Andrés Escobar
Encyclopedia
Andrés Escobar Saldarriaga (13 March 1967 – 2 July 1994), nicknamed "The Gentleman of Football", was a Colombian footballer who was shot and killed in Medellín
Medellín
Medellín , officially the Municipio de Medellín or Municipality of Medellín, is the second largest city in Colombia. It is in the Aburrá Valley, one of the more northerly of the Andes in South America. It has a population of 2.3 million...

. It is widely believed that he was murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...

ed due to his own goal
Own goal
An own net occurs in goal-scoring games when a player scores a goal that is registered against his or her own team. It is usually accidental, and may be a result of an attempt at defensive play that failed or was spoiled by opponents....

 in the 1994 FIFA World Cup
1994 FIFA World Cup
The 1994 FIFA World Cup, the 15th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in nine cities across the United States from June 17 to July 17, 1994. The United States was chosen as the host by FIFA on July 4, 1988...

, which supposedly would have caused gambling losses to several powerful drug lord
Drug lord
A drug lord, drug baron or kingpin is the term used to describe a person who controls a sizable network of persons involved in the illegal drugs trade. Such figures are often difficult to bring to justice, as they might never be directly in possession of something illegal, but are insulated from...

s. Andrés Escobar is still held in the highest regard by Colombian fans, and is especially mourned and remembered by Atlético Nacional
Atlético Nacional
Corporación Deportiva Atlético Nacional is a Colombian football team based in Medellín. They play their home games at the Estadio Atanasio Girardot stadium which also serves as home to Deportivo Independiente Medellín...

's fans. His brother, Santiago
Santiago Escobar
Santiago "Sachi" Escobar Saldarriaga is a former footballer and the brother of the murdered footballer Andrés Escobar. He is currently the manager of Atlético Nacional . He is best known for leading Atlético Nacional to the Copa Mustang I 2005 and 2011 Categoría Primera A season victories.-Clubs...

, has managed many Colombian teams.

Andres is known for his famous line "Life doesn't end here" and has been known to be the most beloved Colombian player in history.

Personal life

Escobar was born in Medellin, Colombia on 13 March 1967. He grew up in a middle class family. His father is Dario Escobar, a banker who founded an organisation that gives young people the opportunity to play football instead of being on the streets. After Escobar's death, his family founded the Andrés Escobar Project to help disadvantaged kids learn to play football. His brother, Santiago
Santiago Escobar
Santiago "Sachi" Escobar Saldarriaga is a former footballer and the brother of the murdered footballer Andrés Escobar. He is currently the manager of Atlético Nacional . He is best known for leading Atlético Nacional to the Copa Mustang I 2005 and 2011 Categoría Primera A season victories.-Clubs...

, won the Copa Mustang with Atlético Nacional
Atlético Nacional
Corporación Deportiva Atlético Nacional is a Colombian football team based in Medellín. They play their home games at the Estadio Atanasio Girardot stadium which also serves as home to Deportivo Independiente Medellín...

.

He attended Colegio Calasanz and graduated from Instituto Conrado Gonzalez. He participated in school football teams before becoming a professional football player.

Prior to his death, Escobar was engaged to his girlfriend of five years, Pamela Cascardo, a dentist. Escobar was killed one month before their wedding was to take place.

Club career

Escobar was a defender
Defender (association football)
Within the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to prevent the opposition from attacking....

 for Colombia
Colombia national football team
The Colombian national football team represents Colombia in international football competitions and is controlled by the Colombian Football Federation. It is a member of the CONMEBOL...

 in the World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...

 in 1990
1990 FIFA World Cup
The 1990 FIFA World Cup was the 14th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 8 June to 8 July 1990 in Italy, the second country to host the event twice. Teams representing 116 national football associations from all six populated...

 and 1994
1994 FIFA World Cup
The 1994 FIFA World Cup, the 15th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in nine cities across the United States from June 17 to July 17, 1994. The United States was chosen as the host by FIFA on July 4, 1988...

. His jersey number was 2, and was known by the nicknames "El Caballero del Futbol" ("The Gentleman of Football" or "Football's Knight") and "The Immortal Number 2". In his club career, he played for Medellín side Atlético Nacional
Atlético Nacional
Corporación Deportiva Atlético Nacional is a Colombian football team based in Medellín. They play their home games at the Estadio Atanasio Girardot stadium which also serves as home to Deportivo Independiente Medellín...

 and Swiss
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

 side Young Boys Bern
BSC Young Boys
Berner Sport Club Young Boys 1898 is a Swiss sporting club based in the capital city of Bern. The name is often abbreviated to YB . Abroad, YB is often referred to as Young Boys Bern. The club's colors are yellow and black....

. He was noted for scoring with headers and became a professional football player in 1988 at the age of 21. He helped Nacional win the Copa Libertadores in 1989.

International career

He made his debut for the Colombia national team
Colombia national football team
The Colombian national football team represents Colombia in international football competitions and is controlled by the Colombian Football Federation. It is a member of the CONMEBOL...

 in 1988.

He scored his only regular international goal in a 1–1 draw against England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...

 at Wembley Stadium in 1988.

Escobar's infamous own goal occurred in a match against the United States
United States men's national soccer team
The United States men's national soccer team represents the United States in international association football competitions. It is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation and competes in CONCACAF...

 on 22 June during the 1994 World Cup
1994 FIFA World Cup
The 1994 FIFA World Cup, the 15th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in nine cities across the United States from June 17 to July 17, 1994. The United States was chosen as the host by FIFA on July 4, 1988...

. Stretching to cut out a cross
Cross (football)
In football, a cross is a delivery of a ball from either side of the field across to the front of the goal by applying various kicking techniques. A cross is there to provide a goal-scoring opportunity...

 from U.S. midfielder John Harkes
John Harkes
John Harkes is an American former soccer player. Harkes was the first American ever to play in the English Premier League, and the second American to score at Wembley Stadium. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame. He appeared in two FIFA World Cup tournaments, and won two MLS Cup...

, he deflected the ball into his own net in the second match of Group A. The USA won the game 2–1, and as a result, the heavily favored Colombian side was eliminated from the tournament in the first round.

International goals

Scores and results list Colombia's goal tally first.
# Date Venue Opponent Score Final Competition
1 May 24, 1988 Wembley Stadium, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 
1–1 1–1 1988 Rous Cup

Death

After the 1994 FIFA World Cup
1994 FIFA World Cup
The 1994 FIFA World Cup, the 15th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in nine cities across the United States from June 17 to July 17, 1994. The United States was chosen as the host by FIFA on July 4, 1988...

, Escobar decided to return to Colombia instead of visiting relatives in Las Vegas
Las Vegas metropolitan area
The Las Vegas Valley is the heart of the Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA also known as the Las Vegas–Paradise–Henderson MSA which includes all of Clark County, Nevada, and is a metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The Valley is defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a ...

, Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...

. On the evening of 2 July 1994, Escobar called his friends, and they went to a bar in the El Poblado, Medellín
El Poblado, Medellín
El Poblado is a comuna in the metropolitan area of the city of Medellín, Colombia. According to a 2005 census the population is 94,704 distributed among its land area of 1432.58 km². It is the wealthiest district of the city. The comuna consists of 24 barrios and is located at the south-east...

 neighbourhood. Then they went to a liquor store. Shortly afterwards, they arrived at the "El Indio" nightclub. His friends split up. At approximately 3 a.m., Escobar was alone in the parking lot of "El Indio" bar, located in a Medellín
Medellín
Medellín , officially the Municipio de Medellín or Municipality of Medellín, is the second largest city in Colombia. It is in the Aburrá Valley, one of the more northerly of the Andes in South America. It has a population of 2.3 million...

 suburb. Escobar was in his car, when three men appeared. They began arguing with him. Two of the men took out handguns. It was reported that the killer shouted "¡Gracias por el auto gol en la propia puerta!" (Spanish for "Thanks for the own goal", as in the act of scoring one, mimicking Latin American sporting commentators for their calls after a goal is scored) for each of the 12 bullets fired. The killer shot Escobar with a .38 caliber pistol. The group then took off in a Toyota pickup truck. Escobar was escorted to the hospital and was pronounced dead 45 minutes later.

The murder was widely believed to be a "punishment" for the goal that spiraled off his leg and went into his own goal. It is not clear whether the murderer was connected to one of the gambling syndicates who had bet large amounts of money on Colombia to qualify for the second round. In the UK, the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

 issued a public apology the following day after its football pundit
Pundit (politics)
A pundit is someone who offers to mass media his or her opinion or commentary on a particular subject area on which they are knowledgeable. The term has been increasingly applied to popular media personalities...

 Alan Hansen
Alan Hansen
Alan David Hansen is a Scottish former football player and BBC television football pundit. He played as a central defender for Partick Thistle, Liverpool and Scotland...

 commented during another match that "the Argentine defender warrants shooting for a mistake like that".

Escobar's funeral was attended by over 120,000 people. Every year people honor Escobar by bringing photographs of him to matches. In July 2002, the city of Medellín
Medellín
Medellín , officially the Municipio de Medellín or Municipality of Medellín, is the second largest city in Colombia. It is in the Aburrá Valley, one of the more northerly of the Andes in South America. It has a population of 2.3 million...

 unveiled a statue in honor of his memory.

Humberto Castro Muñoz, a bodyguard for members of a powerful Colombian cartel, confessed to killing Escobar. Muñoz also worked as a driver for Peter David and Juan Santiago Gallon Henao, who allegedly bet heavily on the Colombian team and was upset at having lost. He was found guilty of Escobar's murder in June 1995. He was sentenced to 43 years in prison. The sentence was later reduced to 26 years because of his submitting to the ruling penal code in 2001. Humberto was released on good behavior due to further reductions from prison work and study in 2005 after serving approximately 11 years. His three accomplices were not charged.

Honours

Atlético Nacional
  • Copa Libertadores: 1
1989
  • Colombian Championship: 1
1991
  • Copa Interamericana
    Copa Interamericana
    Copa Interamericana was a football trophy contested between the champions of CONMEBOL's Copa Libertadores de América and the winners of CONCACAF's Champions' Cup...

    : 1
1989

30 for 30

In 2009 and 2010 ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....

 broadcast 30 for 30
30 for 30
30 for 30 is the umbrella title for a series of documentaries airing on ESPN and its sister networks. The series, which premiered in October 2009 and concluded in December 2010, chronicles 30 stories from the "ESPN era," each of which detail the issues, trends, people, teams, or events that...

, a series of sports-themed documentaries timed to coincide with the 30th anniversary of the network. The Two Escobars, by directors Jeff
Jeff Zimbalist
Jeffrey Leib Nettler Zimbalist is an American filmmaker best known for his films Favela Rising, The Two Escobars, and The Scribe of Urabá....

 and Michael Zimbalist, looked back at Colombia's World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...

 run and the relationship of association football and the country's criminal gangs – notably the Medellín Cartel
Medellín Cartel
The Medellín Cartel was an organized network of "drug suppliers and smugglers" originating in the city of Medellín, Colombia. The drug cartel operated in Colombia, Bolivia, Peru, Central America, the United States, as well as Canada and Europe throughout the 1970s and 1980s. It was founded and...

 run by Pablo Escobar
Pablo Escobar
Pablo Emilio Escobar Gaviria was a Colombian drug lord. He was an elusive cocaine trafficker and rich and successful criminal. He owned numerous luxury residences, automobiles, and even airplanes...

.

It is suggested in the programme that, had Pablo Escobar (no relation to Andrés) still been alive, the Gallon Brothers would not have targeted Andrés Escobar, as it was widely known that Pablo Escobar was a fervent supporter of the Colombian national football team and was a friend of all the players on the national team. Escobar had personally funded the construction of many of the football fields that exist in the poorer regions of Medellín
Medellín
Medellín , officially the Municipio de Medellín or Municipality of Medellín, is the second largest city in Colombia. It is in the Aburrá Valley, one of the more northerly of the Andes in South America. It has a population of 2.3 million...

 and had indirectly funded many of the costs associated with training the Colombian players and preparing the national team for international play. The players visited him in prison prior to beginning their (1990) World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...

qualifying run.

There are also allegations that the Gallon Brothers bribed the Prosecutor's Office to redirect the investigation towards Muñoz as the triggerman – and the Prosecutor's Office contends that Muñoz was simply following orders from the Gallon Brothers, but prosecutors lacked credible evidence to convict them. Cascardo believes that the accusation of the Gallon Brothers' bribery of government officials is supported by the fact that Muñoz killed a national celebrity and only received 11 years in prison as punishment. Many of the Colombian national team players quit playing football after the murder.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK