Team formation of Brazil in World Cup 2010 (1st match)?

Is it the team formation of Brazil in 1st match?

Brazil win the World Cup 2010 :23.6% people think

source:www.castrolfootball.com

President Lula Thinks This Will Be Robinho’s Cup

In an interview this weekend, President Lula gave his thoughts about the World Cup. The President approved of Dunga’s selections and tabbed Robinho to be the star of this summer. Lula said, “As the 1962 World Cup was all of Garrincha, I think Robinho is ready and focused for the 2010 Cup to be his.”

President Lula also said that he told the Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero he thought Spain had the best team going into this tournament.

This leads to the poll question of the day: who will breakout this summer to be a Brazilian star of the tournament? I left off already established players with high expectation, so no Kaka, Maicon, Luis Fabiano, etc. This question deals with players who might be under the radar this summer.

Meaning of Brazilian Flag

The Brazilian flag was officially adopted on Nov. 19th 1889, four days after the Republic was proclaimed.

The green color represents the Brazilian fields. The yellow losang represents Brazilian gold - and, by extension, the wealthiness of the country. The blue represents the sky of Rio de Janeiro on the night of Nov. 15th 1889; each star represents one of the Brazilian States.

The white strip contains the inscription "Ordem e Progresso", meaning "Order and Progress". The phrase is attributed to the French positiviste philosophe Augusto Comte, who had admirers in Brazil.

The dimensions and proportions of the flag are determined by Law nr. 5700.
The flag was designed by a painter named Decio Vilares. To read more about the History of the flag, as well as the identification of each star,

Brazil World Cup 2010 Squad declared Dunga

Ronaldinho and Adriano both absent for five-time World Cup winners

Brazilian manager Dunga has named his final 23 man squad for this summer’s World Cup in South Africa.

The former international midfielder, who helped his side win the Jules Rimet in 1994 in USA, has decided not to follow the lead set by many other nations, including England, and has named his final squad a month before the tournament.

There is no place in the squad for former World Player of the Year Ronaldinho, nor is there room for his AC Milan team-mate Alexandre Pato nor ex-Inter Milan striker Adriano.

Chelsea defender Alex also misses out, as does Liverpool midfielder Lucas. There is, however, a place for former Manchester City forward Robinho, and Manchester United flop Kleberson.


Full Brazil World Cup squad:

Goalkeepers: Julio Cesar (Inter Milan), Doni (AS Roma), Gomes (Tottenham Hotspur)

Defenders: Maicon (Inter Milan), Daniel Alves (Barcelona), Michel Bastos (Olympique Lyon), Gilberto (Cruzeiro), Lucio (Inter Milan), Juan (AS Roma), Luisao (Benfica), Thiago Silva (AC Milan)

Midfielders: Gilberto Silva (Panathinaikos), Felipe Melo (Fiorentina), Ramires (Benfica), Elano (Galatasaray), Kaka (Real Madrid), Julio Baptista (Roma), Kleberson (Flamengo), Josue (VfL Wolfsburg).

Forwards: Robinho (Santos), Luis Fabiano (Sevilla), Nilmar (Villarreal), Grafite (VfL Wolfsburg).

Brazil are the 9/2 second favourites to win the World Cup with StanJames, who are offering to refund all bets on the tournament if favourites Spain triumph in South Africa.

History of World Cup 2002

Winners: Brazil
Teams: 32
Teams in qualifiers: 199
Notable absentees Netherlands
Surprises Senegal, South Korea, Turkey
Golden Boot: Ronaldo (Brazil) - 8
Stats A total of 161 goals were scored (2.52 per match); Brazil (18) scored the most
Format Eight groups of four, with the top two teams in each group advancing to a knockout round of 16
Number of matches 64

Innovations
• This was the first tournament to be hosted by two countries and the first held in Asia

Controversies
• FIFA banned Cameroon from wearing the sleeveless shirts they had used throughout the 2002 African Nations Cup as they were deemed to be 'vests'

Trivia
• Three countries pre-qualified - France as holders and South Korea and Japan as co-hosts
• On the same day as the final, the two lowest-ranked FIFA teams - Montserrat (203rd) and Bhutan (202nd) - met in Bhutan. The hosts won 2-0 in front of 15,000
• Ronaldo changed his hairstyle after the quarter-finals when his wife told him their young son kissed the TV screen shouting "daddy" when he saw Roberto Carlos
• South Korea's Cha Doo-Ri was booked 20 seconds after coming in as a substitute during injury time in a match against Poland
• Bora Milutinovic was a coach at his fifth successive finals with his fifth different country

In a tournament characterised by an overwhelming capacity to surprise, with virtually every underdog having their day, it seemed somehow inappropriate that the final of the 2002 World Cup was contested by two teams who between them had graced 12 of the competition's 16 finals.

Brazil, with four titles to their name going into the tournament, prevailed against a decidedly average German side, with three previous wins, by two goals to nil in a match that ended in a fashion the neutrals wanted and the tournament needed.

Ronaldo got both goals - his seventh and eighth of the tournament - and earned the striker the competition's Golden Boot at the same time as slaying the ghosts of France 98. There was, at least, one anomaly saved for the competition's dénouement - Player of the Tournament Oliver Kahn was culpable for Brazil's first, fumbling a speculative shot from Rivaldo to the feet of his gleeful strike partner. This after the indomitable German had conceded just one goal in his country's six previous matches.

Brazil's return to all-conquering form, welcome though their easy-on-the-eye brand of football always is, was largely overshadowed by the achievements of the hosts, both on the field of play and in the slick organisation and good spirit garnered off it. For the first time in World Cup history, the finals went to Asia and, also a first, to not one but two countries. Korea and Japan set aside historical differences to jointly host one of the most successful tournaments ever, even if the standard of football on offer, at times, was not quite up to scratch, and the standard of refereeing was described with alarming regularity in much less delicate fashion.

A sign of shocks to come arrived as early as the opening match when newcomers Senegal dramatically upset holders France, previously considered all but unbeatable, with a 1-0 victory. It went from bad to worse for the disappointing French as Les Bleus bid au revoir at the group stage having failed even to register a goal. A 0-0 draw with Uruguay, with Thierry Henry sent off, earned their solitary point before a 2-0 reversal at the hands of the impressive Danes ended their participation and cost coach Roger Lemerre his job.

There were other high-profile casualties at the group stage as many people's pre-tournament favourites, Argentina, felt the reaper's bony clutches in the group of death. A David Beckham penalty, dubiously won by Michael Owen, did for the Argentines as England, and Beckham in particular, finally banished the demons of St Etienne after some traditional backs-against-the-wall defending. Nigeria finished bottom of a group headed up by unbeaten Sweden, ahead of second-placed England on goal difference.

If Group F had been a touch morbid then life positively flourished in Group H as co-hosts Japan successfully navigated the least challenging of paths with Russia and Tunisia offering barely passive resistance as the sport's hold on the Japanese public began to tighten its grip.

Brazil made short shrift of the opening stages by first beating Turkey, then China - coached by Velibor 'Bora' Milutinovic, at his fifth successive finals with a different team after having managed Mexico (1986), Costa Rica (1990), USA (1994) and Nigeria (1998) - and then dispatching of Costa Rica. The match against the Turks was blemished by some appalling 'simulation' (cheating) by Rivaldo, who feigned an injury to his face after having the ball kicked at his knees by Hakan Ünsal - sent off for his troubles - when preparing to take a corner. The Brazilian was later fined £5,180.

Spain had an effortless time sweeping to the top of a group containing South Africa, Slovenia - taking their World Cup bow - and Paraguay. The Paraguayans had to rely on a late goal against the Slovenians in a 3-1 win to sneak past the luckless Africans on the narrowest of margins, goals scored.

Things, however, did not run as smoothly for their second-round opponents, Republic of Ireland. Manager Mick McCarthy and inspirational captain Roy Keane clashed over the team's preparations and, amid accusations and counter-accusations following a bust-up at a meeting arranged by McCarthy, Keane was sent home in disgrace but indignant.

The Irish appeared doomed but, thanks to the heroics of namesake Robbie, they held the Germans - earlier 8-0 victors over hapless Saudi Arabia - to a 1-1 draw that ensured they would qualify behind Rudi Völler's team at the expense of traditional African heavyweights Cameroon.

Italy made hard work of qualifying from their own group after succumbing meekly to a fast-fading Croatian team, third at the previous finals but showing their age, and being held by group winners Mexico.

But if any of the qualifying pools of the opening stages epitomised the summer's jamboree, it was that containing co-hosts South Korea, hotly-tipped Portugal, outsiders USA and Poland. Many feared the Koreans, under Dutchman Guus Hiddink, would struggle to win a match, let alone escape the group, but they were to embark on a fairytale run that would turn the nation's streets into all-night carnivals. Victory over Poland and a tough draw with USA took them to within touching distance, and a Portuguese humbling at the hands of the Americans had turned the form book on its head. Despite defeat to a Poland side that was already out of contention, USA took second after Korea beat Portugal in a rancorous affair.

Korea's Park Ji-Sung became an instant hero after controlling a 30-yard pass on his chest, hooking the ball over Sérgio Conceiçao and striking a half-volley through Vítor Baía's legs to score against nine men after Joao Pinto and Beto had been sent off, sending those inside and outside the ground into raptures.

In the knockout stages, England eased past the in-form Danes in the rain of Niigata thanks to goals from Michael Owen, Rio Ferdinand and Emile Heskey, raising a nation's already inflated expectations, while Germany quietly stumbled past Paraguay, and Brazil were indebted to keeper Marcos in seeing off a spirited challenge from Belgium.

Senegal, inspired by El Hadji Diouf, continued their fine run with a dramatic golden goal win over the Swedes while the Mexicans descended into petty fouling when bitter rivals USA's 2-0 lead became insurmountable in the closing stages of their encounter. Goals from Brian McBride and Landon Donovan had done the damage as USA's burgeoning reputation as a maturing footballing side grew.

Even extra-time was not enough to separate Spain and Ireland as penalties reared their unwanted head for the first time. Ian Harte had missed a spot-kick in normal time and Robbie Keane converted another, so it was with mixed feelings that McCarthy's men approached the shoot out. Iker Casillas saved twice and Matt Holland hit the bar to end a brave Irish adventure.

Both hosts played their next match on the same day and, after Japan had fallen to a very decent Turkish performance, it was left to South Korea to fly the region's flag, but they faced a greater ask in beating Italy. In the end, they prevailed in the most dramatic - and controversial - of circumstances. Ahn Jung-Hwan went from villain to hero after missing an early penalty but he popped up to head a golden goal winner after it had looked for all the world like Christian Vieri's headed goal would be enough for the Europeans. Seol Ki-Hyeon had latched onto a Christian Panucci error to put the ball into the right-hand bottom corner for a last-gasp equaliser that set up the grandstand finish.

The Italians did not take defeat with good grace and Perugia, Ahn's Italian employers, through colourful chief Luciano Gaucci, sacked him immediately for his act of treason, saying: "That gentleman will never set foot in Perugia again. He was a phenomenon only against Italy. I have no intention of paying a salary to someone who has ruined Italian football."

Referee Byron Moreno, too, was not a popular figure after sending off golden boy Francesco Totti for a dive in extra-time, dominated by the lively and physically resilient South Koreans, when he tumbled in the box vainly searching for a penalty. Struggling to top each party, expecting it to be the last, over a million people poured out onto the streets of Seoul alone, but it was not long before more face-paint and fireworks were required - again, in some part, thanks to a benevolent official.

Spain, their quarter-final opponents, had two 'goals' chalked off, one for a debatable offside call, the second denying the Iberians a golden-goal winner after an assistant referee wrongly flagged that the ball had gone out of play before Joaquin crossed for Fernando Morientes to head home. Penalties were needed to settle the game and, after Lee Woon-Jae had saved Joaquin's spot-kick, it fell, appropriately, to South Korea's captain and most capped player, Hong Myung-Bo, to convert the winning penalty. South Korea thus became the first Asian side to make the semi-finals and added fuel to the fire of both Korean street parties and calls for reform of the method of picking match officials.

A policy of inclusion of officials from the breadth of FIFA's family meant Moreno (Ecuador), the referee from the Spanish game, Gamal Ghandour (Egypt) and Peter Prendergast (Jamaica), who had missed a legitimate Belgian goal in their match against Brazil, were selected ahead of mainly European whistle-blowers with more match experience. Such a policy was scrapped for Germany 2006.

Elsewhere, Turkey edged out Senegal in a match between two largely unfancied sides, the only goal a golden one from Ilhan Mansiz and Germany, despite being second-best for large passages of play, scraped past Bruce Arena's USA to book a record ninth semi-final appearance.

With a number of the big teams fallen by the wayside, the victors of England's clash with Brazil had a very real chance of ultimate glory and England expected once Michael Owen had seized on a mistake to put them one up. But a moment of brilliance from Rivaldo just before the break was followed by Ronaldinho deceiving David Seaman from distance by lobbing the ageing keeper from a free-kick. The Brazilian was later sent off but Sven-Göran Eriksson had no response to the opportunity presented and the English meekly bowed out, another chance gone.

Korea's fairytale came to an end at the hands of the Germans, who paid heavily for their 1-0 semi-final victory by losing Michael Ballack to an accumulation of yellow cards. A professional foul when South Korea looked to be building towards goal was a selfless act but one that put his side at a huge disadvantage in the final against Brazil, victors over Turkey by the same scoreline in the other semi-final.

Brazil took the honours but the people of Japan and South Korea won the plaudits for the warmth of their welcome and the flawless way they conducted their responsibilities with the eyes of the world trained upon them - and for providing some breathtaking excitement and colour both on and off the field.

History of World Cup 1998

Winners: France
Teams: 32
Teams in qualifiers: 174
Notable absentees Russia
Surprises Jamaica, Japan, South Africa
Golden Boot: Davor Suker (Croatia) - 6
Stats A total of 171 goals were scored (2.67 per match); France (15) scored the most
Format Eight groups of four, with the top two teams in each group advancing to a knockout round of 16
Number of matches 64

Innovations
• An increase in the number of teams from 24 to 32
• For the first time, the South American qualifiers were held in a single group
• Electronic boards showing the amount of added time at the end of each half were introduced
• The golden goal was brought in - the first team to score in extra time would win the match

Controversies
• The final was blighted by the absence of Brazil's Ronaldo from the team-sheets handed to the media, only for him to be included shortly before the kick-off. The rumours continue to circulate to this day

Trivia
• The first player to score a golden goal in World Cup history was France's Laurent Blanc in the 113th minute of the second round match against Paraguay
• Australia failed to qualify despite a record of six wins, two draws and no defeats, losing to Iran in the play-off on away goals
• For the first time in FIFA's history, the draw for the finals took place in a football stadium - Stade Vélodrome in Marseilles
• It is estimated the cumulative TV audience for the tournament was 37 billion

After a 60-year gap, the World Cup returned to its country of birth. Though the competition had been expanded to a rather bloated 32 teams, the return to France was to prove a great success.

Brazil were favourites, with striker Ronaldo, a non-playing sub in 1994, at the peak of his powers. Improbable pace, skill and goalscoring made him football's hottest property and richest player, endorsed by a whole host of companies. Denied the services of an injured Romário, Ronaldo would have to bear the striking burden. In the opening game, the holders overcame Scotland with some difficulty before soundly beating Morocco 3-0.

In the third group game, they took the lead late on against the dour Norwegians but were shocked by a late surge. Tore André Flo and a Kjetil Rekdal penalty landed Brazil with their first opening-round defeat since 1966. The hosts made short work of their group, beating South Africa, Saudi Arabia and Denmark, but the real story was Zinedine Zidane's dismissal against the Saudis, where the Mexican referee red-carded him for kicking out at Fuad Amin. The French would therefore be without their playmaker for their second-round match.

The Italians, for whom Roberto Baggio was making a welcome return, had little trouble in their group despite an opening draw with Chile in which Lazio import Marcelo Salas scored two great goals. Striker Christian Vieri was outstanding for Italy in all three games.

The highest profile casualties were Spain, who lost in 3-2 thriller to Nigeria and could only draw 0-0 with Paraguay. Despite beating a Bulgarian side well past its sell-by-date 6-1 in the final game, it was yet another tale of underachievement for the Spaniards.

Perhaps the most enticing fixture in the first round was the group match between USA and Iran. Diplomatic differences were put aside before the game when the players exchanged flowers and posed for a joint team picture. Once the game had started, Iran outplayed the Americans and were worthy 2-1 winners. Both teams were also-rans in a group dominated by Germany and Yugoslavia.

Argentina made as good a start to the tournament as they had in 1994. With Gabriel Batistuta and Ariel Ortega impressive they looked like a side that England would have preferred to avoid in the second round. As penance for a late Graeme Le Saux mistake against Romania, England had finished second in their group. But in that famous second-round game in St Etienne they matched the Argentinians, even after having David Beckham dismissed for his petulant kick at Diego Simeone. Despite Michael Owen's great goal, England exited stage left after another penalty shoot-out loss.

Nigeria, who had dazzled in the first round with enterprising football from the likes of Nwankwo Kanu, Sunday Oliseh and Jay-Jay Okocha, capitulated inexplicably to Denmark, who for once in a major tournament had both Laudrup brothers in tandem.

Italy knocked out Norway in a dull game lit up by a great run and goal by Christian Vieri. Brazil overpowered Chile with Ronaldo at his best while Holland beat Yugoslavia by virtue of a 91st-minute winner from Edgar Davids.

France, struggling without the cutting edge of Zidane, were forced to make history when Laurent Blanc scored the first ever World Cup extra-time 'golden goal' against Paraguay. Their reward was a date with the Italians. Perhaps due to many of the Frenchmen playing for clubs in Italy, the two sides cancelled each other out and the game fizzled out, with the end result being the Italians' exit from their third successive World Cup on penalties. While Baggio was able to partially bury the ghost of the Pasadena Rose Bowl, this time it was Luigi Di Biagio who was the unfortunate penalty misser.

Germany, who had shown signs of fallibility all tournament, collapsed in amazing style against Croatia, playing in their first World Cup. After having defender Christian Wörns sent off, the Germans fell behind to a great strike from Robert Jarni and just could not get back into the game. Late goals from Davor Suker and Goran Vlaovic were no more than the Croats deserved.

The remaining quarter-finals were enduring classics. Brazil held off the Danes in Nantes with two goals from Rivaldo helping them to a narrow 3-2 win. In Marseille's Stade Vélodrome, Argentina and Holland served up a feast. An early exchange of goals from Patrick Kluivert and Claudio López led to an even match of flowing football. But, in keeping with an unhappy tradition, Argentina then pressed the self-destruct button as Ariel Ortega was dismissed for headbutting the chin of Holland keeper Edwin van der Sar.

Just when the game seemed destined for extra time, Dennis Bergkamp produced a goal that would grace any stage. Controlling a long pass instantly in the air, he wrong-footed a defender and prodded it with the outside of his boot into the roof of the net. Keeper Carlos Roa could do nothing but look on in admiration.

Marseille hosted the Dutch once more as they faced Brazil in the semi-final. After Ronaldo had scored a typical goal just after half-time, Brazil seemed to have a place in the final in their grasp, but Patrick Kluivert fired in three minutes from time. Again, the golden goal rule restricted both sides' ambitions and it was a penalty shoot-out once more. Brazil converted all four and Phillip Cocu and Ronald de Boer's misses put the favourites in the final.

There they would meet the hosts, who could thank defender Lilian Thuram's sudden discovery of a scoring touch when the game seemed to be turning towards Croatia. The Croats, for whom Davor Suker finished as the tournament's top scorer, satisfied themselves with a win in the third-place play-off over Holland.

The furore that blew up before the final is one of the greatest scandals in World Cup history and the true facts are still to be revealed, perhaps now lost in the mists of time and memory. When the teams for the match at Stade de France were initially announced, Ronaldo was missing from the team-sheet with Edmundo in his place.

There was speculation his ailing knee had finally given out but then a different story emerged. Ronaldo had suffered had some form of fit while sleeping in his hotel room. Room-mate Roberto Carlos had alerted doctors and worries over damage to his brain had led to his omission from the team-sheet. But when the teams lined up, a rather nervous Ronaldo was there - at least in body. Rumours persist that he had been given a sedative by doctors and that team sponsor Nike, for whom Ronaldo was their leading endorsed player, had forced his inclusion. Whatever the truth, his zombified performance reflected a young man in turmoil who did not want to be playing.

Without him, Brazil looked lost and fell to a France side empowered by a rush of football fervour from the home support. Despite the errant efforts of hapless striker Stéphane Guivarc'h in front of goal, the French still overpowered Brazil.

Even without Laurent Blanc, suspended following a red card after a terrible piece of play-acting from Slaven Bilic in the semi-final, the defence easily smothered what few Brazilian attacks there were. Zidane, who had improved steadily as the tournament went on, reached a crescendo when, unmarked on both occasions, he headed in two identical goals from Emmanuel Petit corners.

And though pivotal defender Marcel Desailly was sent off for a horrible foul on Cafu in the 75th minute, France finished the stronger, eventually sealing their win with a breakaway goal from Petit. Brazil had been thrashed, their dreams of a fifth World Cup perhaps dying in Ronaldo's hotel room, but few could argue with the validity of France as winners.

Skipper Didier Deschamps lifted the trophy, fans partied on the Champs-Élysées and cycling perhaps became France's second favourite sport.

History of World Cup 1994

Winners: Brazil
Teams: 24
Teams in qualifiers: 147
Notable absentees England, France
Surprises Greece, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia
Golden Boot Hristo Stoichkov (Bulgaria), Oleg Salenko (Russia) - 6
Stats A total of 141 goals were scored (2.71 per match); Sweden (15) scored the most
Format Six groups of four, with the top two teams in each group advancing to a knockout round of 16, plus four best 3rd place finishers
Number of matches 52

Innovations
• Three points for a win in group matches as opposed to two in a bid to encourage more attacking play
• Yellow cards accumulated in the group stage were wiped clean after its completion
• Referees were allowed to wear colours other than black to avoid a clash with the two competing teams
• Players had names above their numbers on shirts
• The USA v Switzerland match in the Pontiac Silverdome was the first to be played indoors in World Cup history - although it was still on grass

Controversies
• Chile were banned from the 1994 tournament after their goalkeeper Roberto Rojas pretended to have been hit and seriously hurt by firecrackers thrown by Brazilian fans in a successful bid to get a 1989 qualifier abandoned. FIFA subsequently used TV evidence to prove Rojas' deceit and Brazil were awarded a 2-0 win
• Diego Maradona tested positive for the banned stimulant ephedrine but the Argentinean FA withdrew him from the tournament before FIFA could ban him and, amazingly, he remained in the USA as a commentator

Trivia
• Colombian defender Andrés Escobar scored an own goal against USA that helped knock his team out of the competition. A few days after he and his team-mates returned to Colombia, Escobar was shot dead by gangsters amid speculation his error had cost drug barons millions in gambling losses
• Germany's Stefan Effenberg was sent home by coach Berti Vogts after showing the finger to fans when substituted against South Korea
• Russia's Oleg Salenko shared the Golden Boot with six goals, but five of them came in one match against Cameroon. In the same game, 42-year-old Roger Milla broke his own record, set four years previously, as the oldest man to score in a World Cup finals. He also established a record as the oldest player
• The overall attendance of 3,587,538 - an average of 68,991 per match - was a World Cup record

In an attempt to convert the 'New World' to a different form of football, FIFA chose the USA to host the tournament, a decision greeted with massive scepticism. But despite 'soccer' being way down the American sporting popularity list, it was full houses all-round throughout the tournament.

After a Hollywood-style opening ceremony in which Diana Ross, rather prophetically, missed a penalty, Germany beat Bolivia in rather unconvincing fashion. This, too, was to prove prophetic.

Brazil, after two poor World Cups, looked stronger than they had since 1982, with Barcelona striker Romário at the very peak of his predatory powers. Coach Carlos Alberto Parreira had added a defensive ballast to midfield in the tandem of Mauro Silva and Dunga and it paid dividends in the opening wins over Russia and Cameroon. The final group game came against a strong and free-scoring Sweden side and honours were shared as both progressed.

Russia and Cameroon both exited prematurely but not without sharing a record-breaking match. Russia's Oleg Salenko scored a record five goals in a 6-1 win over Cameroon for whom Roger Milla became, at an official age of 42 (some say he was older), the oldest ever scorer in the World Cup.

Argentina started in a similar fashion to Brazil, thrashing the Greeks 4-0 in Boston and then beating the impressive Nigerians 2-1. While Gabriel Batistuta and Claudio Caniggia fired the bullets, the strings were pulled by Fernando Redondo and Diego Maradona, back playing after a ban for cocaine use and a series of false starts at Napoli, Seville and Newell's Old Boys. Looking suspiciously trim and energetic, Maradona lashed in an amazing goal against Greece and celebrated maniacally.

Argentina became most people's favourites for the tournament. Until, at least, the news came out that Maradona had tested positive for banned stimulant ephedrine. Broken by the loss of their leader, Argentina faded against Bulgaria in their last group game and now faced the challenge of Romania in the second round.

The Romanians had won a group that included the hosts and Colombia, Pelé's pick to win the tournament. But Colombia, for all their pretty passing moves, fell to the wiles of Gheorghe Hagi in their opener and then catastrophically lost to the USA in their next, putting them out. Harrowingly, defender Andrés Escobar paid for an own goal with his life, shot by gangsters on his return to Medellin. It was an incident that cast a shadow over Colombian football for years to come.

Jack Charlton's Republic of Ireland continued to delight the neutrals by beating Italy in New York after a tremendous goal from Ray Houghton. However, they met a rather damp end to their campaign in the second round when a mistake by Italia 90 hero Packie Bonner handed progress to the Dutch.

The hosts put up a brave showing against Brazil but lost to a late strike from Bebeto, Brazil's other striker. Germany struggled to get past the Belgians while Italy needed a late equaliser from Roberto Baggio against Nigeria. Baggio, rumoured to be at odds with coach Arrigo Sacchi, was the hero on the field as he converted an extra-time penalty winner.

The best game of the round saw the Argentinians face the Romanians. Hagi, often termed the 'Maradona of the Carpathians', showed the Argentinians what they were missing, supplying two goals for Ilie Dumitrescu and then scoring himself. Well though Argentina played, Maradona's cutting edge was lacking and they were overrun by Romania's incisive attacking.

Sweden, though, matched the Romanians in the quarter-final and held their nerve in a penalty shoot-out. The other quarters were all thrilling games. Brazil fought off a late Dutch surge to win 3-2 through a Branco goal. Italy narrowly beat the Spanish with goals from Baggios Dino and Roberto. 'The Divine Ponytail' struck his winner in the 88th minute but there was still time for an improbable miss from Julio Salinas. Spain, once again, had flattered to deceive.

The story of the round came when Bulgaria, with only one recognised star in Hristo Stoichkov, staged a late comeback to knock out the Germans. Stoichkov rattled in a free-kick after Lothar Matthäus had put the Germans ahead from the spot before the bald head of Yordan Letchkov dived in to head the ball for an improbable winner.

Perhaps that Herculean effort was too much for the Bulgars as, in the semi-final, Roberto Baggio tore them apart - Stoichkov's penalty to make it 2-1 made the game look closer than it was. Similarly, the Swedes were outclassed in a dull semi-final with Brazil. A lone Romário strike was enough to take his team through.

After what had been a vastly entertaining tournament, it was sad that the final was such a drab affair, even surpassing the horror show of 1990. Both Romário and Baggio played with injuries and their talents were consequently dulled, with both missing good opportunities. Though Brazil played the more attacking football, Italy defended well, with Franco Baresi outstanding. Despite a thrilling cameo from mysterious Brazil substitute Viola, extra-time petered out and penalties would, sadly, decide which side won the World Cup for a record fourth time.

Baresi and Márcio Santos both missed and, after an exchange of two successful kicks, Daniele Massaro's poor effort was saved by Cláudio Taffarel. After Dunga had given Brazil the advantage, up stepped Baggio, so deadly all tournament. He blazed over, choosing power over the precision that had served him so well, and Brazil were crowned champions for the fourth time.

History of World Cup 1986

Winners: Argentina

Teams: 24
Teams in qualifiers: 121
Notable absentees Netherlands
Surprises Canada, Iraq

Golden Boot Gary Lineker (England) - 6
Stats A total of 132 goals were scored (2.54 per match); Argentina (14) scored the most
Format Six groups of four, with the top two teams in each group advancing to a knockout round of 16, plus four best third-place finishers

Number of matches 52

Innovations
• The group-style second round was scrapped and replaced with a straight knockout tournament

Controversies
• Colombia were the original choice as hosts but economic chaos meant they in effect had to withdraw. Hopes of an open system for finding a replacement were all but ended when FIFA president João Havelange headed straight from the 1982 final to Mexico
• The sometimes brilliant, sometimes disgraceful Diego Maradona's handball to score against England stirred passions on both sides of the Atlantic. Afterwards, he smiled and said it was "a bit with the head of Maradona and another bit with the hand of God"

Trivia
• Iraq qualified without playing a home match because of the Iran-Iraq war
• A total of 308 qualifying matches were played and 801 goals scored
• Bulgaria and Uruguay qualified for the second round without winning a group match
• Portugal's players went on strike, refusing to train between their first and the second games, and were knocked out after a loss to Morocco in the final group match
• Iraq defender Samir Shaker Mahmoud was banned for a year by FIFA after spitting at the referee during his team's 2-1 loss to Belgium
• Paraguay's Cayetano Ré became the first coach to be sent off after repeatedly encroaching onto the pitch during the first-round game against Belgium
• Uruguay's José Batista was sent off after 56 seconds of the group match against Scotland

A return to Mexico after just 16 years looks a romantic choice at first glance. In fact, the return to Central America came as a result of original hosts Colombia's inability to meet the economic demands of staging "the greatest show on earth". Mexico was itself a country in crisis after a earthquake had wreaked havoc and killed 25,000 people in 1985, but the country rallied to stage the tournament once again.

The tournament was to centre on one squat little man, Diego Armando Maradona, who was on a mission to bury the ghost of 1982 and a troubled spell at Barcelona.

From the first game, Maradona was the mainstay of an Argentina side that was otherwise functional and efficient but lacking in flair. Maradona provided magic in spades and matched it with a will to win. Scoring an excellent equaliser against off-colour holders Italy, he played a part in every Argentine goal in the first round.

The first round's darlings were the Danes, featuring the talents of Michael Laudup and Preben Elkjær-Larsen. A 6-1 defeat of Uruguay saw odds on the Scandinavians winning the trophy tumble. The bookies soon breathed easier, though, as the Danes bizarrely capitulated 5-1 to Spain in the second round, with Emilio 'The Vulture' Butrageno scoring four.

Other first-round form teams to fail at the second-round stage were Soviet Union, in a dramatic 4-3 loss to Belgium, and Morocco, who topped England's group before taking West Germany to the wire - it was not until three minutes from the end that the Germans got their winner in Monterrey.

Italy, a pale shadow of the 1982 side, were dispatched with ease by the French. France, who had won the 1984 European Championships in some style, were again many romantics' choice for the championship, though an over-reliance on Michel Platini's goal power from midfield would later prove problematic.

Brazil, themselves a shadow of their 1982 team but 4-0 conquerors of Poland, met the French in a titanic encounter in Guadalajara.

The game ended 1-1 and was absolutely jam-packed with incident. A challenge by Brazil goalkeeper Carlos on Bruno Bellone brought back painful memories of the Battiston-Schumacher incident four years earlier. At the other end, with his first kick of the game, substitute Zico missed a penalty to win the game in normal time, so it was penalties again for the French. This time, their nerve held despite Platini inexplicably blazing his spot-kick over the bar. Keeper Joel Bats was the hero as he saved first Socrates' casual effort and then Júlio César's strike.

Luis Fernández stroked home the decider and the French rejoiced. The time seemed right for revenge over the Germans, who had ousted the hosts in their own shoot-out.

Argentina's challenge was meanwhile gathering pace. A functional win over Uruguay took them on to face England in the quarter-finals. Bobby Robson's side, for whom Gary Lineker had hit a rich vein of scoring form, had beaten South American opposition in the second round in Paraguay, but Argentina looked a far tougher proposition.

And so they would prove. Maradona's first goal, for which there is no dispute that he had handled, was followed by an amazing 75-yard dribble past the entire England defence and goalkeeper Peter Shilton. It is surely the best goal ever seen on the World Cup stage. England, though, rallied after the introduction of John Barnes, who provided a goal for Lineker. The pair almost repeated the trick but Lineker failed to direct his header goalwards.

Yet, despite the illegitimacy of Maradona's first goal, there was little doubt about the best team winning.

Just to show that his second goal hadn't been a fluke, Maradona twice repeated a similar trick in the semi-final against Belgium, surprise members of the last four after a shoot-out win over Spain. The Belgians just couldn't hold the irrepressible Argentina skipper as he led his team into their second final in three World Cups.

There they faced West Germany, ever the party-poopers. France, broken by their toils in the quarter-final, failed to get their revenge. Goalkeeper Bats soiled his heroic status by fumbling an Andreas Brehme free-kick early on and, in the last minute, when France were pushing hard for an equalizer, Rudi Völler scored a breakaway goal.

The final saw Maradona being marked hard by Lothar Matthäus and reduced to a peripheral role for much of the game, which was a poor spectacle until its later stages. Centre-back José Luis Brown had headed in Jorge Burruchaga's free-kick and, when Real Madrid's Jorge Valdano stroked the ball past Schumacher, all looked lost for the Germans.

But on came substitute strikers Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and Dieter Hoeness, brother of 1974 hero Uli. Rummenigge, who had suffered another injury-hit finals, bundled home a Völler flick before Völler himself headed in Thomas Berthold's flick with eight minutes to play. Argentina looked shaken but surely this had to be Maradona's tournament?

The little man certainly believed so. Two minutes later, he ended a weaving run with a delicate through-ball to Jorge Burruchaga. The youngster did the rest and Argentina soon claimed their second World Cup. Maradona had realised his dream and, though Argentina were far from a one-man team, no single player has ever had such an influence on the destiny of a World Cup.

History of World Cup 1970

Winners: Brazil
Teams: 16
Teams in qualifiers: 75
Number of matches: 32

Notable absentees Argentina, France, Portugal, Spain

Surprises Morocco, the first African qualifiers since World War II

Golden Boot: Gerd Muller (Germany) - 10

Stats
A total of 95 goals were scored (2.97 per match), including five penalties and one own goal; Brazil (19) scored the most; 54 individual players scored, while Pelé and Uwe Seeler scored in their fourth World Cup tournament

Format
Four groups of four in the qualifying stage, with the top two from each group into the quarter-finals

Innovations
• This was the first World Cup hosted in North America, and the first held outside South America and Europe
• It was the first to be televised in colour
• Substitutes were allowed for the first time (two per team)
• Red and yellow cards were introduced, although no player was sent off during the tournament
• Fair Play Award introduced
• Teams level on points at the end of the group stage were separated by goal difference (replacing play-offs and goal average).

Controversies
• Before the event, England's captain, Bobby Moore, was arrested and held in Colombia on charges of theft. He was released on the eve of the competition after England had travelled on without him
• To fit in with European viewing schedules, some matches kicked off at noon. This was unpopular with many players and managers because of the intense heat in Mexico at that time of day
• On the eve of the England-Brazil match, Brazilian fans gathered outside the England hotel and chanted and sang all night in a deliberate bid to disrupt the team's sleep.

Trivia
• Zambia and Sudan both won 4-2 at home in their qualifying play-off matches. Sudan went through because of a quickly-scrapped rule that the team scoring more goals in the second match would win. However, they finished bottom of their final qualification group and did not reach the finals
• Rioting marred qualifying matches between El Salvador and neighbours Honduras, and in July 1969 war broke out between the two in what historians dubbed "The War of Soccer"
• Brazilian Mário Zagallo became the first man to win the tournament as a player (1958) and coach.
• Pelé became the first man to play in three World Cup-winning teams
• During the post-final celebrations, the lid of the trophy went missing. Brazilian reserve Davio retrieved it from a young spectator at the stadium exit.

Overview
As with 1966, images of this tournament remain at the forefront of the football fan's memory. This was the first tournament to be televised in colour and the football played was similarly vivid. It is remembered as Brazil's finest and defining hour.

Following the woes of 1966, after which Pelé had said he would never play in a World Cup again, the Brazilians took this event very seriously indeed. Coach Joao Saldanha wanted his team to play a flowing brand of football but this was to be coupled with a hard-edged physical approach, brought about by months spent in a spartan training camp. Although Saldanha would be supplanted by Mário Zagallo just prior to the tournament, the team continued to play in Saldanha's chosen image and won the trophy in the manner he desired.

Pelé was tempted out of exile and was joined by thrilling wingers Jairzinho and Rivelino, balding playmaker Gérson, the nascent talent of midfielder Clodoaldo and skipper Carlos Alberto, a superb exponent of the art of the attacking full-back. Centre-forward Tostao was there, too, his career saved by an eye operation. Together they formed the World Cup's most thrilling attacking force.

The tournament's location was the subject of much consternation from the European teams, who worried about the 50 degree heat and the breathing problems associated with high altitude. Nevertheless, the West Germans, English and Italians were involved in some of the best matches.

In the group stage, England faced the Brazilians in Guadalajara in a game many envisaged as a dress rehearsal for the eventual final. Jairzinho grabbed the goal that won it for Brazil but the game is best remembered for Gordon Banks' save from Pelé's bullet-header - and a late miss by Jeff Astle. Despite that defeat, England joined Brazil in the knock-out stages.

But, in a re-staging of the 1966 final, the Germans got their revenge over England, when, with Alf Ramsey's side leading 2-0 and having taken off Bobby Charlton and Martin Peters to rest them for the next round, stand-in keeper Peter Bonetti fumbled a long-range shot from Franz Beckenbauer and then allowed Uwe Seeler to back-head the equaliser. England wilted in the heat of Leon and Ramsey's team, run ragged by a far fitter German side, succumbed in extra-time when Gerd Müller, scorer of ten goals in Mexico, scored a typically predatory winner.

Brazil, meanwhile, rolled over the unsung Peruvians, led by the mercurial Teófilo Cubillas, and now faced old enemy Uruguay in the semis. An early goal from Uruguay's Luis Cubilla saw the Brazilians rocked but a pep talk from Pelé and a fantastic strike from Clodoaldo brought them level. The samba football soon returned and Jairzinho and Rivelino's late strikes planted them in the final.

Germany, exhausted by their efforts in Leon, now faced Italy, then fully in the bloom of the catenaccio era. But when Karl Schellinger cancelled out a Roberto Boninsegna goal in the very last minute, luck looked to be with the Germans. However, Beckenbauer injured his shoulder and, though he played on with one arm in a sling, the Italians won out. The score changed no less than five times in extra-time before Gianni Rivera, the golden boy of Italian football, scored a 112th-minute winner.

The superhuman efforts in the last four perhaps did for Italy as Brazil overpowered them in the final. Pelé pulled the strings for the South Americans as first he leapt, in the proverbial fashion of a salmon, to head in a Rivelino cross on 19 minutes. Italy got back in the game when Boninsegna seized on a mistake from Clodoaldo to beat keeper and sometime clown Felix, and the crowd, almost all of them cheering for the Brazilians, began to worry. But up stepped chain-smoking midfielder Gérson to clatter in a goal from the edge of the penalty area.

Twenty minutes from the end, Pelé headed a Gérson cross back for Jairzinho to bundle in and complete his record of having scored in every game. But the coup de grâce was added in the very last minute as Brazil took the ball the length of the field to score the fourth. Clodoaldo, rejuvenated after his early mistake, beat a couple of players and the ball reached Pelé. He, as ever, used his vision to play in Carlos Alberto, whose low drive drilled past Albertosi into the Italian goal. As a sign off for a great side, it has never been surpassed, just as the Brazilian team of 1970 is unlikely to ever be surpassed.

For their three wins in 12 years, the Jules Rimet Trophy that Carlos Alberto lifted was to remain in Brazil permanently. Or, at least, until it was stolen in 1983 from the Brazilian Confederation HQ in 1983.

History of World Cup 1962

Winners: Brazil

Teams: 16

Teams in qualifiers: 56
Notable absentees Sweden
Surprises Colombia
Golden Boot Garrincha, Vavá (Brazil), Leonel Sánchez (Chile), Drazan Jerkovic (Yugoslavia), Flórián Albert (Hungary), Valentin Ivanov (USSR) - 4
Stats A total of 89 goals were scored (2.78 per match); Brazil (14) scored the most
Format Four groups of four, with the top two progressing to the quarter-finals

Number of matches 32

Innovations
• For once, FIFA resisted the temptation to tinker

Controversies
• Brazil's Garrincha was sent off in the semi-finals and should have missed the final but the Brazilian FA managed to get his ban overturned by FIFA, who justified its decision on the grounds the player had been provoked by the crowd
• The tournament was marred by a string of ill-tempered games in the group stage, the worst being the infamous 'Battle of Santiago' between Italy and hosts Chile. "I wasn't reffing a football match," referee Ken Aston said. "I was acting as an umpire in military manoeuvres"

Trivia
• Two years before the start, Chile was hit by a massive earthquake. The president of the organising committee said: "Because we don't have anything, we will do everything in our power to rebuild." And they did
• This World Cup was the last that was not televised live in Europe, just predating the arrival of the Telstar satellite

After two World Cup championships in Europe, FIFA decided that South America would be the host continent, and it was a straight shoot-out between Chile and Argentina.

When Chile was wracked by earthquakes that killed thousands in 1960, Argentina looked favourites. But an impassioned call by President Dittborn won the day and the country's regeneration was led by the building of new stadiums in time for the tournament.

Brazil, on somewhere approaching home soil and with almost the same squad as four years before, were undoubtedly favourites. Pelé, still only 21, had become the complete forward and Garrincha's development trajectory had been similar.

Sweden, meanwhile, had been the highest-profile victims of a new qualifying process from which England had been the sole 'home nation' qualifiers. England qualified for the second round as runners-up to a Hungarian team that, in Florian Albert, had a player with many of the qualities of the 'Marvellous Magyars' of 1954. He scored the winner in the two nations' group meeting.

Brazil eased out of their group, but not without cost. Pelé, who had been in shining form in the 2-0 opening win over Mexico, ripped a thigh muscle in the 0-0 draw with Czechoslovakia. He was to play no further part in the finals. Amarildo, however, was a decent replacement and became known as the 'White Pelé' for his efforts during the tournament. Garrincha and Vavá were also there to take up the goalscoring burden.

The Chilean World Cup is now recognised as being one of the poorest tournaments in terms of football, a legacy in which no small a part was played by the disgraceful scenes that took place in Santiago when Chile met Italy. The game erupted into a flurry of kicks and punches and, though two Italians were sent off, it should have been many more. 'The Battle of Santiago' ended in a 2-0 victory for the hosts and a police escort for the players as they left the field prematurely.

England met their nemesis in Garrincha in the quarter-finals. West Germany lost to Yugoslavia in revenge for successive quarter-final defeats in the last two tournaments as Sekularac pulled the strings. The Czechs, marshalled by left-half and captain Josef Masopust, squeezed past the Hungarians. In another surprise result for the hosts, they managed to beat highly-fancied Soviet Union.

But there was to be no fairy story in the semi-final as the tried and tested combination of Garrincha and Vavá scored two goals each against them. For Garrincha, however, heartbreak looked in store after he was sent off for retaliation. Somehow, and perhaps with not a little greasing of palms, the Brazilian FA managed to get his ban for the final overturned by FIFA.

The Czechs were their final opponents, having beaten Yugoslavia in the semi-final with a late surge in the last ten minutes. And a shock looked on the cards when Masopust made a burst past his attackers to put his team ahead on 15 minutes. It was not for long, though, as Amarildo rose to the occasion to score from a seemingly impossible angle.

Czechoslovakia held on gamely and it would take a fantastic move started and finished by Zito in the 68th minute to break them. Vavá then became the first person to score in two finals when he capitalised on a goalkeeping mistake from Schrojf. The cup was Brazil's again. They had become only the second team to retain the trophy and it had largely been achieved without Pelé.

Considering that Italy's double win of the 1930s was achieved at a time of stay-aways and pull-outs, no team had ever dominated the world scene like this before.

History of World Cup 1958

Winners: Brazil

Teams: 16

Teams in qualifiers: 45
Notable absentees Italy, Uruguay
Surprises Wales, Northern Ireland
Golden Boot Just Fontaine (France) - 13
Stats A total of 126 goals were scored (3.60 per match); France (23) scored the most
Format Four groups of four, with the top two progressing to the quarter-finals

Number of matches 35

Innovations
• If teams tied for second and third in the group stages, there would be a replay
• A record of 12 cities hosted matches

Controversies
• Israel qualified because teams refused to play them, but FIFA intervened and insisted they play at least once in order to progress to the finals. Wales, non-qualified runners-up in their UEFA group, were chosen and won 2-0 home and away to qualify instead
• Turkey withdrew from qualifying after refusing to be included in the Asian group
• Only 2,823 spectators watched the play-off game between Hungary and Wales. People boycotted the match to show sympathy with Imre Nagy, the Prime Minister of Hungary at the time of the Russian invasion in 1956, who had been executed the previous day. The official attendance, which FIFA still endorses, was 20,000
• The semi-final between Sweden and West Germany was almost abandoned because the president of the German football association threatened to withdraw his team unless the Swedes stopped refusing to seat some of the German fans. The organisers relented

Trivia
• Brazil's Pelé was 17 when he played in the final, the youngest person to do so
• Just Fontaine, who scored 13 goals for France, remains the record holder for one tournament
• The Northern Irish FA told their squad that it was against Irish law to play two of their first-round matches on a Sunday. After player protests, the FA relented
• Hungary only retained three players from their 1954 final squad, many of the others choosing to flee the country after the Russian invasion of 1956
• This was the only occasion all four UK 'home nations' qualified together
• Argentina, who finished bottom of their group, were pelted with rubbish on their return home to Buenos Aires

If 1954 saw the final hurrah of Hungary, one of football's greatest ever teams, 1958 was the beginning of another team's dominance of the World Cup. Brazil and the World Cup are inextricably linked and it was in Sweden that the bond was formed.

The presence of international television cameras for the first time made this tournament a watershed and, in a 17-year-old Brazilian, the game had its first and probably greatest star. Pelé was not in the Brazilian side at the beginning of the tournament but, by its conclusion, football had its first international pin-up.

Another facet of this tournament was the appearance of all four home nations as England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland all qualified and, of the four, it was the two smaller nations who most impressed. The Irish were managed by Peter Doherty, who had a superb lieutenant on the field in Danny Blanchflower. Together, Doherty and Blanchflower gave the world the free-kick wall as their team reached the quarter-final stage before falling to the French. The Welsh, led by the amazing talents of John Charles, reached the same stage only to lose out to Brazil and, more pertinently, Pelé.

Scotland's campaign was as disastrous as that four years previously while England, considerably weakened by the loss of Tommy Taylor and Roger Byrne in the Munich air disaster and with the still traumatised Bobby Charlton a non-playing member of the squad, lost out in a play-off to the Soviet Union.

An English presence in the tournament was retained by George Raynor, the Yorkshire-born coach of Sweden. He led a team featuring Nils Liedholm and Gunnar Gren, both veterans of their country's victory in the 1948 Olympics but now stars of the lucrative Italian league.

Brazil, playing a revolutionary 4-2-4 system, already had a mercurial midfield talent in Didi, a line-leading, goalscoring centre-forward in Vavá and two legendary half-backs in Djalma and Nilton Santos. But with the addition in later games of Pelé and Garrincha, an amazing winger with dribbling skills comparable to Stanley Matthews, they were undoubtedly the team to beat.

In the group stage, they were prolific in front of goal and, although England held them to a goalless draw, they were heavily fancied to thrash Wales in the last eight. But the Welsh, sadly lacking the injured John Charles, made them fight all the way. Pelé, starting only his second game, and, at 17 years old, the youngest player to grace the finals tournament, scored a deflected goal past superb keeper Jack Kelsey. Pelé himself would describe it as the most important goal he would ever score.

The semi-finals saw them face France, who for once had put up a performance befitting their status as tournament founders. Just Fontaine was their record-breaking striker, scoring 13 goals in the tournament, even if four of the goals came in the third-place game.

His bullets were supplied by Raymond Kopa, an inside-forward who plied his trade for Real Madrid and who, until Michel Platini, was regarded as France's greatest-ever player. But with Pelé now into his stride, the French had no answer as the young star scored a hat-trick in an easy 5-2 win.

So the final would be a battle of South American style and the best that the far more athletic European game had to offer. Before the game, George Raynor predicted that if the Brazilians were to go a goal behind then they would "panic all over the show".

His prediction was to be tested, and it failed. Liedholm put the Swedes a goal up after four minutes but, five minutes later, Vavá headed in a Garrincha cross. The trick was repeated on the half-hour. And, after half-time, Pelé grabbed the match by the scruff of the neck. The goal that truly created the Pelé legend came on 55 minutes. A lofted ball was chested down, hooked over a defender and projected into the bottom left corner by an unerring volley. The trophy's destination was confirmed after right-winger Zagallo followed up his own corner to make it four after 68 minutes. Simonsson grabbed a consolation before Pelé headed in a Zagallo cross.

The Jules Rimet Trophy was Brazil's. Records had been smashed in the tournament - Fontaine's goal haul, Pelé's youth and a team from the Americas winning on foreign soil. And in Pelé, who shed tears of joy as the Brazilians carried the trophy and national flag around the pitch, world football had found its biggest star.

History of World Cup 1954

Winners: West Germany

Teams: 16

Teams in qualifiers: 45
Notable absentees Spain
Surprises Korean Republic
Golden Boot Sándor Kocsis (Hungary) - 11
Stats A total of 140 goals were scored (5.38 per match); Hungary (27) scored the most
Format Four groups of four with two seeded and two unseeded teams in each group. However, the teams played just two matches per group rather than the usual three, with the seeded sides facing unseeded sides. Where teams ended up tied for the second qualifying position by points, they required a play-off. The two teams finishing at the top of their group went through to the quarter-finals

Number of matches 26

Innovations
• For the first time, the tournament was televised
• All matches level after 90 minutes went to extra time. Only if the scores were still tied after 120 minutes were they deemed drawn

Controversies
• The draw for the finals took place before the end of the qualifying. Spain were seeded but had to be replaced after they were knocked out by Turkey following a replayed match that had eventually been settled by the captains drawing lots
• Three players were sent off in the match between Hungary and Brazil, which went down in history as the Battle of Berne. Even after the game, the fighting continued as the Brazilians burst into the Hungarian dressing room and a pitched battle ensued
• It has been claimed the German team were doped for the second half of the final, accounting for their much stronger showing

Trivia
• Korean goalkeeper Hong Duk-Yung conceded 16 goals in two matches
• Fritz and Ottmar Walter of West Germany became the first brothers in a winning World Cup side. In the semi-finals, they had become the first brothers to score in the same World Cup game
• The Hungarians went into the final unbeaten in 29 matches over a four-year spell
• The German team were amateurs as there was no professional league there at the time
• Arthur Ellis, the English referee who officiated in the Battle of Berne, went on to become the referee on BBC TV's It's a Knockout

With the championship returning to Europe and World War II still at the forefront of memories, FIFA chose to base the World Cup in that most neutral of countries - Switzerland. The Swiss had promised to build several purpose-built stadia and, though they did not quite come through with their promises, it was to be a profitable time for FIFA and the host nation.

Top box-office draw was undoubtedly a Hungarian team that had swept all before them at the 1952 Olympics in Helsinki. Playing a flowing attacking game that centred around a deep-lying centre-forward in Nandor Hidegutki and the explosive talents of inside-left and captain Ferenc Puskas, they had been unbeaten in four years.

Holders Uruguay, travelling to play in a World Cup in Europe for the first time, retained many of their stars from 1950. West Germany, led by the mercurial talents of veteran striker Fritz Walter, also had some backers but many of these had fallen by the wayside after the result of their second match. After beating Turkey 4-1, they came up against the Mighty Magyars, themselves fresh from a record 9-0 thumping of South Korea, and collapsed 8-3 to a team playing what many regarded as the best football yet seen on the world stage.

But while the Germans were thoroughly humbled, centre-half Werner Liebrich made probably the most important kick of the tournament - a savage assault on Puskas, which led to the Hungarian lynchpin limping off the field with an ankle injury. But even without their 'Galloping Major', few now saw the winners of the tournament being anyone but the Hungarians.

Uruguay, though, were enjoying life across the Atlantic. They cruised through their group stage, beating the Czechs 2-0 and thrashing Scotland, making their first appearance in the finals, 7-0. Future Manchester United manager Tommy Docherty was one of the terrorised Tartans. His excuse for the loss? That the Uruguayan national anthem was too long and had exhausted the Scots before the game had even started. England were next for the champions and they were no match as Schiaffino and Varela repeated their form of 1950 and won the match 4-2.

Brazil were a team going through a rebuilding process after the horror of 1950. Nevertheless, their quarter-final with Hungary looked an enticing prospect. But a match that for evermore will be known as the 'Battle of Berne' did not show off the finer aspects of the 'Beautiful Game'. With two Brazilians and one Hungarian sent off and Puskas, still out injured, implicated in a post-match bottling incident on Brazilian centre-half Pinheiro, football was definitely not the winner. That accolade went to the Magyars, with inside-forward Kocsis - 'The Golden Head' - grabbing two goals.

The holders awaited them in the semis and the match lived up to all expectations as a late Uruguayan equaliser from Hohberg took the game to extra-time. But Hungary's added class showed in the extra period and it was again Kocsis who won it for them, another brace making his team 4-2 winners.

Their final opponents would be the Germans, who after being forced to play a play-off with the Turks had made easy progress, beating Yugoslavia 2-0 and then thumping Austria 6-1 in the semis. With Walter outstanding, they were a different proposition to the team that had lost so heavily in their first-round encounter.

And Puskas remained a doubt for the final with his ankle injury rendering him even more immobile than ever. But tantrum after tantrum saw him restored to the captaincy and the inside-left position. Many also said that his presence would unbalance a team for whom Hidegutki, Kocsis, Budai and Czibor had worked so well together.

All that talk was seemingly wiped away after eight minutes. Puskas returned in style, smashing in a rebound from Kocsis' shot after six minutes. Two minutes later Czibor seized on a backpass to add to the lead. Surely now Hungary would be champions? Only two minutes later, the doubts set in. Max Morlock converted a Schafer cross and then a howler from keeper Grocsis let in Uwe Rahn to equalise on 18 minutes.

The momentum was now with the Germans. For all the Hungarians' pressure and near-misses, desperation was their over-riding emotion. And with six minutes to go, Rahn came away with the ball after another defensive mix-up and scored from the edge of the penalty area.

Hungary came back even stronger and when Puskas, who for the most part had been a badly-limping passenger, fired in a characteristic shot, it seemed they had saved what had seemed to have been their God-given right. A waving and quite possibly errant offside flag dashed their hopes and they complained right up to, and after, the final whistle.

The result would stand. The West Germans were champions and Hungary had blown their best-ever chance to win the title. Two years later, their country collapsed into revolution and many of the stars of 1954 defected from the Communist bloc. Hungarian football has never been the same since.

History of World Cup 1950

Winners: Uruguay

Teams: 13

Teams in qualifiers: 34
Notable absentees France, Germany, Hungary
Surprises Bolivia
Golden Boot Ademir (Brazil) - 9
Stats A total of 88 goals were scored (4.00 per match); Brazil (22) scored the most
Format Four groups, with the winners of each progressing to a four-team round-robin final group. Withdrawals meant there were two groups of four, one of three and one of two

Number of matches 22

Innovations
• The British Home Championship was the qualifying tournament for England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland. Scotland, runners-up to England, qualified but refused on the grounds they were not champions of Britain

Controversies
• Germany and Japan, defeated in World War II, were barred
• India qualified for the finals but refused to travel after FIFA banned them from playing barefoot
• France withdrew after Brazil had refused to reschedule their two first-round matches, which were 3,000km apart
• The organisers refused to geographically seed the groups, meaning some teams had arduous traveling between matches

Trivia
• The tournament had originally been scheduled for 1949
• Two players - Erik Nilsson of Sweden and Alfred Bickel of Switzerland - appeared in the finals either side of the war
• The trophy was officially renamed the Jules Rimet Trophy to mark Rimet's 25-year tenure as FIFA president. It had spent the war under a bed after Dr Ottorino Barassi, an Italian sports official, smuggled it from the bank in Rome in 1940
• Eight of the Italian national side had died in a plane crash in May 1949 when Torino's entire side was wiped out
• Yugoslavia's Rajko Mitic had his head badly gashed by an iron girder as he left the dressing room before the game against Brazil. The referee refused to delay the match, and Yugoslavia kicked off with ten men
• The final round-robin game was played in front of an official crowd of 199,850, the largest attendance at a football match

With much of Europe still recovering from the turmoil of World War II, FIFA took the decision to return the championships to South America for the 1950 tournament. Football was fast becoming the religion it remains in Brazil and the home team were reigning Copa America champions.

There were a few changes from the last World Cup 12 years earlier. The home nations at last took their place in the finals and, in place of the pure knockout structure, there would be two stages - with winners of the first groups qualifying for the final group. In addition, the winners of the new tournament would pick up the retitled Jules Rimet Trophy, named after the championship founder and FIFA president of 25 years.

English football had long borne an air of superiority and its dignitaries had scoffed at the value of the World Cup, never doubting that they boasted the world's best team. To say that it fell flat on its face would be an understatement. A routine 2-0 win over Chile was followed by arguably England's most embarrassing defeat ever - 1-0 to the USA in the northern industrial town of Belo Horizonte.

The decisive goal was scored, somewhat luckily, by Haitian immigrant Joe 'Larry' Gaetjens, who later sadly fell victim to the terror regime of François 'Papa Doc' Duvalier in his country of origin. The result was such a shock at the time that many newspaper in readers in England actually thought the scoreline was a misprint of 10-1. After losing to Spain, England were out of the tournament, and the arrogance that came with them was removed forever in just a week.

Elsewhere, the home team, Brazil, were flying, easily making it out of their group. Forwards Jair, Zizinho and Ademir were tearing teams apart at will. Uruguay, making their first finals appearance since 1930, made it into the second group phase by beating Bolivia 8-0. Star inside-forward Juan Schiaffino grabbed four goals.

This was to be the only World Cup without a final but the decisive match would come between the aforementioned South Americans. After beating Sweden 7-1 and Spain 6-1 in the final group stage, the Brazilians only needed a draw to take the title that the football-crazy nation was baying for. However, it was not to be.

In front of an 'official' crowd of 199,000 in the specially-built Maracana, Uruguay, with half-backs Obdulio Varela and Victor Andrade outstanding, held off wave after wave of Brazilian attacks for the first-half. But after half-time, the deadlock was broken by Brazilian winger Friaca and destiny seemed to be with the home side. However, Varela began to make his trademark runs forward and Uruguay's right-winger, Ghiggia, began to exert more and more influence.

Ghiggia first beat the defence to play in Schiaffino to score the equaliser. He then delivered the coup de grâce by again slipping past full-back Bigode but, instead of crossing, he beat keeper Barbosa at close-range from a narrow angle.

For the whole of Brazil, it was a national disaster and the country collapsed into deep mourning. For Uruguay, a country of just three million people, it was a case of two World Cups entered and two World Cups won.