September 22, 1993: The 1st French team to win the European Cup is hit with one of the biggest scandals in soccer history.
In 1992, Olympique de Marseille won France's top soccer league, then known as Division 1. That was hardly surprising, since it was their 4th straight title. It qualified them for the 1992-93 edition of the tournament that had been known as the European Cup (and the trophy still is), but, for the 1st time, it was known as the UEFA Champions League.
On May 26, 1993, managed by Raymond Goethals, "L'OM" defeated A.C. Milan, 1-0 at the Olympiastadion in Munich. Basile Boli scored the game's only goal in the 44th minute. The team also included central midfielder Didier Deschamps, who would go on to both play for and manage France to World Cup wins; goalkeeper Fabien Barthez, centreback Marcel Desailly, and German forward Rudi Völler.
Despite being heavily favored, Milan could not win this one. It was the last game for their Dutch forward, Marco van Basten, who had to retire due to a recurrence of his ankle injury. He was only 28, and, was, essentially, the Bobby Orr of European soccer.
But on September 22, Olympique de Marseille, and their president, Bernard Tapie, was found to have been involved in a match-fixing scandal during the 1992–93 season. They were punished by being relegated to France's 2nd division, and banned from European play the next season. But since the scandal affected only their domestic schedule, they were not stripped of their European title.
Marseille were hit hard by the sanctions. It took them 2 seasons to get promoted back to the 1st division. They have won only 1 major trophy since, the 2010 Ligue 1 title. They have been surpassed as France's most successful team by their arch-rivals, Paris Saint-Germain, a rivalry known as Le Classique. And their scandal remains the biggest in the history of French football. But they remain the only French team ever to win the European Cup, under either tournament name.
UPDATE: In 2025, Paris Saint-Germain became the 2nd French team to win the Champions League. Interestingly, they beat the other Milan team, Internazionale.
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September 22, 1993 was a Wednesday. These Major League Baseball games were played:
* The New York Yankees lost to the Minnesota Twins, 5-2 at Yankee Stadium. Kevin Tapani outpitched Scott Kamieniecki. Kent Hrbek and Pedro Muñoz hit home runs for the Twins. For the Yankees, Mike Gallego hit a home run. Don Mattingly, disappearing in September as usual, went 0-for-4.
* The New York Mets beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 6-5 at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh. Charlie O'Bren hit a 2-run home run in the top of the 10th inning. The Bucs pulled a run back in the bottom of the 10th, but it wasn't enough.
* The Montreal Expos beat the Atlanta Braves, 6-1 at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal.
* The Boston Red Sox beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 7-5 at the SkyDome (now the Rogers Centre) in Toronto. Rob Deer hit a home run in the top of the 10th inning.
* The Philadelphia Phillies beat the Florida Marlins, 2-1 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. Dave Hollins singled Tony Longmire home with the winning run in the bottom of the 12th inning.
* The Cleveland Indians beat the Baltimore Orioles, 4-2 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Cal Ripken went 1-for-4.
* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 3-1 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati.
* The Detroit Tigers beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 8-4 at Tiger Stadium in Detroit. Robin Yount, in his last few days as an active player, pinch-hit, and did not reach base.
* The Chicago Cubs beat their arch-rivals, the St. Louis Cardinals, 11-9 at Wrigley Field in Chicago.
* The San Francisco Giants beat the Houston Astros, 1-0 at the Astrodome in Houston. Bill Swift pitched 8 innings of 4-hit shutout ball, and Rod Beck completed the 5-hit shutout. Barry Bonds went 1-for-3 with a walk.
* The Colorado Rockies beat the San Diego Padres, 11-4 at Mile High Stadium in Denver. Jerald Clark hit a home run. Tony Gwynn did not play.
* The Chicago White Sox beat the California Angels, 1-0 at Anaheim Stadium (now Angel Stadium of Anaheim). Wilson Álvarez pitched 8 innings of 5-hit shutout ball, and Roberto Hernández pitched a hitless 9th. Robin Ventura drove in the only run with a sacrifice fly that scored Ellis Burks in the 4th inning.
* The Kansas City Royals beat the Oakland Athletics, 3-2 at the Oakland Coliseum. Kevin Kosloski hit a home run in the top of the 10th inning.
* And the Seattle Mariners beat the Texas Rangers, 7-4 at the Kingdome in Seattle. Nolan Ryan started for the Rangers, and gave up a single, 3 straight walks and a grand slam. Clearly, he was injured. He left the game, and that was his last major league appearance. Ken Griffey went 0-for-2 with 2 walks, 1 of them being 1 of Ryan's walks.
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