Lightning doesn't have to hit a player to electrocute them, if lightning
hits the ground the current radiates away in all directions across the
surface and a pair of legs that are apart on the ground will have enough
voltage drop across them to fry the player quite effectively.

There's a piece of footage which crops up quite frequently on these
reality
TV shows which shows a CG strike on the pitch and all the footy players
going down at once.


Yeah, I have seen that but I seem to remember it was a very open field (ie
no big stands with metal roofs) - the Old Trafford pitch is tightly enclosed
and I would have thought it quite safe. Certainly I expect the spectators
would be more at risk being sent out into the open streets than inside a
metal building, although I guess the players might be a little bit safer.