A man named Tofig Bahramov was very famous in Soviet times in the world of sports. This is not just a soccer referee. He became the second Soviet judge to judge at world championships. And he was the first who was entrusted to be the referee in the finals of the European Cups.
Start of activity
The city of Agjabadi (Azerbaijan) is the place where the future referee Tofig Bahramov was born. The judge’s date of birth is January 26, 1926. And he began his career in 1940. Then he played for a local children's club called Spartak. Then he moved to another team, in FC Neftyanik. Tofig spoke only at the championship level of the Azerbaijan SSR. True, his career as a field player did not work out. He received a serious leg injury, due to which he underwent a serious operation.
But then he became famous in the judicial work. The hero of our article began to do this at the age of 25 years, i.e. since 1951. At first he served matches held as part of the USSR Championship. Then, much later (to be more precise - in 1964), he made his debut in the international arena. Two years later, at the 1966 World Cup in England, he was a line referee. And it was then that Tofig gained his fame. However, more on that later.
Personal life
Tofig Bahramov hails from an intelligent family. His father, named Bahram, is a man with a higher education. He graduated from high school in St. Petersburg. However, he was repeatedly repressed. Tofig's mother, Saria Seyidbeyli, hails from an Azerbaijani family with noble roots. The arbiter himself was married. He was married only once. His son was named after Grandfather Bahram. When he grew up, he took up entrepreneurial activity. And a daughter named Gulnara is a secondary school teacher in Baku.
Tofig Bahramov himself in the last years of his life served as AFFA Secretary General.
1966 World Cup Final
Tofig Bahramov, whose biography is quite interesting, was appointed a linear referee for the final of World Cup 66. Then the England team and the FRG team met in the match. The game was very intense. As a result, when the main time was over, the score was 2: 2. Extra time was assigned. And then something strange happened.
Jeffrey Hurst, striker of the English national team, took the ball in the area of the 11-meter mark. And he was with his back to the gate. He turned and struck in the fall. And the ball hit the crossbar. Then he bounced down and flew back to the football field. And while it was not visible what part of the earth he touched - the one that was in front of the goal line, or behind it. At that moment, English fans were jubilant. Gottfried Dinst, who was then the chief judge, stopped the game and rushed to Tofik. He nodded in the affirmative, confirming that the goal should be counted. Then the German players surrounded him and began to protest indignantly. However, Tofig Bahramov is a football referee with an inexorable character. The German players failed to convince him.
The game continued. And just a few moments before the whistle, Jeffrey Hurst scored his third goal in this match. Interestingly, it was he who owned the first and so far the only hat-trick, designed in the final of the World Cup in football. Thus, the game ended with a score of 4: 2.
Comments after the match
The final of World Cup 66 caused a storm of emotions in all people who were in any way connected with football. Tofig himself said that after the game Uwe Seeler, who played in that match as part of the German team, approached him and apologized for their behavior with the team. He admitted that he was wrong. And then he clarified that he and the team had reviewed the replays and saw that very goal.
And Jeffrey Hurst wrote in his memoirs that it is still difficult for him to say whether the ball really crossed the goal line then. A little later, Tofig Bahramov, whose photo is provided above, said an interesting thing. That the ball, in his opinion, bounced not from the crossbar, but from the net.
Monument
In March 1993, Tofig Bahramov died in Baku. He was buried in the alley of honorable burial. And in October 2004, a monument was unveiled in his honor. It was built in Baku near the Republican stadium. Incidentally, he has been named after Bahramov since the mid-nineties.
Interestingly, the opening of the monument took place on the eve of the game, which was scheduled between the national teams of England and Azerbaijan. She passed in the qualifying round of the 2006 World Cup. Direct participation in the opening of the monument took Jeffrey Hurst. He, along with Hans Tilkowski, goalkeeper of the German national team of the 60s, laid flowers in memory of Bahramov on June 6, 2011.
Interesting Facts
It is worth noting that Tofig Bahramov became one of the heroes of a short film dedicated to the World Cup, held in 2006. To shoot an episode in honor of the arbiter, a television group from Germany flew to Baku. Specialists interviewed the closest relatives of Tofig and shot a story in the main arena of Azerbaijan. This stadium, as mentioned above, bears the name of Tofig Bahramov. Another referee appeared in the cartoon, mounted for the same World Cup.
It is also worth noting that in order to qualify for the World Cup 66 as an arbiter, Tofig found it quite sufficient to sue two matches held at the international level.
This is not known to everyone, but Bahramov somehow changed his job. He became the head of a football club called Neftchi (Baku). But there he stayed only for a year. Then he decided to return to refereeing.
Everyone knows that in 1992 Margaret Thatcher, the ex-prime minister of Great Britain, flew to Baku. And she specifically requested a meeting with a famous referee. The ex-prime minister said that she, along with her compatriots, remembers Tofig's just act. And she noticed that without a meeting with Bakhramov her visit to Baku would not be complete.
In conclusion, it is worth noting that in our time in Russia, together with Azerbaijan, they hold mini-football tournaments in honor of the memory of the great referee.