Most unusual sights on a football pitch after rat stops play in Wales
Four incidents that need to be seen to be believed
Wales fans had a moment to get excited about during their loss to Belgium midweek when a rat ran onto the pitch of the Cardiff City Stadium.
Listen to this article
Craig Bellamy’s side were beaten 4-2 on Monday and will need solid results against Liechtenstein and North Macedonia in their next two qualifiers if they are to make the World Cup playoffs.
Read also: England qualify for World Cup as Neville and Tuchel targeted by travelling fans
Read also: John Stones says England building ‘something special’ after reaching World Cup
With Kevin De Bruyne scoring two penalties to ensure the visitors overcame the Dragons, a commentator joked that the rodent was given the biggest cheer of the night when it came on.
Belgium’s goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois tried in vain to catch the rat in his gloves before Welsh winger Brennan Johnson shooed it off the field.
The game was briefly paused in the 66th minute for the incident to be dealt with.
Cardiff City's head of operations Wayne Nash said: "We've had a stray dog on the pitch but this was something new, a freak of nature.
"The stadium is close to allotments and railway sidings and we know rats can be problematic.”
Here are four other unusual sights on a football pitch - and not just England winning on penalties.
Strong winds blow stadium advertising onto pitch: Hull 0-3 Arsenal, April 2014
Advertisers were given more exposure than they paid for when hoardings blew onto the field during Hull’s Easter tie against the Gunners at the KC Stadium.
Squirrel runs down the wing: Hull 1-1 Norwich, February 2025
Again at the KC Stadium, a squirrel provided a wide option that Norwich ultimately didn’t need as Josh Sargent scored an equalising goal.
Beach ball goal: Sunderland 1-0 Liverpool, October 2009
The famous beach ball that helped Darren Bent score against Liverpool via a cruel deflection now resides at the National Football Museum in Manchester.
Dog steals ball: Alebrijes Oaxaca 4-0 Dorados, September 2023
A back garden incident played out in the professional game when a dog burst onto the field in Mexico’s second division in 2023 and stole the football away from players.