A FEW DECADES AGO, FOOTBALL boffins thought the beautiful game was too boring. In 1996, the FIFA president, Sepp Blatter, tried quite literally to move the goalposts. He wanted the sticks widened by the diameter of two footballs, and the bar raised by one.
Fortunately, his ridiculous idea was killed quickly, and Blatter and his UEFA sidekick Michel Platini were driven out amid a corruption scandal. Fans around the world had reacted with horror to the idea, and football — never boring, even when Italy is defending a 1-0 lead — has only grown
