It is known as the Disgrace of Gijon. It’s the reason World Cup group deciders are now simultaneous and dizzying. And it might be the only case in World Cup history of a team losing on purpose.

Austria and West Germany went into the final day of group play at the 1982 World Cup knowing that a German win by one or two goals would advance both and eliminate Algeria. So, after a 10th-minute German goal, the two sides engaged in an absurd 80-minute charade. The Austrians, knowing a three-goal loss would knock them out, let West Germany have its crucial lead. The Germans, in exchange, barely tried to extend that lead. Fans howled in displeasure and disbelief.

It’s the most prominent and oft-cited example of perverse incentives dictating a controversial World Cup result. And it’s relevant – kind of – because backwards motives could arise once again in 2018.

View photos Neymar and Brazil could be facing a World Cup Round of 16 matchup with Germany if they win Group E. (Getty) More

But these ones are different. Whereas Austria accepted a less than ideal result to avoid a disastrous one in ’82 – just like Denmark, in a less egregious way, did Tuesday – the likes of England, Belgium and Switzerland might be better off actively playing for worse results on Wednesday and Thursday.

Which begs a few questions: Should they? Will they? And why would they?

Why losing (or drawing) could be beneficial

The answer, essentially, is Mexico over Germany.

Group stage upsets, and most importantly that rousing Mexican victory, have pieced together a projected knockout round bracket that is wildly unbalanced. If the likeliest scenarios come to fruition, Uruguay, Portugal, France, Argentina, Brazil and Germany will populate the upper three-quarters of the left side. The right will feature Russia, Spain, Croatia, Denmark, Switzerland and Mexico.

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Eight of our pre-tournament top 10 – boasting 15 World Cup titles and the most recent European crown – could find themselves clustered in a “Bracket of Death.”

So teams in Group E and G, whose winners go left, might be better off finishing second. Brazil, for example, might want to avoid a Round of 16 bout with the reigning champs. But that’s what Group E’s top spot will get the Brazilians if Germany comes out of Wednesday’s early games second in Group F.

And if that titanic battle does materialize, the following day, England and Belgium will meet in a head-to-head battle for first place knowing either Brazil or Germany would be waiting in the quarters. The Group G runner-up spot, on the other hand, would turn the team that claims it into a semifinal favorite.

The strange England-Belgium situation is contingent on Wednesday’s results. But both could be better off losing. If they draw, with goal differential and goals scored even, the tiebreaker would be fair play, meaning both could have incentive to accumulate yellow and red cards. That could lead to one of the most bizarre matches in World Cup history.

Is there precedent for losing on purpose?

To our knowledge, no – no team has ever taken a World Cup field with the objective of losing.

But there absolutely is precedent for group-concluding losses proving beneficial – and debunking the myth of momentum.

West Germany certainly couldn’t afford to throw its Matchday 3 game against East Germany in 1974, for its players would have been unable to show their faces in public ever again. But a 1-0 East German upset didn’t hinder the West on its run to a World Cup title; and it might have helped.

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