Famous World Cup commentator scenes, those shouting moments that are replayed repeatedly

In the 1986 World Cup in Mexico between Argentina and England, CCTV commentator Song Shixiong shouted out Maradona at the moment Maradona scored a goal after passing five people in a row! Maradona! Maradona! Maradona's shouts three times in a row have become the most classic moments in the history of Chinese TV sports commentary. Generations of Chinese fans still remember that moment.

The shouts of World Cup commentators are not only news broadcasts, but also the collective memory of generations. From Song Shixiong to Han Qiaosheng to Liu Jianhong to He Wei, the voices of CCTV commentators have accompanied Chinese football fans for 40 years. There is a story behind every famous scene.

Song Shixiong’s Maradona Three Sounds

On June 22, 1986, at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City, Maradona took the ball from the midline in the 55th minute, passed five English players and then pushed the ball into the goal. This is the most famous goal of the century in football history.

CCTV commentator Song Shixiong was 63 years old at the time and had started commentating on sports competitions in 1979. He excitedly shouted Maradona three times in the broadcast room, his voice shaking with excitement. This is the first time in the history of Chinese sports commentary that repeated player names have appeared, creating a new commentary style.

Han Qiaosheng's strange sayings

Han Qiaosheng was CCTV's main commentator in the 1990s. His commentary was famous for his passion and golden sentences. During the commentary of the 1998 World Cup in France, he said that there was not much time left for the Chinese team. He originally meant that there was not much time left for the game, but as a result, the Chinese team had already been eliminated. This sentence immediately became a global joke.

Another famous saying by Han Qiaosheng is that the Argentina team's goal kick was taken. It was originally meant as a goal kick, but he said it was a goal kick. This slip of the tongue is called Han's commentator by fans, but it also makes him the most approachable commentator. Until now, Han Qiaosheng's famous quotes are re-interpreted on the Internet every few years.

Liu Jianhong's Bird's Nest Scream

Liu Jianhong commented on the men's football match at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. In the last game of the Chinese men's football team against New Zealand, when Dong Fangzhuo scored, Liu Jianhong shouted out Dong Fangzhuo! Dong Fangzhuo! Dong Fangzhuo! In, in, in! This series of shouts is similar to Song Shixiong’s style in 1986 but more passionate.

Liu Jianhong's characteristic is that he explains the goals of Chinese players in a particularly tragic way. The Chinese men's football team has always performed poorly, and every goal scored is exaggerated by Liu Jianhong into a miraculous moment. This style of commentary caused huge emotional ups and downs among Chinese fans and became the label of his career.

He Wei's poetic explanation

He Wei is the CCTV commentator most familiar to fans born in the 2000s. His characteristic is literary commentary, quoting poetry, philosophy, and movie lines for every game. In the semi-finals of the 2014 World Cup, when Brazil lost 0-7 to Germany, He Wei said at the final whistle that life is like this. You must know humility when you win, and you must know dignity when you lose.

This kind of poetic explanation is the first of its kind in the Chinese sports circle. He Wei's famous quotes were compiled by fans into He Wei's quotations and circulated on the Internet. He transformed football commentary from a mere broadcast into a cultural output, which was an upgrade in the history of Chinese sports commentary.

Commentator who was rejected by CCTV

Not all commentators are accepted by CCTV. Dong Lu, Bai Yansong, and Huang Jianxiang all had disagreements with CCTV for different reasons. The most famous is Huang Jianxiang.

In the 2006 World Cup, Italy scored a penalty kick at the last moment of overtime against Australia. During the commentary, Huang Jianxiang passionately shouted "Great Italy, Great Italy, Maldini" and his spirit was continued in Grosso. This excessive passion made CCTV executives dissatisfied, and Huang Jianxiang left CCTV soon after.

Huang Jianxiang's commentary was both popular and criticized by some fans. After leaving CCTV, he went to Sohu to do sports content until today.

The rise of online commentators

Before and after the 2018 World Cup in Russia, Migu Video, Douyin, and iQiyi all joined the World Cup broadcast battle. CCTV's monopoly was broken, and online commentators began to rise.

Zhan Jun is one of the most popular commentators in the Internet era. After returning from the UK, he joined Tencent Sports as a Premier League commentator. Zhan Jun's explanation style is calm, professional and high in information density. He was eagerly invited by many platforms for the 2022 World Cup, and his single-game commentary fee was as high as 200,000 yuan.

Professional commentators such as Su Dong, Zhang Lu, and Zhang Lu are also emerging on online platforms. Their commentary style is more detailed and provides more in-depth tactical analysis than CCTV's traditional broadcasts.

Korean commentator’s hilarious scenes

World Cup commentary is also famous internationally. In the 2002 South Korea-Japan World Cup, when the South Korean team eliminated Italy, South Korea's KBS commentator Cha Bum-geun was so excited that he shouted when Ahn Jung-hwan scored in overtime, and the entire commentary room followed suit. The video later went viral and was translated into 20 languages.

Korean commentators are characterized by extreme emotions. When a goal is scored, almost all commentators will jump up and shout. This style is rare in Western commentary circles but is popular in Asia.

The GOL Myth of the Brazilian Caster

Brazilian commentators have a tradition of shouting GOAL instead of GOOOOOOL when a goal is scored, and they can shout for 30 seconds without taking a breath. This style has been around since the 1950s.

The most famous is Brazilian commentator Garrin Chas. When Brazil won the World Cup in 1958, he shouted GOL for 45 seconds continuously, which is still a Guinness record. Later Brazilian commentators continued this tradition. If you don't shout GOOOOOOL when scoring a goal, you are not considered a true Brazilian commentator.

The cool style of the British BBC

The BBC commentator's style is completely opposite to that of Brazil. Extremely calm, extremely refined, almost emotionless. When Hurst scored in the last minute of the England-Germany final in 1966, BBC commentator Ken Wolstenholm simply said that they thought the game was over, and now it really is.

This kind of British calm commentary has become the signature of the BBC, and it is still the other extreme in the global commentary industry. Some fans feel that this kind of commentary is too restrained and not passionate enough, while other fans feel that this is true professionalism.

What commentators mean to fans

No matter which country or style, World Cup commentators are the spiritual guides of fans. They make the fans in front of the screen feel like they are in the stadium. Their chants can make fans feel emotional. Their golden words will become the collective memory of generations.

Song Shixiong's Maradona's three tones, Han Qiaosheng's Time is running out for the Chinese team, He Wei's poetic ending, and Huang Jianxiang's great Italy, these moments together constitute the football memories of generations of Chinese fans. Every time the World Cup starts, fans will turn on the TV again and wait for new famous scenes to be born. This is the irreplaceable charm of football commentary.