Al-Ahram Weekly | Sports | Kick-off was in Uruguay

		30 May - 5 June 2002 Issue No.588 Sports	Current issue Previous issue Site map
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Kick-off was in Uruguay
Although football was officially born in 1904 with the founding of FIFA, it was not until 1924 and the Olympic tournament in Paris that the international game really came into its own. There, for the first time, teams from other continents arrived to take on the Europeans. The tournament was an unmitigated success: 50,000 spectators watched Uruguay beat Switzerland in the final. In 1928, however, when many nations abstained from the Olympic tournament in Amsterdam, the time was obviously ripe for a new independent football tournament to be established, especially in view of the growth of professional football.
On 26 May 1928 in Amsterdam, the FIFA congress voted that a new tournament was to be organised in 1930 which was to be open to all member nations. On 18 May 1929, the Barcelona congress voted that Uruguay should be the first nation to host a FIFA World Cup.

Uruguay 1930

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FIFA's decision to hold the first World Cup in Uruguay did not meet universal acclaim, as Europe was plunged in the midst of an economic crisis. Participation in a World Cup taking place overseas involved a long sea journey. Moreover, for some clubs it meant having to go without their best players for two months -- a problem that is still topical today.
The organisation of the first World Cup looked rather different from today's with no qualifying competition, the 13 teams entered by invitation and the final draw not made until the teams arrived in Uruguay.
The first final was contested by the hosts and their neighbours Argentina. After trailing 2-1 at the interval, Uruguay went on to prevail 4-2 and thus won the cup which had been designed by French sculptor Abel Lafleur.
Italy 1934
Italy, one of the unsuccessful applicants for the honour of staging the 1930 tournament, was chosen as host by FIFA for the second World Cup. Italy's triumph left both Argentina and Brazil disenchanted after travelling 8,000 miles (13,000 km) for just one game each in the first round. Staged between 27 May and 10 June, this World Cup was markedly more encouraging than its forerunner. Thirty-two nations took part so that a preliminary round was necessary (even hosts Italy had to qualify), which qualified 16 teams for the finals. As a retort to the many withdrawals of European teams four years earlier, several South American nations, such as Argentina and Brazil, did not send their best teams to Italy. Uruguay declined to participate and defend its title.
France 1938
The third World Cup was played in France as the war clouds gathered throughout Europe and politics kept away a number of top nations. Austria qualified, but withdrew -- though some of their players appeared in the colours of Germany -- and Spain was ravaged by civil war. To rise to the occasion, the Stade de Colombes was enlarged while the stadiums at Bordeaux and Marseilles were renovated. And for the first time the host nation and the holders qualified automatically, a privilege which lives on to this day. Once again, however, the competition was boycotted by the South Americans, who felt that the tournament should have been held in Argentina this time around and not in Europe again.
Brazil 1950
The World Cup returned and Uruguay won it for a second time in the "final which was not a final". Throughout World War II the Italian vice-president of FIFA, Ottorino Barassi, hid the World Cup trophy in a shoe-box under his bed and thus saved it from falling into the hands of occupying troops.
Only 13 teams participated in the final tournament.
Twelve years after the World Cup in France, the new competition emerged into a new era when the tournament was staged in the famous Maracana Stadium in Rio De Janeiro and other cities in Brazil.
Switzerland 1954
The World Cup, staged in Switzerland at the foot of the Alps, was to soar to new heights in 1954. The qualifying rounds featured a higher number of nations than ever before. Sixteen teams took part in the finals, three more than in Brazil four years earlier. This figure remained constant until the 1982 World Cup in Spain, when it rose to 24. It was also the first time in history that all players wore a number on their shirts.
Hungary were the favourites with a team including Puskas, Bozsik, Kocsis and Hidegkuti, unbeaten in 28 internationals and Olympic champions. But after the infamous "Battle of Berne" with Brazil -- three players were sent off and the teams fought afterwards in the dressing rooms -- the Hungarians were rattled.
In the final, after leading 2-0 against West Germany, whom they had beaten 8-3 in the opening round, they went down 3-2.
Sweden 1958
After Switzerland, Sweden was named host country for the 1958 World Cup -- a cup which, on 16 October 1956, lost its founding father when Jules Rimet died in Paris at the age of 83.
Brazil, inspired by a 17-year-old youngster called Pelé, won the trophy for the first time. Pelé scored against Wales, hit a hat-trick in a 5-2 win over France in the semi-finals and struck two more in the final, a 5-2 triumph over the hosts. Frenchman Just Fontaine scored 13 goals in the tournament, a record which still stands.
For the first time the World Cup received international television coverage and the world could watch the mastery of the stars of modern football: Kopa, Fontaine, Charlton, Yashin, Garrincha, Vava and Pelé.
Chile 1962
In Chile, at the foot of the Andes, Brazil took off with its second consecutive world title, even with Pelé absent from the team. But this seventh World Cup is also remembered as the occasion when football became more physical.
Brazil beat Czechoslovakia 3-1 in the final in Santiago. The tournament also staged one of the most notorious matches in World Cup history -- the Battle of Santiago between Italy and Chile, in which two Italians were sent off and one had his nose broken by a solid left-hook from a Chilean player.
England 1966
After the Jules Rimet Trophy was stolen while on display in London, the hosts triumphed again when it was recovered by a dog called Pickles under a bush in a suburban front garden in south London a few days later.
Pelé was again battered, this time by Bulgaria and Portugal as Brazil's bid for a third consecutive title faltered. England, shrewdly managed by Alf (later Sir Alf) Ramsey, beat West Germany 4-2 after extra time in a thrilling final at Wembley, when Geoff Hurst made history with a hat-trick, including the most controversial goal ever scored. Did the ball really cross the line after bouncing down from the crossbar? The debate still rages.
With 16 African nations declaring forfeit even before a single match had kicked off, the 1966 World Cup qualifiers did not get off to the best of starts. The African protest was the result of a new FIFA rule stipulating that the winners of the Africa zone must then beat the winners of either the Asia or Oceania zone in order to reach the finals. The Africans believed that winning their zone should have been enough to go straight through to the finals. This 1964 ruling was eventually overturned four years later in Africa's favour.
Mexico 1970
The ninth World Cup also became a major TV spectacle and to fit in with television company requests, some matches kicked off at 12 noon. This was an unpopular decision with many players and managers because of the intense heat in Mexico at that time of day. There was none of the violence throughout the tournament that had plagued the two previous competitions. The games passed without a single player being sent off, equalling the 1950 World Cup record. For the first time substitutes were allowed, as well as yellow and red cards being introduced.
Pelé returned after vowing never to play in another World Cup and Brazil won the Jules Rimet trophy outright with a near-perfect team including Clodoaldo, Gerson, Rivelino, Tostao, Jairzinho, Pelé and Carlos Alberto.
In the final at Mexico City's Aztec Stadium, Brazil dazzled and danced to a memorable 4-1 win over Italy.
The Jules Rimet Cup, named after the founder of the World Cup competition, became Brazilian property outright when the team's victory in Mexico saw the cup pass into their hands for the third time in 12 years. That, however, was not the end of the saga of the "Golden Goddess". The trophy was stolen in Brazil and, unlike in England in 1966, was never seen again.
Germany 1974
Another host triumph as the West Germans took the new World Cup for the first time with an exceptional display of the hard-running, interchanging style in a tournament remembered for the arrival of "total football".
West Germany, after a somewhat shaky start to the tournament, eventually ran into form to win the final. Led by the "Kaiser", Franz Beckenbauer, the West Germans were at the top of their game to beat a brilliant Netherlands side. This 10th World Cup was marked by the arrival of colour television. And as if to highlight this cultural revolution even more, the "Weltmeisterschaft 74" featured two other major changes. The first was a change in the tournament rules. The first round group system followed by knock-out in the second round was replaced by a group system in both rounds. The second change was the replacing of the Jules Rimet trophy -- won outright by Brazil four years earlier -- by a new solid gold statuette known as the "FIFA World Cup". Like its predecessor, the new trophy, sculpted by Silvio Gazzaniga, was coveted by many. As a prologue to its vanguard tournament, FIFA appointed itself a new president, the first non-European, when the Brazilian Jo‹o Havelange replaced Englishman Sir Stanley Rous, who had held the post since 1961.
Argentina 1978
Having reached the final in 1930, Argentina had to wait a while before winning the crown on its own soil in 1978, beating the Dutch 3-1 after extra time.
Rarely has the run-up to a World Cup been so filled with controversy as the 11th tournament. Football, in fact, took a back seat as the powers that be debated whether or not to boycott the tournament in protest against General Videla's totalitarian regime and its violation of human rights. Finally, however, despite a widespread call to stay away, the world's footballing nations all made the trip to Argentina. All, that is, except those that had failed to qualify, such as England (for the second time running), Yugoslavia and the USSR. Minor footballing nations such as Iran and Tunisia had their first outings and France was back in the world's top football competition after 12 years in the wilderness.
Spain 1982
FIFA appointed Spain as the host nation to the 12th World Cup, which would play host to 24 teams rather than 16, as had been the case previously. Italy survived the opening round on goal difference and then went on to win the trophy for a third time, beating West Germany 3-1. Paolo Rossi finished top scorer with six goals.
Certain alterations were made to how the tournament was organised, the new format incorporating three distinct phases: a first round with six groups of four teams from which the top two teams qualified for the second round; a second round with four groups of three teams from which the top team qualified from each group; and finally the semi-finals and the final.
Mexico 1986
The 13th World Cup was awarded to Mexico, which thus became the first country to host the competition on two occasions. However, the Mexicans were selected only as replacement hosts after the original choice, Colombia, announced in 1983 that it could no longer afford to stage football's greatest tournament. A crushing blow in the form of a violent earthquake killing 20,000 people almost deprived the Mexicans of their long-awaited celebration.
Maradona, with two goals against both England -- one a handball he proudly dubbed was scored by "the hand of God", the other one of the greatest goals ever scored -- and Belgium, led Argentina through and in the final they overcame West Germany 3-2 in front of 115,000 at the Aztec Stadium. This World Cup was different in that all the second round games were played on a knock-out basis. With only eight teams not making it through, the first round threw up very few surprises. A first, however, was Morocco becoming the first African nation to qualify for the second round in a World Cup.
Italy 1990
After Mexico in 1986, the 14th World Cup returned to Europe: to Italy, a mighty footballing nation where no expense was to be spared in making the World Cup a roaring success. Ten of the 12 stadiums were given a complete facelift and the other two (in Turin and Bari) were built from scratch especially for the event. In winning their third title, Germany joined Italy and Brazil as the tournament's most honoured nations.
USA 1994
In the country where basketball, baseball and American football have far more popular appeal, the 15th World Cup in America nonetheless drew huge crowds. The final saw Brazil win their fourth title after a penalty shoot-out with Italy. In choosing the US, Jo‹o Havelange, the FIFA president, was opening the door to a new frontier. There were plenty of goals, excitement, drama and surprises. Bulgaria, which had never won a World Cup match in 16 previous attempts, were the biggest upsets, beating Germany en route to the semi-finals. There was drama when Diego Maradona, Argentina's hero of 1986, tested positive for drugs and was expelled from the tournament, and there was tragedy, too, when Colombian Andres Escobar was murdered days after returning home from scoring an own goal against the United States.
France 1998
The 16th World Cup was the largest ever, contested by 32 teams with 64 matches played. The eight groups of four teams were spread out throughout France in 10 new or refurbished stadiums, with the opening game and the final held in the splendid new Stade de France just north of Paris. Thirty-two countries meant 30 qualifying spots, providing more opportunities for teams from Africa and Asia.
In sporting terms, France '98 will go down in history as a successful World Cup. Increasing the number of competitors to 32 removed the safety net previously available to a table of 24 teams to qualify through the back door into the last 16 as one of the best third-placed teams. This time around, it was do or die in the group round matches. Teams, therefore, went all out for goals rather than relying on defence.
Thus it was that on 12 July, "the day of glory arrived", to borrow a line from France's national anthem La Marseillaise. With a header in the 27th minute followed by a second in first half injury time, playmaker Zinedine Zidane sent shock waves through his Brazilian opponents from which they would never recover. Despite being reduced to 10 men, the French fortress not only withstood a final pounding from Brazil but even slotted in another goal. The final whistle from Moroccan referee Said Belqola, the first African ever to officiate a World Cup final, was the signal for the entire population to indulge in raptures of delight.

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