Sunday of Miracles

"Sunday of Miracles" () is a derisive nickname for the events that took place during the last matchday of the 1992–93 Ekstraklasa season, 20 June 1993.

Background

The top of the league table prior to the final matchday was:

During the 1992–93 Ekstraklasa season, Legia Warsaw, ŁKS Łódź, and Lech Poznań competed intensely for the Polish national championship title. Heading into the final matchday, Legia led the standings over ŁKS by virtue of superior goal difference, while Lech occupied third place, trailing by 1 point. On the decisive day, ŁKS faced Olimpia Poznań, while Legia played against Wisła Kraków. Both ŁKS and Legia secured emphatic victories (7–1 and 6–0, respectively), prompting widespread allegations of match-fixing. Lech Poznań drew 3–3 with Widzew Łódź. This meant that Legia won the Ekstraklasa.

These scorelines were unusual for that year's Ekstraklasa. The reverse fixtures earlier in the season had ended Wisła 1–1 Legia and Olimpia 2–0 ŁKS, and only 2 other games (of 306 played that season) had been decided by six-goal margins.

During the Wisła–Legia match, Wisła supporters openly urged their players to leave the pitch, insinuating corruption and sarcastically suggesting that the players share the alleged bribe money among themselves. The resounding victories achieved by Legia Warsaw and ŁKS Łódź raised suspicions regarding the sporting integrity of these teams, with accusations of bribery against Legia voiced by sports commentator Tomasz Zimoch during the broadcast. The daily newspaper Tempo further speculated that Wisła players had been bribed with a sum of 800 million złoty.

In response to the allegations, Legia's coach, Janusz Wójcik, remarked shortly after the match that, while the game might have appeared "staged," he dismissed such claims, stating that "Legia does not benefit from any script."

Aftermath

On 10 July 1993, the Polish Football Association (PZPN) convened to deliberate on the controversies surrounding the matches involving Legia Warsaw and ŁKS Łódź. During this assembly, PZPN Vice President Ryszard Kulesza explicitly accused officials of condoning corruption within Polish football, asserting that "all of Poland saw" that the match between Wisła Kraków and Legia had been influenced by bribery. This statement garnered support from Zygmunt Lenkiewicz. In contrast, Maciej Kapelczak presented a ruling which attributed the allegations against Legia and ŁKS primarily to journalistic speculation, arguing that the imposed sanctions lacked justification due to insufficient evidence. Kapelczak cited opinions from referees, match observers, and official match reports to substantiate his position.

Despite the absence of concrete evidence, the meeting culminated in the annulment of the results from the Wisła v. Legia and ŁKS v. Olimpia matches, with a voting outcome of 68 in favor, 20 against, and 11 abstentions. The official rationale for this decision was cited as a "lack of sporting spirit."

The Kraków Prosecutor's Office also initiated an investigation into allegations of match-fixing; however, the proceedings were ultimately discontinued.

The decision by the PZPN had significant financial implications for the clubs involved. Both Legia and ŁKS suffered losses due to their exclusion from European competitions, forfeiting potential revenues from broadcasting rights and ticket sales. Additionally, Lech Poznań, facing financial difficulties at the time, was compelled to disburse championship bonuses, as demanded by goalkeeper Kazimierz Sidorczuk.

The question of whether the 34th-round matches involving Legia and ŁKS during the 1992–93 Ekstraklasa season were subject to bribery remains contentious. Allegations of match-fixing were publicly refuted by Olimpia Poznań's president Bolesław Krzyżostaniak, Legia players Juliusz Kruszankin and Wojciech Kowalczyk, ŁKS player Tomasz Wieszczycki, and referee Michał Listkiewicz.

In 2004 and 2007, Legia Warsaw submitted formal appeals to the PZPN seeking the reversal of its 1993 decision and the reinstatement of their championship title. Both appeals were rejected.

Notably, in 2021, Grzegorz Szeliga, a former Wisła Kraków player from the 1992–93 season, publicly admitted to selling the match against Legia.

References