"Almost broke my foot"

Palmeiras professional thrown at with pig’s head during match

Palmeiras professional Raphael Veiga was pelted with a pig's head.(Bild: AFP/APA/Eitan ABRAMOVICH, X/jovem_negativo)

An extremely curious - albeit disgusting - scene occurred in Brazil's first division. As Palmeiras player Raphael Veiga was about to take a corner kick in the Sao Paulo derby against Corinthians on Monday, a severed pig's head was thrown at the 29-year-old. 

Although the raw piece of meat missed its target, the attack still provided a bizarre moment. Corinthians striker Yuri Alberto, apparently unaware of what was lying on the pitch in front of him, kicked the head to the sideline, where it was removed by stadium staff. 

"I almost broke my foot. At first I thought it was something else, a pillow or something. But it was a pig's head," explained the Brazilian after the game. 

Feud has its origins in 1976
But what is this disgusting act all about? In 1976, two Corinthians players lost their lives in a car accident. Palmeiras refused the request to postpone the upcoming derby, which is why the then Corinthians president Wadih Helu called his counterpart a "pig". Luis Figo also made the acquaintance of a pig's head when, two years after his transfer from Barcelona to arch-rivals Real Madrid in 2002, he became the target of an angry Barca fan in the "Clasico" - also during a corner kick. 

According to local media reports, two men have already been arrested in Sao Paulo, but have been released due to a lack of evidence. How the head found its way into the stadium remains unclear ...