Repeated winner of the world football championship. History of the FIFA World Cup
There are five stars above the emblem of the Brazilian national football team. This indicates that the Brazilians are considered the most titled football power. This team won the World Championships five times - in 1952, 1958, 1970, 1994 and 2002. World football legend Pele holds the record for titles. He won three world championships with his national team.
Italy
In Europe, two football teams are called Tetracampione, one of them is the Italian national team. The Italians celebrated triumph at the world championships in 1934, 1938, 1982 and 2006. History preserves many names of great Italians who were honored to raise the coveted trophy over their heads. Some of them still delight fans with their performances in the national team jersey (Buffon, Pirlo, Barzagli).
Germany (FRG)
The national team of Germany (FRG) is not inferior to the Italians in terms of titles. At the moment, the Germans are the current world champions. The team, nicknamed the “German machine,” excelled on football fields in 1954, 1974, 1990 and 2014. The names of Gerd Müller, Lothar Matthäus and other great football players will forever remain in the history of world sports.
Argentina
A country like Argentina, with its outstanding football talents, simply could not remain without the title of world champion. Twice the Argentines, led by Mario Kempes and Diego Maradona, managed to win the world championship. Kempes shone at the 1978 home championship, and Diego led his team to the title in Mexico in 1986.
Uruguay
The Uruguayans became the first world football champions. This country hosted the world football championship among national teams for the first time (1930). The Uruguay team won for the second time in 1950 at the championship in Brazil. In the final at the Maracanã stadium, in the presence of 200 thousand spectators, the Uruguayans beat the championship hosts.
England
The founders of football were also not left without the title of the best football team in the world. At the 1966 home World Cup, it was the hosts who became the winners of the championship.
France
The home stands also helped the French. Zinedine Zidane's team triumphantly performed at the home World Cup in 1998. In the final, the French defeated the main contenders for gold, the Brazilians (who were the current champions at that time) with a score of 3:0.
Spain
The tournament held in South Africa in 2010 is recognized as the most pragmatic world football championship in recent decades. In a competition sparse in bright matches and goals, the Spaniards excelled. The final of that championship fully reflects the specifics of the entire World Cup. The Spanish team only beat the Netherlands in extra time with a score of 1:0.
It is difficult to find a sports game on our planet that could compete in popularity with football. Being one of the most accessible sports for all levels of society, it is of interest to both people who are far from competition and fans at any level. But still, the top remains the championship on a planetary scale - the main competitions held every four years. At the moment, the history of the FIFA World Cup includes 20 tournaments.
First tournament
The choice of the venue for the first world football championship in favor of Uruguay was not accidental. This team won the last two international tournaments at the Olympic Games, and for its merits the South American power was awarded the honorary right to host an international competition. This happened in 1930, when the first world championship in history took place. Football was then destined to win the hearts of people all over the world. 13 participating countries were registered to participate. The home stadium in Montevideo became truly golden for the Uruguayan team. It was there that the home team won the first championship gold medals in history.
FIFA World Cup: history of victories
Subsequently, world tournaments were held with a certain regularity - once every four years. The exception was the forties, when two competitions were missed due to World War II.
The Second World Championship, held in Italy, pleased fans with a new layout. The organizers used the so-called Olympic system, where the loser was eliminated from further competition. And again the hosts, this time the Italian team, became the strongest.
After the war, world football championships resumed in 1950. The first post-war championship was entrusted to the Brazilian federation. Local fans reasonably expected the triumph of their players. The scheme of tournament games was again modified, now the final four identified the strongest in a round-robin system. Before the last game, the Brazilian team was content with a draw, but they lost to their eternal rivals, the Uruguayans, with a score of 1-2 and became only second. The time of the “pentakampions” would come in a few years, and at that time the whole country was plunged into mourning.
Brazil era
The sixth World Cup, held on Swedish fields, marked the hegemony of Brazilian football for many years to come. In Sweden, this team was head and shoulders above its opponents. Just look at the results of the semi-final and final matches. Both of these games ended with the same score 5-2 in favor of the Brazilian team.
In 1962, at the World Championships, which were held in many respects, the same pattern was repeated. Once again, the Brazilian team trounces its rivals, losing only one point to the Czechoslovakian team in the group stage. The Brazilians had a chance to get even with their opponents in the final match. And this time the “yellows” were stronger with a score of 3-1.
But at the 1966 world championship, the Brazilian team could not even overcome the group stage. In fairness, it is worth noting that there were reasons for this. The loss of a number of leading players, including Pele, had a detrimental effect on the playing potential of the ball wizards. And the championship was won by its hosts, the players of the England national team, who beat the German national team in the final match with a score of 4-2. For the founders of football, this triumph will remain the only one to this day.
But four years later, at the Mexican World Cup, the Brazilians regained the title of the strongest team on the planet. This time the South American team won six matches out of six, with a total goal difference of 19-7. The final game against the Italians was played with a huge advantage of the Brazilian team and ended in a 4-1 defeat. And again the whole world admired the play of the great Pele.
The era of total football
Time passed, the world changed, and the main sport changed. The coaches experimented more and more with playing tactics, and this began to bear fruit. The 1974 FIFA World Cup in Germany, the history of the results of which showed how great the importance of the coaching staff is, was surprising. The German national team, led by Helmut Schön, triumphantly held a home tournament, winning the second gold in its history.
Subsequently, different teams became winners. But the history of the World Cup has carved out its own niche for Brazilians. None of them managed to repeat the achievement of the South American team, winning two tournaments in a row.
Personalities
World Cup 2018: expectations
The history of the World Cup continues its report. And the next world championship, which Russia will host, will add new facts to this story. This tournament promises to be interesting, spectacular and exciting. New stars will definitely shine on it and athletes known throughout the world will shine.
I would like to dive a little into history and talk about all the teams that once became world champions. We will not focus on tactics or the exact composition of the participants; we will briefly go over each world championship, starting with the very first.
1930 Uruguay. Winner – Uruguay
The first World Cup was held in Uruguay, in just three stadiums in one city. The participating teams did not even pass the qualifying selection; those who were able to get to Uruguay played. They deservedly won, advanced from the group in first place, defeated a strong team from Yugoslavia 6:1 in the semi-finals, and beat Argentina 4:2 in the final. Striker Pedro Seaa stood out in the Uruguay team, scoring five goals.
1934 Italy. Winner – Italy
The only World Championship where the host team had to qualify. “Squadra Azzurra” coped with the task with honor, after which it confidently walked the entire distance of the short-lived tournament. easily beat its first opponent, it was the US team 7:1, Angelo Schiavio scored a hat-trick. Then Spain was defeated, but one match was not enough for the teams; according to the rules, if a winner was not identified, a replay was scheduled. In the second meeting, Giuseppe Meazza's only goal brought the hosts into the semi-finals. This was followed by matches with the leaders of European football, Austria and Czechoslovakia, the Italians showed courage and patience and beat both teams with a difference of one goal.
1938 France. Winner – Italy
Italy confirmed its status as the strongest team on the planet, although difficulties arose in the first game; the victory over the Norwegians was won only in extra time. Next, the champions destroyed the hosts 3:1, in the semi-finals of the Brazilians. In the final the Hungarians were defeated 4:2. The main scorers of the Italian team at the tournament were Silvio Piola and Gino Colaussi, who scored 5 and 4 goals respectively.
1950 Brazil. Winner – Uruguay
Uruguay, which returned to participate in the tournament, won its second world champion title on the fields of Brazil. There were no knockout games at this tournament; everything took place within two group tournaments. In the first round, Uruguay played one match, Bolivia was unlucky, beat 8:0. In the next stage, the champions drew 2-2 with Spain and beat Sweden and Brazil, giving them the gold medal.
1954 Switzerland. Winner – Germany
For the first time they announced themselves publicly at the World Championships in Switzerland. The main rivals of the West German team were considered to be the Hungarian players with Ferencvás Puskás in attack. At the group stage, the Hungarians defeated the Germans 8:3. The teams met again only in the final, and the West German team won a 3:2 victory thanks to two goals from Rana.
1958 Sweden. Winner – Brazil
The tournament went down in history with the first historic victory, in which young Pele, who was 17 years old, shone. Brazil confidently advanced from the group, leaving behind the USSR team, and fought Wales and France in the playoffs. In the final they beat the unyielding hosts 5:2.
1962 Chile. Winner – Brazil
Brazil successfully defended the championship title. They triumphantly went through the tournament without losing a single match, defeating the hosts 3:1 in the final. Garrincha became the best goalscorer among the champions.
1966 England. Winner - England
This was the first time the tournament was held in the UK, and people are still proud of it. After all, this is still the only victory at a major tournament for the founders of football. The final match against the West German team is considered one of the most dramatic confrontations at the World Championships. This tournament became a calling card for Eusebio, Hirst and Bobby Charlton.
1970 Mexico. Winner – Brazil
The Brazilians won their third world tournament, which automatically transferred the trophy to them for eternal storage. The tournament path was difficult and thorny. After all, in the semi-finals they met with their main opponents for the cup, Uruguay and Italy. Brazil won confidently, the lineup assembled at that championship is still considered the strongest in history: Pele, Jairzinho, Rivelino, Tostao.
1974 Germany. Winner – Germany
The Germans put together an excellent team for the home world championship, Gerd Müller, Paul Breitner, and Uli Hoeness especially stood out. Germany lost one match at the tournament, also to the Germans from the GDR, but this did not stop them from reaching the final, where they beat their principal rival, the Dutch team.
1978 Argentina. Winner – Argentina
For the first time in their history, they climbed so high, the team was pulled by two grenadiers Mario Kempes and Leopoldo Luque, who scored 6 and 5 goals respectively. This victory is more surprising because Diego Maradonna, who will “shoot” a little later, did not take part in it, but that’s a completely different story. In the final, Argentina met with what was “murderous” at that time, promoting the so-called total football. But, unexpectedly, the hosts won 3:1 in extra time.
1982 Spain. Winner – Italy
Italy had an excellent squad, despite this, they squeaked through the first group stage. In the second, everything seemed even more difficult, the opponents included opponents from Brazil and Argentina, but the Europeans confidently dealt with their opponents. In the semi-finals we had to compete with the Poles, winning 2:0. The final against the German national team turned out to be spectacular and ended with the Azzurra squad winning 3:1. Even now, that generation is considered the strongest in Italian football: Paolo Rossi, Dino Zoff, Marco Tardelli, Francesco Graziani, Claudio Gentile and others.
1986 Mexico. Winner – Argentina
There is nothing surprising in Argentina's victory in this tournament; it included Diego Armando Maradonna, a football player who went down in world history not only as a legendary striker, but also as the only author of the decisive goal scored with his hand. The British were the victims in the quarter-finals of the tournament. Diego Maradonna himself admitted later that it was the “Hand of God,” thereby canonizing himself as a saint.
1990 Italy. Winner – Germany
After losing in the final at the last World Cup, the Germans wanted to get the coveted trophy, and succeeded in this. In principle, they had no serious opponents, their line-up looked so strong: Rudi Völler, Jurgen Klinssmann, Lottar Matthäus, Riedle, Brehme. The British put up serious resistance to them in the semi-finals, but in the series after match penalties, the Germans converted all their attempts.
1994 USA. Winner – Brazil
The tournament was held for the first time in the USA, and skeptics insisted that no one would see the spectacle, football would die on the North American continent, but everything turned out exactly the opposite. The Brazilians gathered a very strong team under their banner, but their main rivals, the Italians, also recruited the best into their team. As a result, the teams met in the final, where the Brazilians were more successful. Romario, Dunga and Branco took full advantage of their chances to break through after the match penalties.
1998 France. Winner - France
Before the tournament it was difficult to single out a favorite; in the old fashioned way, Italy and Brazil were included in them, but no one seriously considered them. But then no one knew about Zidane, Deschamps, Lizarazu, Henry, Petit, Djorkaeff, Blanc, Barthez and others. And these guys not only became champions, but destroyed Brazil, full of stars like Ronaldo, 3:0 in the final.
2002 South Korea\Japan. Winner – Brazil
Brazil was looking for victory, and it got it, Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Ronaldinho were shining in the team, and Roberto Carlos was not the last to play. Brazil effortlessly walked through the tournament, leaving their opponents with nothing to do. In the final the Germans were defeated 2:0.
2006 Germany. Winner – Italy
Nobody seriously considered the Italians as contenders for the title. On the eve of the tournament, a scandal broke out in the Apennines, which resulted in the suspension of several teams from Serie A due to match-fixing. This event obviously united the team, and Italy advanced to the final, where they met France. Regular time did not reveal a winner; in extra time, French captain Zinedine Zidane was sent off for headbutting Marco Materazzi. The Italians were stronger in the penalty shootout.
2010 South Africa. Winner – Spain
This was the era of Spanish football. confidently won the tournament, beating all significant opponents, in the final it went to the Dutch, with whom everything was decided by one goal. Many players from that team still perform at a fairly decent level.
2014 Brazil. Winner – Germany
If you look at things objectively, then even before the start of the tournament it was possible to propose a final victory for the Germans. Germany had a crazy squad, an interesting coach and a well-directed game. Everyone performs their functions, no extravagance. The semi-final match with the hosts of the tournament, the Brazilians, stands apart; the victory with a score of 7:1 still hurts the pride of every Brazilian.
The history of the FIFA World Cup opened its pages in 1928, FIFA President Jules Rimet announced the holding of an international football tournament. The first championship took place in Uruguay in 1930, but was contested because only 13 teams took part. Since then, the FIFA World Cup has evolved into a 32-team final tournament, with two years of preliminary qualifying tournaments involving some 200 teams from around the world.
Football World Cup: stories of victories
World Cup - 1930
The first FIFA World Cup was held in the capital Montevideo, where the Uruguay team won the Olympic Games in 1926. All matches took place in three stadiums: Gran Parque Central, Pocitos and Centenario. Especially for the first World Cup, the Centenario stadium was built with an incredible number of spectator seats even for our time - 90,000!
It hosted ten of the eighteen tournaments, in which thirteen teams took part. The final match was attended by 68,546 fans, but in reality there were at least 80,000, and Uruguay won brilliantly against Argentina with a score of 4:2 and became the very first champion.
World Cup - 1934
The second, and no less grandiose, expected World Championship took place in Italy. Of all the large stadiums available, the largest and most suitable was Milan's San Siro Arena, which at the time could accommodate 55,000 fans. 
And of course, the biggest audience was the final, where Italy beat Czechoslovakia with a score of 3:1.
World Cup - 1938
The game for the third World Cup took place in France. However, due to the occupation of Austria by Nazi Germany, the former was unable to take part in the world tournament, so only fifteen teams took part in the finals.
45 thousand people gathered to watch this hot game.
The most a large number of spectators gathered in the quarter finals of France and Italy, whose game ended with a score of 1:3 (58,465 people). In the final, Italy defeated Hungary with a score identical to the 1930 World Cup (i.e. 4:2).
World Cup - 1950
Since the Second World War began, the World Championship was not held for 12 years. The first post-war tournament was hosted by Brazil, which did not skimp and built an arena with two hundred thousand seats in Rio de Janeiro for such an occasion. 
A total of 13 teams from several countries participated, but in the final the host country made a mistake and lost to Uruguay with a score of 2:1 (173,950 fans were present).
World Cup - 1954
The fifth Cup was held in wealthy Switzerland, which remained a neutral party during the war and, accordingly, did not spend its funds on post-war reconstruction. 6 stadiums hosted matches, but the largest was Wankdorf with 64 thousand seats. 
26 matches were held by 16 participating teams. The total number of people who attended the matches was 768,179 people. The most grandiose in terms of the number of spectators was the final, in which Hungary lost to the Federal Republic of Germany with a score of 3:2 (62.5 thousand people)
World Cup - 1958
This World Cup was held in Sweden at the largest stadium available - Ullevi in Gothenburg with 53,000 seats. 
The highest number of fans reached 50,939 people. In the final, Brazil beat Sweden 5:2.
World Cup - 1962
The host country, or as it is commonly called, the host country, this time was Chile. Spectator interest was at its peak during the semi-final match between Brazil and Chile, as an estimated 76,587 fans were on the field for that particular game. 
Everything took place at the Estadio Nacional. In the end, Brazil defeated Czechoslovakia with a score of 3:1.
World Cup - 1966
The World Cup has finally reached the ancestor of football. Meet Her Majesty England!
A total of approximately 564,135 fans attended the 32 matches.
In the final game, England beat West Germany 4-2 at Wembley, where 96,835 spectators were present.
World Cup - 1970
This World Cup took place in Mexico. That year, five stadiums hosted the event with brilliance, with 100,000 Azteca in the capital (Jalisco). 
Thus, Brazil became the champion for the third time in all time, receiving the Golden Goddess for permanent storage. (score 4:1).
World Cup - 1974
This time the World Championship was held in West Germany. It was that year that it was decided to change the format of the tournament, in which two group rounds were organized. Then the match was played at nine stadiums.
A total of 32 matches were played and almost 2 million people were able to see this, each cheering for their team.
In the final, Germany defeated the Netherlands, beating them by just one goal (2:1).
World Cup - 1978
As the history of the World Cup goes, in 1978 the championship was held in Argentina. For this purpose, a couple of new arenas were built, but the game between Italy and Argentina (1:0) attracted the most spectators, because 72,000 fans gathered on that momentous day. In the final game, Argentina beat the Netherlands 3:1. 
World Cup - 1982
For this World Cup, Spain was chosen as the host, which made the local residents very happy, who built 17 stadiums.
But this was to everyone's advantage, since now 24 teams took part.
The match where Camp Nou lost to Belgium in front of 95 thousand fans attracted the greatest interest. In the final, Italy reached the Cup, beating Germany.
World Cup - 1986
Once again in the history of the World Cup, Mexico was among the hosts.
This tournament, which became epic for Diego Maradona, was held in 120 stadiums.
The most popular match was on the familiar Azteca.
In the final, the Argentine players won the title of the strongest on the entire planet, but the Germans lost for the second time (score 3:2).
World Cup - 1990
The history of the World Championship began to repeat itself again, as it was planned to be held again in Italy. The matches took place in twelve arenas, and the largest number of spectators was gathered at the match between Germany and the Netherlands (2:1). This time the Germans did not disappoint and won against Argentina with a score of 1:0. 
World Cup - 1994
In order for football to become even more popular, it was decided to move the championship to America. The 9 stadiums typically used for American football were temporarily converted, but most notably, the smallest stadiums could hold up to 50,000 fans, bringing total attendance to 3,576,785. 
World Cup - 1998
This was the first championship in the history of the World Cup in France, which was held among thirty-two teams. Since then, 64 matches have been played at the championships. Ten stadiums were used, and in the final game France were able to defeat the Brazilians and for the first time in a long period of time were able to establish themselves as the strongest team. 
So, France - Brazil with a score of 3:0 fully received their Cup.
World Cup - 2002
This is the first time that the World Championship has received a joint bid to be held at twenty stadiums in South Korea and Japan. This match is remembered more not for the football itself, but for the refereeing scandals and the amazing eliminations of everyone's favorites from the game. Final – Brazil-Germany (2:0, 69,086 spectators). 
World Cup - 2006
The World Championships were held in Germany. Thanks to the excellent infrastructure, the tournament was held perfectly. In terms of organization, this is the best tournament in the history of the World Cup. The matches were held at 12 stadiums. 
The final was the final final in Zinedine Zidane's career. This year Italy celebrated its quadruple victory.
World Cup 2010
The tournament was held in South Africa. 12 stadiums were chosen for the match. The largest attendance was at the opening and finals. 
World Cup 2014
Once again, Brazil became the host country. According to the standard, 12 stadiums hosted the match 9, and some were never completed). There were a total of 3,429,758 fans in the stands, which gives us an average of 59,768 spectators for each match. The USA retained its leadership. But Germany and Argentina won the final (1:0). 
The team won gold medals in 1958, 1962 and 1970. True, the striker missed the 1962 World Cup final Brazil - Czechoslovakia due to injury. In addition, he is one of three players, along with the Germans Uwe Seeler and Miroslav Klose, who scored at four World Cups. He is also the author of the youngest goal. When he scored against Wales at the 1958 World Cup, he was only 17 years, seven months and 27 days.
The German striker holds the record for most goals in the final stages of a World Cup. The top scorer in the history of the national team scored 16 goals: five at the 2002 World Cup, five at the 2006 World Cup, four at the 2010 World Cup and two more in the gold medal for the German team at the 2014 World Cup. Klose is ahead of Brazilian Ronaldo by one goal, German Gerd Muller by two, Frenchman Juste Fontaine by three.
Juste Fontaine
The French striker is the most effective scorer in a single tournament. Fontaine scored all 13 of his goals at the 1958 World Cup. At the group stage, he first scored a hat-trick against the Paraguay national team, then scored a double in the game against Yugoslavia and added a goal to Scotland. Juste then scored twice in the quarter-finals against Northern Ireland and scored once against Brazil in the semi-finals. Finally, in the match for third place, Fontaine succeeded in poker against the German national team. Since then, no one has been able to come close to the Frenchman's result. Only Gerd Müller reached the 10-goal mark at the 1970 World Cup.
Weather and child labor. Problems of organizers before the World Cup
Difficulties arise constantly.
The forward of the Russian national team at the 1994 World Cup managed to score five goals in one match. The Cameroon national team became the client of the Leningrad native. In the entire history of the world championships, no one except Salenko has succeeded in penta-trick. In total, at that tournament Oleg had six goals in three matches of the group stage, since he also distinguished himself in the game with Sweden. At the 1994 World Cup, Salenko won the Golden Boot along with the Bulgarian Hristo Stoichkov. Interestingly, the match with Cameroon was the last in the striker’s career for the Russian national team.
Geoffrey Hurst
Continuing the theme of great World Cup scorers, one cannot help but recall the former England striker. Hurst is the only player to score a hat-trick in the final. This happened at the 1966 World Cup in a match with Germany. Regular time ended with the score 2:2, and in extra time everything was decided by two accurate shots by Hirst. The episode with the winning goal, which Swiss referee Gottfried Dienst counted after consultations with Soviet linesman Tofik Bahramov, remains perhaps the most controversial in the history of world championships.
Antonio Carbajal and Lothar Matthäus
The Mexico goalkeeper and Germany defender played in five World Cups. Carbajal played in tournaments that were held from 1950 to 1966. Matthaus made his debut at the 1982 World Cup, and his last tournament was the 1998 World Cup. It is Matthäus who holds the record for the number of matches in the final stages of the world championship. The German has 25 of them. In addition to Carbajal and Matthäus, goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon was included in the Italian national team’s World Cup squad five times, but he played in four tournaments from 2002 to 2014. For Mexico national team defender Rafael Marquez, it will also be the fifth in his career.
The Brazilian defender is the only football player to play in three World Cup finals (1994, 1998, 2002). Two of them ended in victories for the Cafu team. In 1994, the Brazilian national team defeated Italy in a penalty shootout, and in 2002 they defeated Germany - 2:0.
Norman Whiteside
At the 1982 World Cup, the Northern Ireland attacking midfielder played against Yugoslavia at the age of 17 years and 41 days. Whiteside is the youngest participant in the final stages of the world championships. The Northern Irishman broke the record held by. At club level, Whiteside played for Manchester United and Everton, but was forced to retire at the age of 26 due to injuries. He managed to play 38 matches for the Northern Ireland national team, in which he scored nine goals. Including hitting the goal of the Algerian national team at the 1986 World Cup.
Farid Mondragon
The Colombian goalkeeper holds the record with the opposite meaning. Mondragon is the oldest footballer to ever play in the final stages of a World Cup. He took the field in the match against Japan at the 2014 World Cup at the age of 43 years and three days. However, in Russia, Mondragon’s record will most likely be broken. The main goalkeeper of the Egyptian national team, Essam El-Hadary, is already 45 years old and almost five months old!
Roger Mila
The legendary Cameroonian striker still remains the oldest football player to score at the World Cup. In 1990, the whole world fell in love with the bright Cameroon team of Valery Nepomniachtchi, in which Milla sparkled. However, Roger managed to distinguish himself at the next World Cup in 1994. He hit the goal of Stanislav Cherchesov in that very match Russia - Cameroon (6:1). At that time, the striker was already 42 years old, one month and eight days.
Walter Zenga
The Italian national team goalkeeper created the longest streak without conceding a goal. At the 1990 World Cup, Zenga kept a clean sheet for 517 minutes. In three matches of the group stage he did not miss against Austria, the USA and Czechoslovakia, then Walter played zero in the 1/8 finals with Uruguay and the quarter finals with Ireland. Only Argentinean Claudio Caniggia managed to break through Zenga in the semi-finals. The Italians were leading 1:0, but conceded in the 67th minute and lost in a penalty shootout.