5 conspiracy theories in football 

#3 UEFALONA

Barca were the best team in the world

To the Barcelona fans reading this, I sincerely apologise for the slider title – but be assured that I used it for creative purposes, which you will understand in while. At one time in this century, Barcelona were the greatest team in the world.

They were winning everything – by everything, I mean every freaking thing – that came in their path. La Liga, Champions League, Copa del Rey, Spanish Super Cup, European Super Cup and the Club World Cup – the Catalans were basically unbeatable at that point of time.

However, their cause wasn’t without dents as they were often accused of being helped by the referees in high-profile encounters. The fact that Barcelona’s semi-final win against Chelsea is still remembered for Tom Henning Ovrebo’s atrocious performance rather than how the teams actually played is a huge testament in itself.

It was for this reason that people, especially Jose Mourinho, started to make up theories about Barca being helped by UEFA because of their connection with UNICEF – whose name were embedded in front of their jerseys.

Despite the fact that the Catalans played the best football back then, their tendency to get favourable decisions put a dent in golden era team because no matter how good they were, the part about referees help always comes up when discussing those days.