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The FIFA World Cup (often called the '''Football World Cup''', '''Soccer World Cup''' or simply the '''World Cup''') is the most important competition in international Football (soccer) , and the world's most representative team sport event. Organised by Federation Internationale De Football Association (FIFA) , the sport's governing body, the World Cup is contested by the Men's National Football Teams of FIFA member nations. The championship has been awarded every four years since the first tournament in 1930 (except in 1942 and 1946 due to World War II ), however, it is more of an ongoing event as the qualifying rounds of the competition take place over the three years preceding the final rounds. The final tournament phase (often called the "Finals") involves 32 national teams competing over a four-week period in a previously nominated host nation, with these games making it the most widely-viewed sporting event in the world. 2002 FIFA World Cup TV Coverage , FIFA official website. Retrieved on March 24 , 2006 . In the 17 tournaments held, only seven nations have ever won the World Cup Finals. Brazil is the current holder, as well as the most successful World Cup team, having won the tournament five times, while Germany and Italy follow with three titles each. The next football World Cup Finals will be held in Germany between June 9 and July 9 , 2006 . HISTORY See Also: History of the FIFA World Cup 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 . 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 , 2006 . before winning the gold medal again in 1928 , with another South America n team, Argentina , taking silver. On 28 May , 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 location of the first World Cup final]] The . Retrieved on March 1 , 2006 . FIFA president Jules Rimet thus set about organizing 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 , 2006 . Growth The issues facing the early World Cup tournaments were the difficulties of intercontinental travel, and war. Few South American teams were willing to travel to Europe for the 1934 and 1938 tournaments, with Brazil the only South American team to compete in both. The 1942 and 1946 competitions were cancelled due to World War II and its aftermath. The , 2006 . but rejoined in 1946 following FIFA's invitation. The tournament also saw the return of 1930 champions Uruguay, who had boycotted the previous two World Cups In the tournaments between 1934 and 1978 , 16 teams qualified for each finals tournament (except in a few cases where teams withdrew after qualifying). Most were from Europe and Latin America, with a very small minority from Africa , Asia and Oceania . These teams were usually defeated easily by the European and Latin American teams (with the notable exception of North Korea , who reached the 1966 quarterfinals). The finals were expanded to 24 teams in , 2006 . the only other current member never to have entered. An equivalent tournament for Women's Football , 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. TROPHY See Also: Football World Cup Trophy on a German Stamp ]] From 1930 to 1970, the , 2006 . After 1970, a new trophy, known as the , 2006 . Argentina, Germany (as West Germany) and Brazil have all won the second trophy twice. It will not be retired until the name plaque has been entirely filled with the names of winning nations in 2038 . FORMAT Qualification See Also: FIFA World Cup qualification Since the second World Cup in 1934 , qualifying tournaments have been held to thin the field for the final tournament. They are held within the six FIFA continental zones (Africa, Asia, North and Central America and Caribbean, South America, Oceania, Europe), overseen by their respective confederations. For each tournament, FIFA decides the number of places awarded to each of the continental zones beforehand, generally based on the relative strength of the confederations' teams, but also subject to lobbying from the confederations. The qualification process can start as early as almost three years before the final tournament, and last over a two-year period. The formats of the qualification tournaments differ between confederations. Usually, one or two places are awarded to winners of Intercontinental Play-offs. For example, the winner of the Oceanian zone and the fifth-placed team from the South American zone entered a play-off to decide which team would qualify for the 2006 World Cup Matches and Results , FIFA World Cup site. Retrieved on , 2006 .. Final tournament The current finals tournament features 32 national teams competing over a month in the host nation(s). There are two stages, a ''group stage'' and a ''knockout stage''. In the first stage (the ''group stage''), teams are drawn into eight groups of four. Eight teams are Seeded at the draw, and assigned a group. The other teams are drawn at random. Since 1998 , constraints have applied to the draw to ensure that no group contains more than two European teams or more than one team from any other confederation. Each group plays a Round-robin Tournament , guaranteeing that every qualifying nation will play at least three matches. The last round of matches of each group are held simultaneously to prevent collusion between nations. Since 1994 , three points have been awarded for a win, one for a draw and none for a loss (prior to this, winners only received two points). The top two teams from each group advance to the second stage (the ''knockout stage''). The ''knockout stage'' is a single-elimination round in which teams play each other in one-off matches, with Extra Time and Penalty Shootouts used to decide the winner, if necessary. In the Round of 16, the winner of each group plays against the runner-up from another group. This is followed by quarter-finals, semi-finals and a final. The losing semi-finalists contest a third place match. SELECTION OF HOSTS See Also: FIFA World Cup hosts Early World Cups were given to countries at meetings of FIFA's congress. The choice of location was highly controversial, given the three week boat journey between , 2006 . After World War Two , to avoid any future boycotts or controversy, FIFA began a pattern of alternation between South/ North America and Europe, which continued until the 1998 FIFA World Cup . The system evolved so that the host country is now chosen in a vote by FIFA's executive committee. This is done under a Single Transferable Vote system. The decision is currently made six years in advance of the tournament. MEDIA COVERAGE The World Cup was first televised in 1954, and is now the most widely-viewed and followed sporting event in the world, exceeding even the , 2005 . Retrieved on January 8 , 2006 . Each Football World Cup usually has its own Mascot . ''World Cup Willie'', the mascot for the 1966 competition, was the first World Cup mascot. Mascots for the forthcoming World Cup 2006 are '' Goleo '', a Lion , and '' Pille '', a Football . See Also: FIFA World Cup mascots RESULTS World Cup summaries 1 There was no official World Cup Third Place match in 1930; USA and Yugoslavia lost in the semi-finals. 2 There was no official World Cup final match in 1950. The tournament was decided in a final group contested by four teams. However, Uruguay's 2-1 victory over Brazil (match known as Maracanazo ), was the decisive match which put them ahead on points and ensured that they finished top of the group as world champions. Successful national teams In all, 207 teams have competed to qualify for the World Cup Finals, and 78 nations have qualified at least once. Of these, only eleven have made it to the final match, and only seven have won. This exclusivity inspires much enthusiasm and national pride amongst the tournament's fans. With five victories out of its seven appearances in the final match, Brazil is the most successful World Cup team. It is also the only nation to have participated in every World Cup Finals tournament so far. At the continental level, South America narrowly leads Europe with nine titles to eight. Brazil and Germany are tied for most appearances in the final match with 7 (Brazil has won 5; Germany has won 3). Brazil and Italy were finalists each challenging for their 3rd cup in 1970 and for their 4th cup in 1994. In both matches, Brazil won. Six of the seven champions have won at least one of their titles while playing in their own homeland, the exception being Brazil , who lost the deciding match (known as Maracanazo ) when they hosted the 1950 tournament. England () and France () won their only Cups while playing as host nations. But it isn't just champions that experience success, as traditionally "weaker" nations have also been successful during their spell as hosts. South Korea made it to the semifinals as a co-host in 2002 despite never previously passing the first round. The success of the host in the Cup is a major reason why nations actively lobby to be selected as hosts, as they seek to gain the advantage of a Supportive Crowd ; however, there are also frequent accusations that FIFA arranges favourable refereeing and draws for the hosts. Best performances by continental zones See Also: National team appearances in the FIFA World Cup To date, the final of the World Cup has only been contested by European and/or South American teams. AWARDS See Also: FIFA World Cup awards , the winner of the Golden Shoe at the 2002 FIFA World Cup]] At the end of each World Cup final tournament, six awards are presented to the players and teams for accomplishments other than winning the tournament outright. There are currently six awards:
RECORDS AND STATISTICS See Also: FIFA World Cup records
REFERENCES SEE ALSO
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