penalty, yellow     Slightly touched, no need to go down
Fernando Torres 25-06-2010 Spain Chile 2nd yellow, red     Pique helps the referee doing maths: 1+1
Miroslav Stoch 24-06-2010 Slovakia Italy       Watch on Brow Beat
Rafik Halliche 23-06-2010 Algeria USA yellow     Watch on Brow Beat
Emilio Izaguirre 21-06-2010 Honduras Spain       Watch on Brow Beat
Jorge Valdivia 21-06-2010 Chile Switzerland   yellow   Defender rejects his leg just in time
Abdul Kader Keïta 20-06-2010 Ivory Coast Brasil 2nd yellow, red     Looking to get Kaká sent off / Brow Beat
Daniele de Rossi 20-06-2010 Italy New Zealand penalty, yellow      
Michael Barry 18-06-2010 England Algeria       Loses possession and goes down
Gabriel Heinze 17-06-2010 Argentina Korea Republic       Post on Brow Beat
Luis Suarez 16-06-2010 Uruguay South Africa penalty, red     Suarez is the undisputed king of diving
Luis Suarez 16-06-2010 Uruguay South Africa       Wanting a penalty, watch on Brow Beat
Fernando Torres 16-06-2010 Spain Switzerland       Two dives within two minutes
Kaká 15-06-2010 Brazil Korea DPR       Loses posession and dives
Christiano Ronaldo 15-06-2010 Portugal Ivory coast yellow     Watch on Brow Beat
Daniele de Rossi 14-06-2010 Italy Paraguay       Horrendous! Watch on Brow Beat
Cacau 13-06-2010 Germany Australia   yellow    
Mesut Özil 13-06-2010 Germany Australia   yellow    
Milan Jovanovic 13-06-2010 Serbia Ghana       Watch on Brow Beat
Siphiwe Tshabalala 11-06-2010 South Africa Mexico free kick      
Rafael van der Vaart 01-06-2010 Netherlands Ghana penalty      
Frank Demouge 16-05-2010 Willem II Go Ahead Eagles       Wanting a penalty
Dani Alves 28-04-2010 Barcelona Internazionale        
Luis Suarez 25-04-2010 Ajax Feyenoord   yellow  
Dani Alves 20-04-2010 Barcelona Internazionale   yellow   4th dive in one game by Barca, a record!
Seydou Keita 20-04-2010 Barcelona Internazionale       Loses the ball and goes down
Dani Alves 20-04-2010 Barcelona Internazionale       Loses the ball and goes down
Lionel Messi 20-04-2010 Barcelona Internazionale       Aiming for the penalty
Gareth Barry 17-04-2010 Manchester City Manchester United       Head down to win a penalty
Carlos Tévez 17-04-2010 Manchester City Manchester United free kick      
Luis Suarez 14-04-2010 Ajax Willem II penalty, yellow   Watch the referees quick decision, amazing
Karim Soltani 11-04-2010 ADO Den Haag FC Utrecht     Loses the ball and dives
Luis Suarez 11-04-2010 Ajax VVV Venlo     A clear foul, but also a dive
David Meyler 03-04-2010 Sunderland Tottenham Hotspur penalty     Bent (former Spur) missed penalty
Fraizer Campbell 03-04-2010 Sunderland Tottenham Hotspur penalty     Bent (former Spur) missed penalty
Dimitar Berbatov 03-04-2010 Manchester United Chelsea        
Ji-Sung Park 03-04-2010 Manchester United Chelsea        
Roy Beerens 03-04-2010 SC Heerenveen Sparta Rotterdam        
Gerald Sibon 03-04-2010 SC Heerenveen Sparta Rotterdam penalty, yellow    
Edouard Duplan 03-04-2010 Sparta Rotterdam SC Heerenveen penalty, red   It is a foul, but also a dive
Wiljan Pluim 27-03-2010 Vitesse Willem II        
Maxi López 20-03-2010 Catania Chievo Verona penalty   Match investigated: excessive gambling
Ola Toivonen 20-03-2010 PSV FC Twente     Waits for the goalkeeper then goes down
Zoltán Gera 18-03-2010 Fulham Juventus red     Cannavaro sent off 26', Fulham advance
Gio van Bronckhorst 14-03-2010 Feyenoord Heracles      
Donny Gorter 13-03-2010 NAC Breda FC Groningen      
Kees Kwakman 13-03-2010 NAC Breda FC Groningen     Slight push, huge dive
Niklas Pedersen 07-03-2010 FC Groningen VVV Venlo     Pretty eager to go down
Ola Toivonen 06-03-2010 PSV NAC Breda     He is touched, but he goes down too fast
Wesley Sneijder 03-03-2010 Netherlands USA penalty   A 'professional' dive is still a dive
Diego Milito 24-02-2010 Internationale Chelsea   yellow    
Danny Buijs 21-02-2010 ADO Den Haag Feyenoord     Looking for the penalty
Dwight Tiendalli 21-02-2010 FC Twente Willem II     Looking for the penalty
Balázs Dzsudzsák 18-02-2010 PSV HSV       Repeatedly diving for the free kick
Matthew Amoah 12-02-2010 NAC Breda NEC free kick   1-1 from the free kick
Ferry De Regt 07-02-2010 VVV Venlo Vitesse        
Jermain Defoe 06-02-2010 Tottenham Hotspur Aston Villa       Wanting a penalty
Steven Gerrard 06-02-2010 Liverpool ? penalty    
Ola Toivonen 06-02-2010 PSV ADO Den Haag      
Siem de Jong 03-02-2010 Ajax Roda JC pen, 2nd yellow   2-0, game over
Luis Suarez 03-02-2010 Ajax Roda JC penalty, yellow   1-0, admitted he dived during the game
Ahmed Hassan 31-01-2010 Egypt Ghana        
André Ayew 31-01-2010 Ghana Egypt        
Willie Overtoom 31-01-2010 Heracles FC Utrecht      
Jon Dahl Tomasson 31-01-2010 Feyenoord Ajax   yellow Second dive in 8 days
Kees Kwakman 27-01-2010 NAC Breda Go Ahead Eagles        
Jon Dahl Tomasson 24-01-2010 Feyenoord VVV Venlo     He is on side, but the dive is terrible
Christiano Ronaldo 16-01-2010 Real Madrid Atletic de Bilbao      
Achille Emana 13-01-2010 Cameroon Gabon        
Emmanuel Eboué 11-01-2010 Ivory coast Burkina Faso        
Didier Drogba 11-01-2010 Ivory coast Burkina Faso        
Everton 21-12-2009 Heracles Go Ahaed Eagles        
Edouard Duplan 19-12-2009 Sparta Rotterdam RKC Waalwijk      
Keisuke Honda 18-12-2009 VVV Venlo Heracles        
Marcel de Jong 13-12-2009 Roda JC Willem II      
Lasse Nilsson 13-12-2009 Vitesse FC Utrecht      
Stijn Schaars 12-12-2009 AZ PSV     Teammate gets yellow for protesting this
Arjen Robben 08-12-2009 Bayern München Juventus       Aiming for the penalty
Ivica Olic 08-12-2009 Bayern München Juventus penalty      
Keisuke Honda 28-11-2009 VVV Venlo AZ      
Pontus Wernbloom 24-11-2009 AZ Olympiakos Piraeus       0-0, 88', desperately tries to win a penalty
David Ngog 09-11-2009 Liverpool Birmingham City penalty    
Álex Sánchez 08-11-2009 Real Zaragoza Valencia   yellow   first game of first pro player with one hand
Youssef El-Akchaoui 07-11-2009 NEC RKC Waalwijk   yellow  
Rogier Molhoek 07-11-2009 Vitesse VVV Venlo   yellow    
Oleksandr Kucher 28-10-2009 Shakhtar Donetsk Dynamo Kiev red, free kick   Vukojevic got sent off
Dirk Kuyt 20-10-2009 Liverpool Olympique Lyon        
Miroslav Stoch 04-10-2009 FC Twente Heracles        
Milan Jovanovic 29-09-2009 Standard Liege AZ   yellow    
Charlton Vicento 27-09-2009 ADO Den Haag Ajax   yellow A contender for worst dive ever?
Luis Suarez 27-09-2009 Ajax ADO Den Haag       Provoces a fight and down he goes
Antonio Cassano 26-09-2009 Sampdoria Internationale   yellow    
Gerson Sheotahul 24-09-2009 Willem II NAC Breda penalty, yellow     Would have gotten the penalty anyway
Luis Suarez 20-09-2009 Ajax VVV Venlo   yellow    
Rogier Molhoek 19-09-2009 Vitesse RKC Waalwijk penalty    
Danko Lazovic 17-09-2009 PSV Sparta Prague penalty    
Alexandre Alphonse 15-09-2009 FC Zürich Real Madrid penalty    
Grafite 15-09-2009 Wolfsburg CSKA Moscow penalty    
Nicky Hofs 13-09-2009 Vitesse NEC     Went for the penalty twice in one game
Dirk Kuyt 09-09-2009 Netherlands Scotland   yellow    
Emmanuel Eboué 29-08-2009 Arsenal Manchester United free kick    
Wayne Rooney 29-08-2009 Manchester United Arsenal penalty, yellow  
Erton Fejzullahu 29-08-2009 NEC VVV Venlo        
Eduardo 28-08-2009 Arsenal Celtic penalty   Uefa sanctions Eduardo, causing debate
Kyle Lafferty 16-05-2009 Glasgow Rangers Aberdeen red   Worst dive of Scottish premier 2008/2009?
Gerry Koning 03-05-2009 Volendam FC Groningen     Tries to get the opponent sent off
Christiano Ronaldo 29-04-2009 Manchester United Arsenal      
Marco Materazzi 21-04-2009 Internationale Juventus    
Theo Walcott 15-04-2009 Arsenal Villareal penalty, yellow     2nd yellow and 3-0 from penalty
Ben Sahar 11-04-2009 De Graafschap NEC penalty, yellow   2-0 from penalty, game ends 2-2
Karim Soltani 11-04-2009 ADO Den Haag Sparta      
Ola Toivonen 11-04-2009 PSV FC Utrecht penalty, yellow   2-0 from penalty
Kees Kwakman 10-04-2009 NAC Breda AZ     Looking for the penalty
Micah Richards 09-04-2009 Manchester City Hamburger SV        
Lionel Messi 08-04-2009 Barcelona Bayern München   yellow Appealed against the booking, got rejected
Hulk 07-04-2009 Porto Manchester United       At least 3 dives in this game
Christiano Ronaldo 07-04-2009 Manchester United Porto       First contact in the game
Luis Suarez 05-04-2009 Ajax Roda JC     Two dives in this game
Andwele Slory 05-04-2009 Feyenoord Volendam        
Ricky van Wolfswinkel 21-03-2009 Vitesse PSV     Avoids 2nd yellow by acting hurt
Roy Beerens 20-03-2009 Heerenveen De Graafschap     De Graafschap scores from counterattack
Hatem Ben Arfa 18-03-2009 Ol. Marseille Ajax red     video
Luis Suarez 15-03-2009 Ajax De Graafschap penalty, yellow    
Morten Gamst Pedersen 14-03-2009 Blackburn Arsenal     Arguably the worst dive ever
Danny Holla 13-03-2009 FC Groningen Roda JC free kick   Holla scores 1-0 from free kick
               

Older dives

player date team opponent reward sanction view remarks
Steven Taylor 01-02-2009 Newcastle United Sunderland penalty, yellow     1-1 from the penalty
Ola Toivonen 24-01-2009 PSV NAC Breda   yellow Toivonen debut in Dutch league
Luis Suarez 17-12-2008 Ajax Slavia Prague penalty, yellow   2-2
Emerson Acuña 30-11-2008 Atletico Junior America penalty, yellow   1-1, player + referee get suspension
Oleksandr Aliyev 25-11-2008 Dinamo Kiev Arsenal   yellow Gets hurt, play goes on, gets up again
Naif Hazazi 19-11-2008 Saudi Arabia Korea Republic   red second yellow, SA loose 0-2
Luis Suarez 09-11-2008 Ajax Sparta Rotterdam   yellow    
Danny Holla 01-11-2008 FC Groningen NAC Breda   yellow    
Luis Suarez 25-05-2008 Uruguay Turkey penalty     video
Evander Sno 26-03-2008 Netherlands u23 Estonia u23   free kick  
Danko Lazovic 13-02-2008 PSV Helsingborg penalty, yellow      
Danko Lazovic 09-02-2008 PSV Heerenveen        
Wayne Rooney 02-02-2009 Manchester United Tottenham Hotspurs   yellow  
Luis Suarez 20-01-2008 Ajax NEC     Dives twice, for penalty and red
Alberto Gilardino 04-12-2007 Milan Celtic   yellow
also Top-10 dives #1
Dida 03-10-2007 Milan Celtic     A supporter challenged Dida
Adriano 18-04-2007 Internationale AS Roma penalty, yellow   Adriano got a 2-match ban afterwards
Alessandro Zoppetti 31-03-2007 Pescara Juventus     Del Piero gets yellow for mocking Zoppetti
Steven Gerrard 28-03-2007 England Andorra(!)      
Marco Materazzi 10-01-2007 Internationale Fiorentina      
Luca Toni 10-01-2007 Fiorentina Internationale      
Xabi Alonso 08-01-2007 Liverpool Arsenal   yellow  
Didier Drogba ? Chelsea Hull?        
Knut Fostervold 04-01-2007 Molde FK Stabęk      
Luis Suarez ? FC Groningen PSV      
Luis Suarez ? FC Groningen Twente   yellow  
Arjen Robben 16-11-2006 Netherlands England      
Dede 24-10-2006 Dortmund Hannover   yellow  
Christiano Ronaldo 08-07-2006 Portugal Germany        
Pauleta 05-07-2006 Portugal France        
Christiano Ronaldo 05-07-2006 Portugal France    
WC 2006 f#4, also in
#8
Simao 05-07-2006 Portugal France        
Thierry Henry 05-07-2006 France Portugal penalty, yellow   Penalty gives France place in WC-final
Razak Pimpong 22-06-2006 Ghana USA penalty, yellow  
WC 2006 #10
Adriano 27-06-2006 Brazil Ghana   yellow
WC 2006 #8
Asamoah Gyan 27-06-2006 Ghana Brazil none yellow
WC 2006 #7
Fabio Grosso 26-06-2006 Italy Australia penalty  
WC 2006 #1 Italy win 1-0 90'+5
Ricardo Cabanas 26-06-2006 Switserland Ukraine    
WC 2006 #6
Marco Streller 26-06-2006 Switserland Ukraine    
WC 2006 #5
Luis Figo 25-06-2006 Portugal Netherlands 2nd yellow  
WC 2006 #9
Ziad Jaziri 23-06-2006 Tunesia Ukraine   yellow
WC 2006 #3
Andriy Shevchenko 23-06-2006 Ukraine Tunesia penalty, yellow  
WC 2006 #2, Ukraine win 1-0
Christiano Ronaldo 17-06-2006 Portugal Iran        
Didier Drogba 10-06-2006 Argentina Côte d'Ivoire        
Sorin 10-06-2006 Argentina Côte d'Ivoire yellow      
Didier Drogba 10-06-2006 Argentina Côte d'Ivoire        
Patrice Evra ? Manchester United Tottenham      
Christiano Ronaldo ? Portugal Germany    
#10
Christiano Ronaldo ? Portugal Germany    
#9
Christiano Ronaldo ? Portugal England?    
#7
Christiano Ronaldo ? Portugal England    
#6
Christiano Ronaldo ? Portugal Russia    
#2
Christiano Ronaldo ? Portugal Russia    
#5
Christiano Ronaldo ? Manchester United Aston Villa free kick  
#3
Christiano Ronaldo ? Manchester United Middlesborough    
#1
Christiano Ronaldo ? Manchester United Chelsea      
Wayne Rooney ? Manchester United Blackburn Rovers     Bad one
Ashley Cole ? Arsenal Manchester United   yellow  
Steven Gerrard ? Liverpool Manchester United        
Steven Gerrard ? England Portugal free kick    
Steven Gerrard ? Liverpool AC Milan        
Steven Gerrard ? Liverpool Manchester United        
Emmanuel Adebayor ? Arsenal Manchester United   yellow  
Cesc Fabregas ? Arsenal Bolton free kick    
Cesc Fabregas ? Arsenal Everton ?   Clumsiness by Cesc?
Jose Antonio Reyes ? Arsenal Manchester United free kick, yellow    
Alberto Gilardino 04-12-2007 Milan Celtic   yellow Top-10 dives #1
Thierry Henry ? France Spain     Top-10 dives #2
Jens Lehmann ? Arsenal Tottenham?     Top-10 dives #3
? ? Tottenham Portsmouth     Top-10 dives #4
Didier Drogba ? Chelsea West Brom     Top-10 dives #5
Patrick Viera ? Arsenal Liverpool     Top-10 dives #6
Thierry Henry ? Arsenal Portsmouth?   yellow Top-10 dives #7
Didier Drogba ? Chelsea Liverpool     Top-10 dives #8
Patrick Viera ? Arsenal PSV     Top-10 dives #9
Arjen Robben ? Chelsea Porto?   yellow Top-10 dives #10
Thierry Henry ? France Spain free kick, yellow    
Robert Pires ? Arsenal Tottenham        
Hernan Crespo ? Chelsea West Ham       Gets hurt, play goes on, gets up again
Nemanja Vidic ? Manchester United Chelsea free kick     Burst down in agony and gets up again
Sean Davis ? Portsmouth Tottenham     Davis mocks the opponent
Steven Taylor ? Newcastle United Aston Villa       Taylor dives but is sent off anyway
Jens Lehmann ? Arsenal Tottenham?       Clutches his leg in pain and gets up
Jens Lehmann ? Arsenal Chelsea       Both players dive
Didier Drogba ? Chelsea Arsenal       Both players dive
Fernando Torres ? Atletico Madrid Barcelona        
Patrick Vieira ? Arsenal Liverpool        
Fernando Torres ? Liverpool Manchester United      
Wayne Rooney ? Manchester United Arsenal      
Arjen Robben 07-02-2006 Chelsea Liverpool red      
Jefferson Farfan 23-10-2005 PSV Ajax penalty, yellow     PSV wins 1-0
Albert Streit 06-12-2005 Köln MSV Duisburg   red Trainer heads, both dive
Norbert Meier 06-12-2005 MSV Duisburg Köln   red Trainer heads, both dive
Jefferson Farfan 20-03-2005 PSV Ajax penalty    
Deco 25-02-2005 Barcelona Chelsea free kick   Terry is booked for taking revenge
Milan Baros 2004-2005 Liverpool Chrystal Palace   yellow Joonas Kolkka imitates the diver
A chinese player 03-08-2004 China Iran red    
Rivaldo 26-06-2002 Brazil Turkey       Bal is shot at him and he goes down
Nikos Machlas ? Ajax ?        
Edwin van der Sar 04-07-1998 Netherlands Argentina red   Argentina also down to 10
Daniel Ortega 04-07-1998 Argentina Netherlands   yellow  
Andreas Möller 13-04-1995 Dortmund Karlsruher SC      
Rudi Völler 13-04-1990 Germany Argentina     Goes down easy, Germany wins final 1-0
Jürgen Klinsmann 08-07-1990 Germany Argentina red   Was it a dive?
Bernd Hölzenbein 07-07-1974 Germany Netherlands penalty     1-1, turning point in WC final
Billy Bremner 1968 Leeds United Derby County penalty     according to The Damned United