It doesn’t happen often in the world’s top leagues, but once in a while, our furry friends take part in the match. Animal sightings at Premier League, Ligue 1 or Bundesliga games are infrequent, but if we go further down the line of world’s vast array of leagues, we will find places where, more often than not, fans get to see animals invading pitches with more frequency than their human counterparts.
There are countless times when we’ve seen dogs invade pitches in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, etc. Back in 2014, there was an famous incident where a dog invaded the field during a derby between River Plate and Rosario Central.
Suaver than Rico, this dog stopped in the goalkeeper's box and proceeded to do his business for the whole world to see, only to casually stroll away as if nothing had happened.
While most of the incidents involving animals on the field of play have been peacefully resolved, there are a few infamous moments that would leave anyone outraged.
In a match between Atletico Nacional and Deportivo Pereira, an owl fell on the pitch, apparently injured by the ball. The referee stopped the match to check on the animal, but before he could get any closer to it, one of the players kicked the owl away.
This infuriated the players from Atletico and everyone else who witnessed it.
According to the video, the owl did not die instantly, but it passed away later at a veterinary clinic.
And that brings us to what happened last week in Brazil.
In a match between Linense and Agua Santa for the Sao Paulo State Championship, an unexpected guest slithered its way onto the field.
They were barely 10 minutes into the match when a snake appeared on the grass. The referee stopped the game to wait for the match officials to take care of it.
And that's when Eder Locco took center stage. Like the owl kicker in Colombia, the Brazilian midfielder squared up to the serpent and launched it from the field. Unfortunately, he doesn’t really bother to place the snake anywhere, and he boots it into a group of people near the sidelines. Nice one.
In the video and the picture from the aftermath, you can see that how tiny the snake was. Unless it was poisonous, this snake posed no danger to anyone. So shame on you Mr. Locco, shame on you.
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