History Of The Fifa World Cup

The History of the FIFA World Cup started in 1928 , when FIFA president Jules Rimet decided to stage an international football tournament. The first competition, in 1930 , was contested by teams from Europe and South America , but the competition subsequently expanded to include teams from all over the world.

PREVIOUS INTERNATIONAL COMPETITIONS

The first international football match was played in 1872 between England and Scotland , although at this stage the sport was rarely played outside Great Britain . An expansion in international football led to FIFA being formed in May 1904, comprised of football associations from seven Contiental European countries. As football began to increase in popularity, it was held as a Demonstration Sport (with no medals awarded) at the 1900 , 1904 and 1906 Summer Olympics before football became an official competition at the 1908 Summer Olympics . Organised by England's Football Association , the event was for Amateur players only and was regarded suspiciously as a show rather than a competition. The England National Amateur Football Team won the event in both 1908 and 1912 .

With the Olympic event continuing to be contested only between amateur teams, Sir , 2006 . and featured the most prestigious professional club sides from Italy , Germany and Switzerland . The first tournament was won by West Auckland , an amateur side from north-east England that was invited after the Football Association refused to be associated with the competition. West Auckland returned in 1911 to successfully defend their title, and were given the trophy to keep forever, as per the rules of the competition.

In 1914, FIFA agreed to recognise the Olympic tournament as a "world football championship for amateurs" Where it all began FIFA official website. Retrieved on April 10, 2006., and took responsibility for organising the event. This led the way for the world's first intercontinental football competition, at the , with another South America n team, Argentina , taking silver. In 1928 FIFA made the decision to stage their own international tournament. With Uruguay now two-time official football world champions and due to celebrate their Centenary of independence in 1930, FIFA named Uruguay as the host country.

THE FIRST OFFICIAL WORLD CUP

The . Retrieved on March 1, 2006. FIFA president Jules Rimet thus set about organising the Inaugural World Cup Tournament to be held in Uruguay in 1930. The national associations of selected nations were invited to send a team, but the choice of Uruguay as a venue for the competition meant a long and costly trip across the Atlantic Ocean for European sides. Indeed, no European country pledged to send a team until two months before the start of the competition. Rimet eventually persuaded teams from Belgium, France, Romania, and Yugoslavia to make the trip. In total 13 nations took part — seven from South America , four from Europe and two from North America .

The first two World Cup matches took place simultaneously, and were won by France and the USA , who beat Mexico 4-1 and Belgium 3-0, respectively. The first goal in World Cup history was scored by Lucien Laurent of France. Four days later, the first World Cup Hat-trick was achieved by Bert Patenaude of the USA in the Americans' 3-0 win against Paraguay . In the final, Uruguay defeated Argentina 4-2 in front of a crowd of 93,000 people in Montevideo , and became the first nation to win a World Cup. FIFA World Cup Origin FIFA Media Release. Retrieved on January 9, 2006.

1934 - 1962

The 1934 World Cup was hosted by Italy , and was the first World Cup to include a qualification stage. 16 teams qualified for the tournament, a number which would be retained until the expansion of the finals tournament in 1982. Uruguay, the titleholders from 1930 , still upset about the poor European showing at their World Cup in 1930, boycotted the 1934 World Cup. Bolivia and Paraguay
were absent, allowing Argentina and Brazil to go to the finals in Italy without having to play any qualifying matches. Egypt became the first African team to compete, but lost to Hungary in the first round. Italy won the tournament, but faced accusations of biased officiating, with Benito Mussolini said to have influenced the choice of referees for Italy's matches. Football, fascism and England's Nazi salute , BBC. Retrieved on April 13, 2006.

The FIFA World Cup 1938 competition was also held in Europe, much to the consternation of many South Americans, with Uruguay and Argentina boycotting. For the first time the title holders and the host country were given automatic qualification. Following a play-off match against Latvia, Austria had officially qualified for the final round but because of the Anschluss in April 1938, could not attend. Their place was offered to England, but they declined. This left the Finals with 15 nations competing. France hosted, but for the first time the hosts did not win the competition, as Italy retained their title, beating Hungary in the final.

World War II and its aftermath resulted in the cancellation of the 1942 and 1946 competitions.

Competition resumed with the of 1949 in which the entire Grande Torino team (many who were national team players) were killed. The 1950 World Cup was the only tournament not to stage a final tie, replacing knockout rounds with two group phases. However, the final match of the second group phase was in effect a final, as the group standings meant the winners would be crowned champions. Uruguay were surprise victors over hosts Brazil (in a match which would later be known as Maracanzo ) and became champions for the second time.

The 1954 World Cup , held in Switzerland , was the first to be televised. The Soviet Union did not participate because of their dismal performance at the 1952 Summer Olympics . West Germany were the tournament winners, defeating Olympic champions Hungary 3-2 in the final, overturning a 2-0 defecit in the process. The match is known as the Miracle Of Bern in Germany.

Brazil won the 1958 World Cup , held in Sweden , and became the first and so far only team to win a World Cup outside their home continent. The Soviet Union participated this time, most likely due to their win at Melbourne 1956 . For the first (and so far only) time, all four British teams qualified for the final round. Wales was able to take advantage of a situation in the Africa/Asia zone, where the anount of withdrawals would give Israel qualification without having played a single qualifying match. This prompted FIFA to rule that qualification without playing was not allowed (despite allowing this to happen in earlier years of the Cup), and so Israel were ordered to play against one of the teams finishing second in the other groups. A tie was created, and Wales defeated Israel 2-0 twice in 1958. It was the first (and so far the only) time that a
country played a World Cup final round after having been eliminated in the regular qualifiers. The tournament also saw the emergence of Pelé , who scored two goals in the final.

Chile hosted the 1962 World Cup , a tournament dominated by defensive play which Brazil won, retaining the Jules Rimet trophy.

1966-2002

The 1966 World Cup, hosted by England, was the first to embrace marketing, featuring a mascot and official logo for the first time. The trophy was stolen in the run-up to the tounament but was found a week later by a dog named "Pickles". Pickles is top dog , by David Barber, TheFA.com. Accessed on April 10 , 2006 . South Africa was banned for violating the anti-discrimination charter ( Apartheid ). The ban remained in effect until 1992 when the South Africa Football Association was finally accepted by FIFA. North Korea became the first Asian team to reach the quarter-finals, eliminating Italy in the process. England won the tournament, beating West Germany 4-2 in the final, in which Geoff Hurst became the first player to score a Hat-trick in a World Cup Final.

The qualification stages of the 1970 World Cup were the cause of the Football War between Honduras and El Salvador . The finals were held in Mexico . Israel had been with Europe, but due to political issues, it was becoming harder to place them adequately in the qualifying rounds. They were grouped in Asia/Oceania. Korea DPR then refused to meet them, even though this meant automatic disqualification. Brazil defeated Italy 4-1 in the final to become the first nation to win three World Cups, and were awarded the Jules Rimet Trophy permanently for their achievement.

A new trophy was created for the 1974 , held in West Germany . After a draw in their first play-off match against Chile, the Soviet Union refused to travel to the Chilean capital for the return fixture for political reasons, and in accordance with the regulations, Chile was awarded a victory. The hosts ended won the competition by beating the Netherlands and their innovative Total Football system 2-1 in the final.

The 1978 World Cup was held in Argentina , causing controversy as a military coup had taken place in the country two years earlier. Dutch star Johan Cruyff refused to participate for this reason. Argentina won the tournament, with the Dutch runners-up for the second time running.

Spain hosted an expanded 1982 World Cup which featured 24 teams, the first expansion since 1934. The 1982 tournament was won by Italy, who beat West Germany in the final. Italian captain Dino Zoff became the oldest player to win the World Cup.

Mexico became the first nation to hold two World Cups by hosting the 1986 World Cup . Argentina beat West Germany 3-2 in the final, inspired by Diego Maradona , who was regarded as player of the tournament but also caused controversy by scoring the Hand Of God Goal in the quarter-final stage.

The , who then feigned injury. His team refused to continue the match (as they were down a goal at the time). The plot was discovered, and as a result, a long suspension for those involved and a Chile ban from World Cup 1994. The final featured the same teams as in 1986. After finishing runners-up in the two previous tournaments, West Germany won their third World Cup.

A spin-off tournament, the FIFA Women's World Cup , was first held in 1991. It is similar to the men's tournament in format, but so far has not generated the same level of interest. As of 2006, the USA Women's Team is the most successful, winning two of the four Women's World Cups.

The 1994 World Cup , held in the USA , saw the first World Cup final to be decided on penalties, with Brazil edging out Italy. Yugoslavia was excluded due to UN sanctions in connection with the War In Bosnia-Herzegovina . Russia (taking the place of USSR which had disintegrated over 1990 and 1991) played their first World Cup competition as a new country. The tournament also saw tragedy, when Colombian defender Andrés Escobar was murdered 10 days after his own goal eliminated Colombia.

The 1998 World Cup was held in France , and had an expanded format featuring 32 teams. Iran beat the Maldives in qualification by the widest margin in World Cup history - 17-0. Hosts France won the tournament by beating Brazil 3-0 in the final.

The 2002 World Cup was the first to be held in Asia , and was hosted jointly by Japan and South Korea . Togolese Souleymane Mamam became the youngest player ever to take to a World Cup preliminary game field at 13 years, 310 days in Lomé in May 2001. Australia defeated American Samoa 31-0, a new record for margin victory, and the highest-scoring match. The tournament was a successful one for teams traditionally regarded as minnows, with South Korea , Senegal and USA all reaching the last eight. Brazil beat Germany 2-0 in the final for their fifth title. This will be the final world cup for which the previous winner does not have to qualify.

The 2006 World Cup will be held in Germany, with holders Brazil as bookmakers favourites.

SEE ALSO

History Of FIFA

FIFA overview of qualification campaigns

REFERENCES

Information About

History Of The Fifa World Cup