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Football on February 29: Who can claim to be football's Mr. Leap Year?


  • Chris Wright, Toe Poke writerFebruary 29, 2024, 12:02 am ET

Like the World Cups (at least for now), February 29 only comes around once every four years and a select few football events have occurred on the rarest date of all.

As you probably know, a leap year contains an extra day on top of the usual 365, which is added at the end of February to maintain a level of synchronization between the Gregorian calendar year and the Earth's actual annual rotation around the Sun.

With 2024 being another leap year, and leap day itself approaching once again, here's a timely look at some of the most notable leap incidents that have taken place in football on February 29, dating back to the year the Premier League and Both started the Champions League.

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1992

Eric Cantona scored his first goal in English football on February 29, 1992, more than a month after signing for Leeds United from French side Nimes. After coming off the bench against Luton Town, Cantona managed to open his account and provided an assist in a 2-0 victory for his new team, which the surly French striker helped propel to the last English Premier League title before that the highest category changed its name. and relaunched as the Premier League for the 1992-93 season.

2000

Ferran Torres was born on February 29, 2000, which, assuming the Barcelona striker has only been able to celebrate his birthday every four years since then, technically makes him seven years old today, surely the secret to his youthful appearance.

Ferran is not the only professional footballer who was born on a leap day; in fact, he shares his birthday with a select group that includes former US international Taylor Twellman (born 1980) and World Cup-winning German midfielder Benedikt Höwedes (1988). Crystal Palace hero Darren Ambrose was also born on February 29, 1984, meaning he has the honor of sharing his birthday with none other than hip-hop star and Fyre Festival founder Ja Rule. .

The same day Ferran was born, Bayern Munich beat Real Madrid 4-2 in the second group stage of the Champions League. Bayern topped the group but it was the Spanish who had the last laugh. Madrid managed to advance to the knockout stage, beating Bayern home and away in the semi-finals, before lifting the trophy by defeating Valencia 3-0 in the final.

2004

Harry Kewell produced an excellent performance by scoring for Liverpool in a 2–2 draw against former club Leeds United at Elland Road on 29 February 2004. Kewell then claimed to be forever known as Liverpool's “Mr Leap Year”. soccer. scored for Australia on 29 February 2012. The Socceroos achieved a spectacular 4–2 victory over Saudi Arabia in a World Cup qualifier with a late three-goal burst ending the latter's hopes of reaching to the 2014 tournament in Brazil.

2008

Leap Day 2008 brought a merciful end to a controversial and protracted transfer saga that had begun the previous November. Javier Mascherano has finally completed his permanent transfer to Liverpool from West Ham, after being on loan at Anfield for over a year.

The deal had been delayed for months due to legal complications with Mascherano and third-party ownership of his financial rights, according to which he had joined West Ham United two years earlier from Brazilian side Corinthians alongside compatriot Carlos Tevez. However, things were eventually resolved and the Argentina international's £18million move was ratified. Shortly after, FIFA, UEFA and the Premier League moved to ban third-party ownership entirely.

2012

The U.S. men's national team enjoyed a bit of leap day magic in 2012, when they scored a famous 1-0 victory over Italy in an international friendly, beating azzurri for the first time. Clint Dempsey scored the decisive goal just after the break, but it was the United States' resilient defensive display thereafter, led by captain Carlos Bocanegra, that really sealed the deal in Genoa.

That same day, Stuart Pearce suffered the indignity of losing his first and only game as England manager, having taken over as interim manager following the sacking of Fabio Capello, in a 3-2 defeat against the Netherlands. Arjen Robben scored the late goal that condemned “Psycho” and his players to their disappointing fate at Wembley. If you're wondering if Robben stepped in from the right and finished deftly with his left foot, then wonder no more…

2016

After being sworn in as successor to the ousted Sepp Blatter, Gianni Infantino celebrated his first day as FIFA president with a star-studded kick that took place on leap day outside his new workplace in Zurich. A host of former players attended the match with Luis Figo, Robert Pires, Michel Salgado, Clarence Seedorf and Deco helping to form a full squad for the occasion.

2020

Premier League matches were played on February 29 for the first time since 2004, as five top-flight matches took place on Leap Day 2020.

The most memorable was Watford's shock 3-0 victory over Liverpool at Vicarage Road, mainly because the former were in the relegation zone at the time and the latter were just five results away from equaling Liverpool's 49-game record. the Arsenal Invincibles Premier League. undefeated streak. The Reds were also on an 18-game winning streak in the league, although that all came to a halt when the Hornets climbed out of the relegation zone with a truly momentous performance.

Ismaïla Sarr also made his share of Premier League history by becoming the first player to score twice on Leap Day, although the Senegalese winger's achievement was equaled on the same day when Chelsea full-back Marcos Alonso scored a brace on a 2-2 draw against AFC Bournemouth.



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