Not everyone can appreciate a bunch of sweaty athletes, whether they be men or women, chasing after a ball in the hope of getting it past the goalkeeper. And that's totally understandable.
However, once in a while, when memes transcend the barriers of time, cultural boundaries, and linguistic confines, venturing far beyond their native online habitats and the hallowed halls of high schools, even the biggest soccer haters can find something to like here.
During the annual Sidemen Charity Match at a sold-out London Stadium on Saturday, which pitted Sidemen FC - a soccer team made up of the British YouTube collective of the same name - against a YouTube all-star team, featuring the likes of JiDion, Jacksepticeye and Max Fosh, a single moment stole the entire show after Fosh, moments after being given a yellow card by the referee, hit back with a superbly-timed reverse Uno card.
In the most surprising moment of this weekend's Sidemen Charity Match, YouTube celebrity Max Fosh 'reversed' the referee's yellow card with a card of his own
Image credits: sportbible
Image credits: sportbible
Former Premier League and FIFA official, Mark Clattenburg, did not expect such a stunt and went on refereeing with a puzzled look on his face. Clearly a first for him in his illustrious career spanning more than a decade.
"Max Fosh just Uno-Reversed Mark Clattenburg for a yellow card and it worked, what am I watching," one of the comments remarked.
"Max Fosh receiving a yellow card and then holding up a Uno reverse card to the ref is god-tier banter ngl," said another.
After the referee approached Max with a yellow card in a YouTuber all-star charity soccer match, he gave the referee a taste of his own medicine
Image credits: sportbible
In addition to the 60,000 spectators who witnessed the comical incident live at the stadium, the moment was also observed by a staggering 2.5 million viewers tuned in online - as expected from the event gathering YouTube's biggest stars, including Mr.Beast, the most-subscribed individual on the planet.
Max Fosh, also known as StreetSmarts to his fans, is a British YouTuber known for his wild sense of humor
Image credits: max.fosh
Image credits: max.fosh
Image credits: max.fosh
Mark Clattenburg, a legendary Premier League and FIFA official, hung up his referee's whistle a couple of years ago, capping off a career that spanned over a decade
Image credits: wikipedia.org
For those of you who are not familiar with the reverse Uno card meme, in the conventional card game, its function is rather straightforward - it deftly flips the order of turns. However, in the annals of internet lore, circa 2018, a clever netizen likened this innocuous card to the powerful act of saying "no u" – a formidable means to deflect virtually anything, from psychology to warding off a stern warning from a referee for comical effect.
"My roommate, who teaches 6th graders, has informed me that middle schoolers have started carrying around 'reverse' cards from Uno," Lara Korte, a journalist at POLITICO, wrote back in 2019 on X (formerly Twitter).
"So anytime someone insults them, they bust out the card and 'reverse' the burn. Cutting. edge. innovation."
While Mark issued no comment after the match, his puzzled reaction speaks for itself
Image credits: clattenburg_mark
You can watch the moment unfold in real time below
According to SPORTbible, a staggering £2.4 million ($3 million) has been generously contributed during the charity event and is destined for allocation among various charitable causes.
Sidemen FC won the match 8-5 but we all know who the real winner is.
Everyone besides the veteran referee was in on the joke and applauded the lad for pulling such a classy trick
