Senegal 1-0 France — South Korea/Japan 2002

Senegal's 1-0 win over France in the 2002 World Cup opener is the ultimate colonial football revenge story. Papa Bouba Diop's 30th-minute goal toppled the reigning world and European champions, a team loaded with stars like Zinedine Zidane, Thierry Henry, and Patrick Vieira. Senegal featured 19 players from French leagues, defeating the nation that once ruled them. France exited the tournament without scoring a single goal in three matches—a 100% scoring failure rate, far worse than the typical defending champion. This upset is 50% more severe than the average because France became the first titleholder eliminated in the group stage since 1966.