1950 FIFA World Cup
Encyclopedia
The 1950 FIFA World Cup, held in Brazil
from 24 June to 16 July, was the fourth FIFA World Cup
. It was the first World Cup since 1938, the planned 1942 and 1946 competitions having been canceled owing to World War II
. It was won by Uruguay
, who had won the inaugural competition in 1930
, clinching the cup by beating the hosts Brazil
2–1 in the deciding match of the four-team final group (this was the only tournament not decided by a one-match final). It was also the first tournament where the trophy was referred to as the Jules Rimet Cup, to mark the 25th anniversary of Rimet
's presidency of FIFA.
, the World Cup had not been staged since 1938
; the planned World Cups of 1942 and 1946 were both cancelled. After the war, FIFA were keen to resurrect the competition as soon as possible, and they began making plans for a World Cup tournament to take place. In the aftermath of the war, much of Europe lay in ruins. As a result, FIFA had some difficulties finding a country interested in hosting the event, since many governments believed that their scarce resources ought to be devoted to more urgent priorities than a sporting celebration.
The World Cup was at risk of not being held for sheer lack of interest from the international community, until Brazil presented a bid at the 1946 FIFA Congress, offering to host the event on condition that the tournament take place in 1950 (it was originally planned to take place in 1949). Brazil and Germany had been the leading bidders to host the cancelled 1942 World Cup; since both the 1934
and 1938 tournaments had been held in Europe, football historians generally agree that the 1942 event would most likely have been awarded to a South American host country. Brazil's new bid was very similar to the mooted 1942 bid and was quickly accepted.
Having secured a host nation, FIFA would still dedicate some time to persuading countries to send their national teams to compete.
Italy
was of particular interest: the Italians were the long-standing defending champions (winners in 1934 and 1938). However, Italy's national team was weakened severely as most of its starting lineup perished in the Superga air disaster
one year before the start of the tournament. The Italians were eventually persuaded to attend, but traveled by boat rather than by plane.
Because Brazil and Italy qualified automatically, there were fourteen remaining places available. Of these, seven were allocated to Europe, six to the Americas, and one to Asia.
(still occupied and partitioned) and Japan
(still occupied) had not been permitted to compete for qualification. Italy and Austria
, on the other hand, were not subject to international sanctions, and Italy qualified automatically as defending champions. The French-occupied Saarland
had been accepted by FIFA two weeks before the World Cup, several months before the German Football Association
(DFB) was reinstated, while Soviet-occupied East Germany
had not yet founded a football association.
nations were invited to take part, having rejoined FIFA four years earlier, after 17 years of self-imposed exile. It was decided to use the 1949-1950
British Home Championship
as a qualifying group, with the top two teams qualifying. England
finished first and Scotland
second.
, such as the USSR, 1938 finalists Hungary and 1934 finalists Czechoslovakia.
(SFA), had said that Scotland would only travel to Brazil as winners of the Home Championship. (England, by contrast, had committed to attending, even if they finished in second place). After Scotland ended up in second place behind England, the Scottish captain George Young
, encouraged by England captain Billy Wright, pleaded with the SFA to change its mind and accept the place in Brazil: however Graham refused to change his position and so Scotland withdrew from the tournament.
Turkey also withdrew, citing financial problems and the cost of travelling to South America. FIFA invited Portugal and France, who had both been eliminated in qualifying, to fill the gaps left by Scotland and Turkey. Portugal refused, but France initially accepted, and was entered into the draw
After the draw, the Indian football association AIFF decided against going to the World Cup, citing travel costs, although FIFA agreed to bear a major part of the travel expenses, lack of practice time, team selection issues and valuing Olympics over FIFA World cup.
Although FIFA had imposed a rule banning barefoot
play following 1948 Olympics
where India had played barefoot, the then Indian captain Shailen Manna claims that this was just a story to cover up the real reasons for the AIFF's decision.
France also withdrew, citing the amount of travel that would be required in Group 4. There was not enough time to invite further replacement teams or to reorganize the groups, so the tournament featured only thirteen teams, with just two nations in Group 4.
Of the thirteen teams that competed, only one, England, was making its debut. Several of the South and Central American teams were competing for the first time since the inaugural 1930 tournament—this included undefeated Uruguay, as well as Mexico, Chile, Paraguay and Bolivia. Yugoslavia was also making its first appearance since 1930. This would be the USA's last appearance at the World Cup finals until 1990, and Bolivia's last until 1994.
format to determine the winner. The main reason for this choice was money: the organizers had spent a great deal on stadium and infrastructure investment. A straight knockout tournament, as had been used in 1934 and 1938, would feature only sixteen games (including the third-place playoff), while the proposed two-group format would guarantee thirty games, and thus more ticket revenue. In addition, this format would guarantee each team at least three games, and thus provide more incentive for European teams to make the journey to South America and compete. FIFA originally resisted this proposal, but backed down after Brazil threatened to back out of hosting the tournament if this format was not used.
In each group teams were awarded 2 points for a win an 1 point for a draw. There was no method for separating teams equal on points: if there was a tie for first place in a group, then a playoff
would be held to determine the group winner.
The entire tournament was arranged in such a way that the four first round groups had no geographical basis. Hence, several teams were obliged to cover large distances to complete their program, although Brazil
was allowed to play two of its three group matches in Rio de Janeiro
while its other game was in (comparatively) nearby São Paulo
.
had recently beaten the rest of Europe 6-1 in an exhibition match and England went into the competition as one of the favourites. However, it was not to be, as they went crashing out on 29 June in a shock 1-0 defeat
by the United States
(when the score appeared in English newspapers, many thought it was a misprint) which, combined with their 1-0 defeat by Spain
, led to England being eliminated. Italy, the defending champions, lost their unbeaten record at the World Cup finals when the team was defeated 3-2 by Sweden in its opening match. Because of this defeat, Italy failed to progress to the second round.
The final group stage involved the teams who won their groups: Brazil, Spain, Sweden
, and 1930 FIFA World Cup
champions Uruguay
, who were making their first World Cup appearance since winning the inaugural tournament. The World Cup winner would be the team that managed to finish on top of this group. The final group's six matches were shared between Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. Brazil played all its final group matches at the Estádio do Maracanã
in Rio while the games that didn't involve the host nation were played in São Paulo. Brazil won their first two matches with a 7-1 thrashing of Sweden and 6-1 rout of Spain. Before the decisive match, Brazil was sitting on top of the final group and had one game left to play against Uruguay, in second and only a point behind. On July 16, before a huge home crowd of 199,954 (some estimated as 205,000) in the Estádio do Maracanã, the host nation only had to draw against Uruguay and the trophy would be theirs. After such crushing victories over Spain and Sweden, it looked certain they would take the title, especially as the home nation went ahead in the second minute of the second half, thanks to a goal from Friaça
. However, Uruguay equalised and then with just over 11 minutes left to play, went ahead 2-1 when Alcides Ghiggia
squeaked a goal past Moacyr Barbosa
, and Uruguay was crowned World Cup champions for a second time. This stunning defeat surprised Brazil and is referred to as the Maracanazo.
The average attendance of nearly 61,000 per game, aided greatly by eight matches (including five featuring hosts Brazil) held in the newly-built Maracanã, set a record that would not be broken until 1994
. Not counting the Maracanã matches, the average attendance was a still-impressive 37,500. However, the only venues that saw crowds comparable to or greater than those in recent World Cups were the Maracanã and São Paulo. Other venues saw considerably smaller crowds.
.
Arthur Edward Ellis
George Reader
Reginald Leafe Charles de La Salle Generoso Dattillo Giovanni Galeati Karel van der Meer José da Costa George Mitchell
José García Carrión Ramón Roma Azon Gunnar Dahlner Ivan Eklind
Jean Lutz Benjamin Griffiths
Leo Lemešić
Americas Alfredo Álvarez Alberto da Gama Malcher Mario Gardelli
Mario Gonçalves Viana Sergio Bustamante Estevez Texada Cayetano de Nicola Mario Ruben Heyen Prudencio Garcia Esteban Marino
|}
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5 goals Estanislao Basora
Oscar Míguez
4 goals Chico Telmo Zarra
Alcides Ghiggia
3 goals Karl-Erik Palmér
Stig Sundqvist
Juan Alberto Schiaffino
2 goals
Baltazar Jair
Zizinho
Atilio Cremaschi
Riccardo Carapellese
Sune Andersson
Hasse Jeppson
Jacques Fatton
Željko Čajkovski
Kosta Tomašević
1 goal
Alfredo
Friaça
Maneca
Andrés Prieto
George Robledo Fernando Riera
Wilf Mannion
Stan Mortensen
Ermes Muccinelli
Egisto Pandolfini
Horacio Casarín
Héctor Ortiz
Atilio López
César López Fretes
Silvestre Igoa
Bror Mellberg
René Bader
Jean Tamini
Joe Gaetjens
Joe Maca Gino Pariani
Frank Wallace
Julio Pérez
Obdulio Varela
Ernesto Vidal
Stjepan Bobek
Tihomir Ognjanov
Final group
Eliminated at the first group stage
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
from 24 June to 16 July, was the fourth FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
. It was the first World Cup since 1938, the planned 1942 and 1946 competitions having been canceled owing to World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. It was won by Uruguay
Uruguay national football team
The Uruguayan national football team represents Uruguay in international association football and is controlled by the Uruguayan Football Association, the governing body for football in Uruguay. The current head coach is Óscar Tabárez...
, who had won the inaugural competition in 1930
1930 FIFA World Cup
The 1930 FIFA World Cup was the inaugural FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in Uruguay from 13 July to 30 July 1930...
, clinching the cup by beating the hosts Brazil
Brazil national football team
The Brazil national football team represents Brazil in international men's football and is controlled by the Brazilian Football Confederation , the governing body for football in Brazil. They are a member of the International Federation of Association Football since 1923 and also a member of the...
2–1 in the deciding match of the four-team final group (this was the only tournament not decided by a one-match final). It was also the first tournament where the trophy was referred to as the Jules Rimet Cup, to mark the 25th anniversary of Rimet
Jules Rimet
Jules Rimet was a French football administrator who was the 3rd President of FIFA, serving from 1921 to 1954. He was FIFA's longest serving president, having served for 33 years. He also served as the president of the French Football Federation from 1919 to 1946...
's presidency of FIFA.
Host selection
Because of World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the World Cup had not been staged since 1938
1938 FIFA World Cup
The 1938 FIFA World Cup was the third staging of the World Cup, and was held in France from 4 June to 19 June. Italy retained the championship, beating Hungary 4–2 in the final.-Host selection:...
; the planned World Cups of 1942 and 1946 were both cancelled. After the war, FIFA were keen to resurrect the competition as soon as possible, and they began making plans for a World Cup tournament to take place. In the aftermath of the war, much of Europe lay in ruins. As a result, FIFA had some difficulties finding a country interested in hosting the event, since many governments believed that their scarce resources ought to be devoted to more urgent priorities than a sporting celebration.
The World Cup was at risk of not being held for sheer lack of interest from the international community, until Brazil presented a bid at the 1946 FIFA Congress, offering to host the event on condition that the tournament take place in 1950 (it was originally planned to take place in 1949). Brazil and Germany had been the leading bidders to host the cancelled 1942 World Cup; since both the 1934
1934 FIFA World Cup
The 1934 FIFA World Cup was the second FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in Italy from 27 May to 10 June 1934....
and 1938 tournaments had been held in Europe, football historians generally agree that the 1942 event would most likely have been awarded to a South American host country. Brazil's new bid was very similar to the mooted 1942 bid and was quickly accepted.
Qualification
Italy
Italy national football team
The Italy National Football Team , represents Italy in association football and is controlled by the Italian Football Federation , the governing body for football in Italy. Italy is the second most successful national team in the history of the World Cup having won four titles , just one fewer than...
was of particular interest: the Italians were the long-standing defending champions (winners in 1934 and 1938). However, Italy's national team was weakened severely as most of its starting lineup perished in the Superga air disaster
Superga air disaster
The Superga air disaster took place on Wednesday, 4 May 1949, when a plane carrying almost the entire Torino A.C. football squad, popularly known as Il Grande Torino, crashed into the hill of Superga near Turin killing all 31 aboard including 18 players, club officials, journalists accompanying the...
one year before the start of the tournament. The Italians were eventually persuaded to attend, but traveled by boat rather than by plane.
Because Brazil and Italy qualified automatically, there were fourteen remaining places available. Of these, seven were allocated to Europe, six to the Americas, and one to Asia.
Banned teams
Both GermanyGermany national football team
The Germany national football team is the football team that has represented Germany in international competition since 1908. It is governed by the German Football Association , which was founded in 1900....
(still occupied and partitioned) and Japan
Japan national football team
The Japan national football team represents Japan in association football and is operated by the Japan Football Association, the governing body for association football in Japan...
(still occupied) had not been permitted to compete for qualification. Italy and Austria
Austria national football team
The Austria national football team is the association football team that represents the country of Austria in international competition and is controlled by the Austrian Football Association ....
, on the other hand, were not subject to international sanctions, and Italy qualified automatically as defending champions. The French-occupied Saarland
Saarland national football team
The Saarland national football team was the association football team representing Saarland from 1950 to 1956 during the French occupation following World War II...
had been accepted by FIFA two weeks before the World Cup, several months before the German Football Association
German Football Association
The German Football Association is the governing body of football in Germany. A founding member of both FIFA and UEFA, the DFB organises the German football leagues, including the national league, the Bundesliga, and the men's and women's national teams. The DFB is based in Frankfurt and is...
(DFB) was reinstated, while Soviet-occupied East Germany
East Germany national football team
The East Germany national football team was from 1952 to 1990 the football team of East Germany, playing as one of three post-war German teams, along with Saarland and West Germany....
had not yet founded a football association.
British nations
The BritishUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
nations were invited to take part, having rejoined FIFA four years earlier, after 17 years of self-imposed exile. It was decided to use the 1949-1950
1950 British Home Championship
1950 British Home Championship was one of the most significant competitions of the British Home Championship football tournament. This year saw the competition doubling up as Group 1 in the qualifying rounds for the 1950 FIFA World Cup. It was the first time that either England, Wales, Scotland or...
British Home Championship
British Home Championship
The British Home Championship was an annual football competition contested between the United Kingdom's four national teams, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland from the 1883–84 season until the 1983–84...
as a qualifying group, with the top two teams qualifying. England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
finished first and Scotland
Scotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
second.
Withdrawals before qualification
A number of teams refused to participate in the qualifying tournament, including most nations behind the Iron CurtainIron Curtain
The concept of the Iron Curtain symbolized the ideological fighting and physical boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1989...
, such as the USSR, 1938 finalists Hungary and 1934 finalists Czechoslovakia.
Withdrawals during qualification
Argentina, Ecuador and Peru in South America withdrew after the qualifying draw (in Argentina's case because of a dispute with the Brazilian Football Association). This meant that Chile, Bolivia, Paraguay and Uruguay qualified from South America by default. In Asia, the Philippines, Indonesia and Burma all withdrew, leaving India to qualify by default. In Europe, Austria withdrew, claiming its team was too inexperienced. Belgium also withdrew from the qualification tournament. These withdrawals meant that Switzerland and Turkey qualified without having to play their final round of matches.Withdrawals after qualification
Before the qualification competition, George Graham, chairman of the Scottish Football AssociationScottish Football Association
The Scottish Football Association is the governing body of football in Scotland and has the ultimate responsibility for the control and development of football in Scotland. Members of the SFA include clubs in Scotland, affiliated national associations as well as local associations...
(SFA), had said that Scotland would only travel to Brazil as winners of the Home Championship. (England, by contrast, had committed to attending, even if they finished in second place). After Scotland ended up in second place behind England, the Scottish captain George Young
George Young (footballer)
George Lewis Young was a Scottish footballer, best remembered for his association with Rangers and for being the first player to receive over 50 caps for the Scotland national team.-Club:...
, encouraged by England captain Billy Wright, pleaded with the SFA to change its mind and accept the place in Brazil: however Graham refused to change his position and so Scotland withdrew from the tournament.
Turkey also withdrew, citing financial problems and the cost of travelling to South America. FIFA invited Portugal and France, who had both been eliminated in qualifying, to fill the gaps left by Scotland and Turkey. Portugal refused, but France initially accepted, and was entered into the draw
Draw and subsequent withdrawals
The draw, held in Rio on 22 May 1950, allocated the fifteen remaining teams into four groups:- Group 1: Brazil, Mexico, Switzerland and Yugoslavia
- Group 2: England, Chile, Spain and the USA
- Group 3: Italy, India, Paraguay and Sweden
- Group 4: Uruguay, Bolivia and France
After the draw, the Indian football association AIFF decided against going to the World Cup, citing travel costs, although FIFA agreed to bear a major part of the travel expenses, lack of practice time, team selection issues and valuing Olympics over FIFA World cup.
Although FIFA had imposed a rule banning barefoot
Barefoot
Barefoot is the state of not wearing any footwear. Being barefoot is regarded as a human's natural state, though for functional, fashion and social reasons footwear is worn, at least on some occasions...
play following 1948 Olympics
1948 Summer Olympics
The 1948 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XIV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in London, England, United Kingdom. After a 12-year hiatus because of World War II, these were the first Summer Olympics since the 1936 Games in Berlin...
where India had played barefoot, the then Indian captain Shailen Manna claims that this was just a story to cover up the real reasons for the AIFF's decision.
France also withdrew, citing the amount of travel that would be required in Group 4. There was not enough time to invite further replacement teams or to reorganize the groups, so the tournament featured only thirteen teams, with just two nations in Group 4.
Of the thirteen teams that competed, only one, England, was making its debut. Several of the South and Central American teams were competing for the first time since the inaugural 1930 tournament—this included undefeated Uruguay, as well as Mexico, Chile, Paraguay and Bolivia. Yugoslavia was also making its first appearance since 1930. This would be the USA's last appearance at the World Cup finals until 1990, and Bolivia's last until 1994.
Format
The Brazilian organizers of the tournament proposed a new format in which the 16 teams were divided into four first round groups (or "pools" as they were then called) of four teams, with the four group winners advancing to a final group stage, playing in round-robinRound-robin tournament
A round-robin tournament is a competition "in which each contestant meets all other contestants in turn".-Terminology:...
format to determine the winner. The main reason for this choice was money: the organizers had spent a great deal on stadium and infrastructure investment. A straight knockout tournament, as had been used in 1934 and 1938, would feature only sixteen games (including the third-place playoff), while the proposed two-group format would guarantee thirty games, and thus more ticket revenue. In addition, this format would guarantee each team at least three games, and thus provide more incentive for European teams to make the journey to South America and compete. FIFA originally resisted this proposal, but backed down after Brazil threatened to back out of hosting the tournament if this format was not used.
In each group teams were awarded 2 points for a win an 1 point for a draw. There was no method for separating teams equal on points: if there was a tie for first place in a group, then a playoff
Playoff
The playoffs, postseason, or finals of a sports league are a game or series of games played after the regular season by the top competitors, usually but not always with a single-elimination system, to determine the league champion or a similar accolade.In the U.S...
would be held to determine the group winner.
The entire tournament was arranged in such a way that the four first round groups had no geographical basis. Hence, several teams were obliged to cover large distances to complete their program, although Brazil
Brazil national football team
The Brazil national football team represents Brazil in international men's football and is controlled by the Brazilian Football Confederation , the governing body for football in Brazil. They are a member of the International Federation of Association Football since 1923 and also a member of the...
was allowed to play two of its three group matches in Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
while its other game was in (comparatively) nearby São Paulo
São Paulo
São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among...
.
Summary
A combined Great Britain teamUnited Kingdom national football team
No United Kingdom national football team currently exists, as there are separate teams representing England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in football. These national teams compete in the World Cup and European Championships and other internationals. A UK team has played in friendly...
had recently beaten the rest of Europe 6-1 in an exhibition match and England went into the competition as one of the favourites. However, it was not to be, as they went crashing out on 29 June in a shock 1-0 defeat
England v United States (1950)
On 29 June 1950, at the 1950 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, the United States defeated England 1–0 in a group match. This unexpected result has led to the match being described as the "Miracle on Grass", in reference to the 1980 Miracle on Ice, in which the US ice hockey team beat the Soviet Union. The...
by the United States
United States men's national soccer team
The United States men's national soccer team represents the United States in international association football competitions. It is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation and competes in CONCACAF...
(when the score appeared in English newspapers, many thought it was a misprint) which, combined with their 1-0 defeat by Spain
Spain national football team
The Spain national football team represents Spain in international association football and is controlled by the Royal Spanish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Spain. The current head coach is Vicente del Bosque...
, led to England being eliminated. Italy, the defending champions, lost their unbeaten record at the World Cup finals when the team was defeated 3-2 by Sweden in its opening match. Because of this defeat, Italy failed to progress to the second round.
The final group stage involved the teams who won their groups: Brazil, Spain, Sweden
Sweden national football team
The Swedish national football team represents Sweden in association football and is controlled by the Swedish Football Association, the governing body for Football in Sweden. Sweden's home ground is Råsunda Stadium in Stockholms län and their head coach is Erik Hamrén. Sweden made their first...
, and 1930 FIFA World Cup
1930 FIFA World Cup
The 1930 FIFA World Cup was the inaugural FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in Uruguay from 13 July to 30 July 1930...
champions Uruguay
Uruguay national football team
The Uruguayan national football team represents Uruguay in international association football and is controlled by the Uruguayan Football Association, the governing body for football in Uruguay. The current head coach is Óscar Tabárez...
, who were making their first World Cup appearance since winning the inaugural tournament. The World Cup winner would be the team that managed to finish on top of this group. The final group's six matches were shared between Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. Brazil played all its final group matches at the Estádio do Maracanã
Estádio do Maracanã
The Estádio do Maracanã , officially Estádio Jornalista Mário Filho, is an open-air stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Owned by the Rio de Janeiro State Government, it is named after the Maracanã neighbourhood in Rio de Janeiro. It was opened in 1950 to host the FIFA World Cup, and in the final...
in Rio while the games that didn't involve the host nation were played in São Paulo. Brazil won their first two matches with a 7-1 thrashing of Sweden and 6-1 rout of Spain. Before the decisive match, Brazil was sitting on top of the final group and had one game left to play against Uruguay, in second and only a point behind. On July 16, before a huge home crowd of 199,954 (some estimated as 205,000) in the Estádio do Maracanã, the host nation only had to draw against Uruguay and the trophy would be theirs. After such crushing victories over Spain and Sweden, it looked certain they would take the title, especially as the home nation went ahead in the second minute of the second half, thanks to a goal from Friaça
Friaça
Albino Friaça Cardoso , best known as Friaça , was a Brazilian football striker.He was born in Porciúncula. In his career he played for Vasco da Gama, São Paulo and Ponte Preta...
. However, Uruguay equalised and then with just over 11 minutes left to play, went ahead 2-1 when Alcides Ghiggia
Alcides Ghiggia
Alcides Edgardo Ghiggia is a former Italian Uruguayan football player. He achieved lasting fame for his decisive role in the final match of the 1950 World Cup...
squeaked a goal past Moacyr Barbosa
Moacyr Barbosa
Moacir Barbosa Nascimento was a Brazilian international football goalkeeper whose career spanned 22 years. He was one of the world's best goalkeepers in the 1940s and 1950s and known for not wearing gloves because he wanted to feel the ball with his bare hands...
, and Uruguay was crowned World Cup champions for a second time. This stunning defeat surprised Brazil and is referred to as the Maracanazo.
The average attendance of nearly 61,000 per game, aided greatly by eight matches (including five featuring hosts Brazil) held in the newly-built Maracanã, set a record that would not be broken until 1994
1994 FIFA World Cup
The 1994 FIFA World Cup, the 15th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in nine cities across the United States from June 17 to July 17, 1994. The United States was chosen as the host by FIFA on July 4, 1988...
. Not counting the Maracanã matches, the average attendance was a still-impressive 37,500. However, the only venues that saw crowds comparable to or greater than those in recent World Cups were the Maracanã and São Paulo. Other venues saw considerably smaller crowds.
Venues
Six cities hosted the tournament:| Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th... |
São Paulo São Paulo São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among... |
Belo Horizonte Belo Horizonte Belo Horizonte is the capital of and largest city in the state of Minas Gerais, located in the southeastern region of Brazil. It is the third largest metropolitan area in the country... |
|---|---|---|
| Estádio do Maracanã Estádio do Maracanã The Estádio do Maracanã , officially Estádio Jornalista Mário Filho, is an open-air stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Owned by the Rio de Janeiro State Government, it is named after the Maracanã neighbourhood in Rio de Janeiro. It was opened in 1950 to host the FIFA World Cup, and in the final... |
Estádio do Pacaembu Estádio do Pacaembu Estádio do Pacaembu , as it is usually called, is a football stadium in São Paulo, located on Praça Charles Miller, no nº - in Pacaembu neighborhood. Its official name is Estádio Municipal Paulo Machado de Carvalho and it is owned by the Municipal Prefecture of São Paulo... |
Estádio Sete de Setembro Estádio Independência The Estádio Raimundo Sampaio, usually known as Estádio Independência, is in the neighborhood of Horto in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil and was opened in 1950 for the FIFA World Cup held in Brazil that year. Initially with capacity for 30,000 people, currently has capacity for 25,000 people... |
| 26°14′5.27"S 27°58′56.47"E | 33°54′12.46"S 18°24′40.15"E | 29°49′46"S 31°01′49"E |
| Capacity: 199,854 | Capacity: 60,000 | Capacity: 30,000 |
 |
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| Curitiba Curitiba Curitiba is the capital of the Brazilian state of Paraná. It is the largest city with the biggest economy of both Paraná and southern Brazil. The population of Curitiba numbers approximately 1.75 million people and the latest GDP figures for the city surpass US$61 billion according to... |
Porto Alegre Porto Alegre Porto Alegre is the tenth most populous municipality in Brazil, with 1,409,939 inhabitants, and the centre of Brazil's fourth largest metropolitan area . It is also the capital city of the southernmost Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. The city is the southernmost capital city of a Brazilian... |
Recife Recife Recife is the fifth-largest metropolitan area in Brazil with 4,136,506 inhabitants, the largest metropolitan area of the North/Northeast Regions, the 5th-largest metropolitan influence area in Brazil, and the capital and largest city of the state of Pernambuco. The population of the city proper... |
| 23.924689°S 29.468765°E | 25.46172°S 30.929689°E | 29°07′02.25"S 26°12′31.85"E |
| Estádio Durival de Britto Estádio Vila Capanema Estádio Durival Britto e Silva, better known as Estádio Vila Capanema , is the main stadium of Paraná Clube in Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil. The other club stadium is Estádio Vila Olímpica, but it is currently being used for training. The stadium holds 20,000 people... |
Estádio dos Eucaliptos Estádio dos Eucaliptos The Estádio Ildo Meneghetti, usually known as Estádio dos Eucaliptos was a football stadium located in the neighborhood of Menino Deus, in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The stadium had a maximum capacity of 20,000 people and was built in 1931.... |
Estádio Ilha do Retiro Estádio Ilha do Retiro Estádio Adelmar da Costa Carvalho, usually known as Estádio Ilha do Retiro or simply Ilha do Retiro, is a sports stadium situated in Recife, in the Brazilian state of Pernambuco, owned by Sport Recife.... |
| Capacity: 10,000 | Capacity: 20,000 | Capacity: 10,000 |
Squads
For a list of all squads that appeared in the final tournament, see 1950 FIFA World Cup squads1950 FIFA World Cup squads
Below are the squads for the 1950 FIFA World Cup tournament in Brazil. This was the first World Cup where the players' jerseys featured back numbers , though no teams had fixed numbers for each player...
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Seeding
| Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 | Pot 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| (Hosts) (Defending Champions) | (Withdrew before draw) | (Withdrew before draw) |
Match officials
Europe Alois BeranekAlois Beranek
Alois Beranek was an Austrian football player, manager and referee. Beranek was a referee in the 1934 and 1938 FIFA World Cup tournaments and an linesman at the 1950 FIFA World Cup.-Coaching career:...
Arthur Edward Ellis
Arthur Edward Ellis
Arthur Edward Ellis was an English football referee.Ellis was a referee in The Football Association competitions and in FIFA international competitions...
George Reader
George Reader
George Reader was the fourth man to referee a FIFA World Cup Final, the first Englishman to do so, and the oldest match official at any World Cup in history...
Reginald Leafe Charles de La Salle Generoso Dattillo Giovanni Galeati Karel van der Meer José da Costa George Mitchell
George Mitchell (referee)
George Mitchell was the first Scotsman to participate in a FIFA World Cup final match when he ran the line to George Reader in the 1950 final group match between Brazil and Uruguay....
José García Carrión Ramón Roma Azon Gunnar Dahlner Ivan Eklind
Ivan Eklind
Ivan Henning Hjalmar Eklind was a football referee from Sweden famous for refereeing the controversial 1934 FIFA World Cup Final between Italy and Czechoslovakia in Rome.-Rene Mercet:...
Jean Lutz Benjamin Griffiths
Sandy Griffiths
Benjamin Mervyn Griffiths was a Welsh football referee from Abertillery, Monmouthshire. In his professional life he was a teacher.-Career:...
Leo Lemešić
Leo Lemešić
Leo Lemešić was a Croatian football striker and later a football manager.On the national level he played for Yugoslavia national team and spent his entire club career with Hajduk Split....
Americas Alfredo Álvarez Alberto da Gama Malcher Mario Gardelli
Mario Gardelli
Mario Gardelli, born 1908, is a former Brazilian football referee.- Career :He officiated in the following major competitions:*1949 South American Championship *1950 FIFA World Cup -References:...
Mario Gonçalves Viana Sergio Bustamante Estevez Texada Cayetano de Nicola Mario Ruben Heyen Prudencio Garcia Esteban Marino
Esteban Marino
Esteban Marino was a Uruguayan football referee. He refereed in the Primera División de Uruguay. He is most famous for refereeing the first leg of the 1968 Copa Libertadores finals. As a World Cup linesman he got one match in 1950 World Cup and three matches in 1962.-References:...
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Group 1
| Team | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 5 | ||
| 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 3 | 4 | ||
| 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 | |||
| 3 | ||||||||
| 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 10 | |||
| 0 |
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----
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Group 2
| Team | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | |
| 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 6 | |||
| 2 | ||||||||
| 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 8 | |||
| 2 |
----
----
----
----
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Group 3
| Team | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 3 | ||
| 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 2 | ||
| 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | |||
| 1 | ||||||||
| withdrew | ||||||||
----
----
Group 4
| Team | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8 | |||
| 0 | ||||||||
 FranceFrance national football team The France national football team represents the nation of France in international football. It is fielded by the French Football Federation , the governing body of football in France, and competes as a member of UEFA, which encompasses the countries of Europe... |
withdrew | |||||||
Final Round
| Team | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 5 | 5 | ||
| 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 4 | 4 | ||
| 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 11 | |||
| 2 | ||||||||
| 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 11 | |||
| 1 |
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----
----
----
----
Scorers
9 goals AdemirAdemir Marques de Menezes
Ademir Marques de Menezes , best known as Ademir , was a Brazilian footballer, regarded as one of the best centre forwards in the history of the Brazil national team. His prominent jawbone earned him the nickname Queixada, which means "Jaw".He is best known for his exploits in the World Cup 1950...
5 goals Estanislao Basora
Estanislao Basora
Estanislao Basora Brunet is a former Spanish footballer who spent most of his career at FC Barcelona. In 1974, during the club’s 75th anniversary celebrations, he was included in their all-time best XI. Basora also played for both Spain and the Catalan XI...
Oscar Míguez
Oscar Míguez
Óscar Omar Miguez Antón was a Uruguayan footballer. He was part of the Uruguay team in the 1950 and 1954 World Cups, where he played as a striker, and is Uruguay's all-time record World Cup goalscorer with eight goals....
4 goals Chico Telmo Zarra
Telmo Zarraonaindía
Telmo Zarraonandia Montoya , popularly known as Zarra, was a Spanish Basque football player for Athletic Bilbao from 1940 to 1955....
Alcides Ghiggia
Alcides Ghiggia
Alcides Edgardo Ghiggia is a former Italian Uruguayan football player. He achieved lasting fame for his decisive role in the final match of the 1950 World Cup...
3 goals Karl-Erik Palmér
Karl-Erik Palmér
Karl-Erik Palmér, also known as Calle Palmér is a retired Swedish professional football player.-External links:*...
Stig Sundqvist
Stig Sundqvist
Stig "Vittjärv" Sundqvist is a retired Swedish professional footballer. He played 11 games for the Swedish national team and scored 3 goals in the 1950 FIFA World Cup, helping Sweden to a third place finish and their first ever world cup medal. After the World Cup he left Swedish side IFK...
Juan Alberto Schiaffino
Juan Alberto Schiaffino
Juan Alberto "Pepe" Schiaffino Villano was an Italian Uruguayan football player. He played inside forward, in particular with CA Peñarol and AC Milan, and won the 1950 FIFA World Cup with the Uruguayan national team...
2 goals
Baltazar Jair
Jair da Rosa Pinto
Jair da Rosa Pinto, or simply Jair, was an association footballer who played offensive midfielder – one of the leading Brazilian footballers of the 1940s and 50s, who is best remembered for his performance in Brazil's 1950 FIFA World Cup campaign.-Pre-1950:Born March 21, 1921 in Quatis, Rio...
Zizinho
Zizinho
Thomaz Soares da Silva, also known as Zizinho , was a Brazilian football player, who played as an attacking midfielder or winger for Brazil's national team. He came to international prominence at the 1950 World Cup, where scored two goals...
Atilio Cremaschi
Atilio Cremaschi
Atilio Cremaschi Oyarzún , was a Chilean footballer who played for Unión Española, Colo-Colo and Rangers of Chile and in the Chile national football team in the FIFA World Cup Brazil 1950...
Riccardo Carapellese
Riccardo Carapellese
Riccardo Carapellese was an Italian football striker and coach.He was born in Cerignola, province of Foggia. He died in Rapallo in 1995 at 73 years of age.-Club:...
Sune Andersson
Sune Andersson
Sune "Mona-Lisa" Andersson was a Swedish footballer and football manager.Andersson played as a midfielder from the 1930s to the 70s, appearing for A.S...
Hasse Jeppson
Hasse Jeppson
Hans "Hasse" Jeppson is a retired Swedish football striker. He was known for his impressive goals to games ratio at several clubs, most of his career was spent with Napoli in Italy...
Jacques Fatton
Jacques Fatton
Jacques "Jacky" Fatton was a Swiss footballer.-Career:Fatton, who was born in Exincourt, France, was capped 53 times and scored 29 goals for the Switzerland national football team. He played in two FIFA World Cups, scoring twice in 1950 and once in 1954.During his club career, Fatton played for...
Željko Čajkovski
Željko Cajkovski
Željko Čajkovski is a Croatian football player and coach.With the national team he won the silver medal in the football tournament of th 1948 Olympics held in lLondon, losing in the final 1-3 to Sweden, then starring the young Gunnar Nordahl, Gunnar Gren and Nils Liedholm...
Kosta Tomašević
Kosta Tomaševic
Kosta Tomašević was a Yugoslavian football player. He got 10 caps for Yugoslavia.-External links:*...
1 goal
Alfredo
Alfredo Ramos dos Santos
Alfredo Ramos dos Santos, best known as Alfredo was a Brazilian footballer in midfielder role. He was born in Rio de Janeiro....
Friaça
Friaça
Albino Friaça Cardoso , best known as Friaça , was a Brazilian football striker.He was born in Porciúncula. In his career he played for Vasco da Gama, São Paulo and Ponte Preta...
Maneca
Manuel Marinho Alves
Maneca redirects here. For the butterfly genus, see Maneca .Manuel Marinho Alves, best known as Maneca was an association footballer in striker role. He was born in Salvador Bahia, Brazil.During his career he played for Galícia, Vitória, Vasco da Gama and Bangu...
Andrés Prieto
Andrés Prieto
Andrés Prieto Urrejola is a Chilean football forward who played for Chile in the 1950 FIFA World Cup. He also played for Club Deportivo Universidad Católica. He is brother of another chilean footballer, Ignacio Prieto.-External links:*...
George Robledo Fernando Riera
Fernando Riera
Fernando Riera Bauzá was a Chilean professional football player and manager, patriarch of Chilean football.Riera was born in Santiago, Chile...
Wilf Mannion
Wilf Mannion
Wilfred James Mannion was an English professional footballer who played as an inside forward, making over 350 senior appearances for Middlesbrough. He also played international football for England...
Stan Mortensen
Stan Mortensen
Stanley Harding "Stan" Mortensen was an English professional footballer, most famous for his part in the 1953 FA Cup Final , in which he became the only player ever to score a hat-trick in a Wembley FA Cup Final...
Ermes Muccinelli
Ermes Muccinelli
Ermes Muccinelli was an Italian football player.Muccinelli was born in Lugo di Romagna, in the province of Ravenna. During his career he played for Juventus F.C. and S.S. Lazio , winning two Scudettos and one Coppa Italia...
Egisto Pandolfini
Egisto Pandolfini
Egisto Pandolfini is an Italian retired footballer.He played for 12 seasons in the Serie A for ACF Fiorentina, A.S. Roma, F.C. Internazionale Milano and SPAL 1907....
Horacio Casarín
Horacio Casarín
Horacio Casarín Garcilazo was a Mexican football player and coach who established himself as one of his country's most popular sports figures in the 1940s and 50's...
Héctor Ortiz
Héctor Ortiz (footballer)
Héctor Ortiz is a Mexican football midfielder who played for Mexico in the 1950 FIFA World Cup. He also played for Club Deportivo Marte.-External links:*...
Atilio López
Atilio López
Not to be confused with Atilio López, lieutenant of Argentine governor Ricardo Obregón Cano.Higinio Atilio López Riveros is a retired football striker and coach from Paraguay.-As player:...
César López Fretes
César López Fretes
César López Fretes was a football striker from Paraguay.López Fretes started his career at Atlántida Sport Club from Barrio Obrero and was later transferred to Olimpia Asunción. He was part of the Paraguay squad at the 1950 World Cup and was one of the goal scorers for Paraguay...
Silvestre Igoa
Silvestre Igoa
Silvestre Igoa Garciandia was a Spanish footballer. He played for Spain in the 1950 FIFA World Cup, scoring one goal. He played for Valencia CF from 1941 to 1950.-International goals:-Honours:Valencia CF...
Bror Mellberg
Bror Mellberg
Bror Lars Astley Mellberg was a football player from Sweden.He played for the Sweden national football team at the 1950 FIFA World Cup and 1958 FIFA World Cup....
René Bader
René Bader
René Bader is a Swiss football forward who played for Switzerland in the 1950 FIFA World Cup. He also played for, and later managed, FC Basel.-External links:*...
Jean Tamini
Jean Tamini
Jean Tamini was a Swiss football forward who played for Switzerland in the 1950 FIFA World Cup. He also played for FC Lyon, AS Saint-Étienne, and Servette FC.-External links:*...
Joe Gaetjens
Joe Gaetjens
Joseph Edouard Gaetjens was a Haitian soccer player who played for the United States national team in the 1950 FIFA World Cup, scoring the winning goal in the 1–0 upset of England.- Early life :...
Joe Maca Gino Pariani
Gino Pariani
Virginio “Gino” Peter Pariani was an American soccer striker. He earned 5 caps and scored 1 goal for the United States men's national soccer team, and played on the 1950 FIFA World Cup team, including the U.S. team's historic 1–0 victory over England. He was also a member of the U.S. Olympic...
Frank Wallace
Frank Wallace (soccer)
Frank Valicenti, aka Frank "Pee Wee" Wallace, was an American international soccer player who played as forward. He earned 7 caps and scored 3 goals for the United States men's national soccer team, and played in the U.S. team's historic 1–0 victory over England in the 1950 FIFA World Cup...
Julio Pérez
Julio Pérez
Julio Gervasio Pérez Gutiérrez was a Uruguayan footballer.From 1950 to 1957 he played for Club Nacional de Football, winning the Uruguayan championship in 1950, 52, 55 and 56. He also earned 22 caps and scored 9 goals for the Uruguay national football team from 1947 to 1956...
Obdulio Varela
Obdulio Varela
Obdulio Jacinto Muiños Varela was a Uruguayan football player. He was the captain of the Uruguayan national team that won the 1950 World Cup after beating Brazil in the decisive final round match popularly known as the Maracanazo...
Ernesto Vidal
Ernesto Vidal
Ernesto José Vidal, "El Patrullero", was an Italian Uruguayan footballer. He was born Ernesto Servolo Vidal in Buie d'Istria, Italy . He was part of the Uruguay national football team in the 1950 World Cup. He also played club football for C.A. Peñarol Montevideo, Rosario Central in Argentina,...
Stjepan Bobek
Stjepan Bobek
Stjepan Bobek was a football striker from Yugoslavia, and later a football manager. An ethnic Croat, Bobek started playing at a very young age and had spells with several clubs in Zagreb but is mainly remembered for his time at the Serbian side Partizan Belgrade, where he moved to following the...
Tihomir Ognjanov
Tihomir Ognjanov
Tihomir "Bata" Ognjanov was a Serban footballer who was part of Yugoslavia national football team at the 1950 and 1954 FIFA World Cup. He later became a manager. He played for Spartak Subotica , Partizan and Red Star...
FIFA Retrospective Ranking
In 1986, FIFA published a report that ranked all teams in each World Cup up to and including 1986, based on progress in the competition, overall results and quality of the opposition. The rankings for the 1950 tournament were as follows:Final group
Eliminated at the first group stage