A dog that invaded the pitch during a Christmas Eve soccer game has gone viral on social media this week after it was later adopted by one of the players.
Per CBS Sports, the pooch in question became something of a celebrity after interrupting a soccer match between two of Bolivia's top-flight teams, The Strongest and Nacional Potosi, for a total of three minutes.
The dog, who appears to be a Golden Labrador, stole a shoe from the sideline. It then sprinted around the pitch, clearly having the time of its life, before The Strongest defensive midfielder Raúl Castro managed to catch it, pick it up, and carry it away in his arms.
After the troublesome dog was dealt with, play promptly resumed, and The Strongest managed to win the match 3-0.
According to a report by the Bolivian newspaper Página Siete, the stray dog became popular with fans of The Strongest and was even given the nickname "Cachito".
But tragedy later struck, as according to Fox 10 News, poor Cachito was hit by a vehicle in the center of La Paz and seriously injured. It was then taken to be cared for by a local shelter.
However, the unfortunate dog's story does have a happy ending.
When Castro himself got wind of the canine's plight, he put down a deposit for the animal to adopt it as soon as it has healed up properly.
Speaking to Página Siete, Castro stated: "I don't have any social media so I found out from my teammates, who told me. I contacted the shelter and told them that I will adopt the dog. I will adopt him when I return to La Paz because I'm now traveling to Santa Cruz."
However, this is far from the first time that an animal has disrupted a sports match or a soccer game.
For example, back in November of 2019, a semi-professional game football in Sisak-Moslavina in Croatia was suddenly interrupted by a flock of hens, who invaded the pitch without warning and interrupted the game, to the ire of its players.
