Hats Explained: Everything You Need to Know

A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. == Origin == The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wickets with three consecutive deliveries. Fans held a collection for Stephenson, and presented him with a hat bought with the proceeds. The term was used in print for the first time in 1865 in the Chelmsford Chronicle. The term was eventually adopted by many other sports including hockey, association football, Formula 1 racing, rugby, and water polo. == Use == === Bat and ball games === ==== Baseball ==== In the past, the term was occasionally used to describe when a player struck out three times in a baseball game, and the term golden sombrero was more commonly used when a player struck out four times in a game. In recent years, hat trick has been more often used to describe when a player hits three home runs in a game. For example, on 29 August 2015, Toronto Blue Jays fans celebrated Edwin Encarnación’s third home run of the game by throwing hats onto the field, similar to the tradition in ice hockey. Key Concepts and Fundamentals ==== Cricket ==== A hat-trick occurs in cricket when an individual bowler takes three wickets with consecutive deliveries in the same match. === Football codes === ==== Association football ==== A hat-trick occurs in association football when a player scores three goals (not necessarily consecutive) in a single game, whereas scoring two goals (in a single match) is called a brace. In common with other official record-keeping rules, all goals scored during the regulation 90 minutes, plus extra time if required, are counted but goals in a penalty shootout are excluded from the tally. The fastest recorded time to score a hat-trick is 70 seconds, a record set by Alex Torr in a Sunday league game in 2013. The previous record of 90 seconds was held by Tommy Ross playing for Ross County against Nairn County on 28 November 1964. The record of the youngest player ever to score a hat-trick was set by Ntinos Pontikas in 1996, while Pelé in 1958 became the youngest to achieve a hat-trick in the FIFA World Cup. Understanding the Core Elements The first hat-trick achieved in an international game was by Scottish player John McDougall, against England on 2 March 1878. German Erwin Helmchen scored 141 official hat-tricks in his career with Pelé having 92. American player Bert Patenaude scored the first hat-trick in the FIFA World Cup, against Paraguay in the inaugural event in 1930. Three hat-tricks have been scored in a World Cup final: by Geoff Hurst for England in the 1966 final against West Germany, by Carli Lloyd for the USA against Japan in the 2015 Women’s World Cup final and by Kylian Mbappé for France in the 2022 final against Argentina. Lloyd’s was, at 16 minutes, the fastest from kick-off in any World Cup match. However, the fastest World Cup hat-trick, as measured by time between goals, belongs to Fabienne Humm of Switzerland, who scored in the 47th, 49th and 52nd minutes against Ecuador in the 2015 group stage. Important Considerations Traditionally, a player who scores a hat-trick is allowed to keep the match ball as a memento. ===== Perfect hat-trick ===== Football has also extended the term, with a perfect hat-trick being when a player scores one right-footed goal, one left-footed goal and one headed goal within one match. ===== Flawless hat-trick ===== In Germany and Austria, the term (German: lupenreiner) Hattrick (flawless hat-trick) refers to when a player scores three goals in a row in one half without the half-time break or a goal scored by another player interrupting the performance. ==== Gaelic football ==== In Gaelic football, a hat-trick can refer to goals or to…