The World Cup is the largest sports event outside the summer Olympics: The progress of the 32 countries which qualify for the finals is watched by billions all over the globe. Since the very first World Cup in Uruguay in 1930, there have been 18 finals, held every four years (with a 12-year break over the World War II period). The World Cup in South Africa will be the 19th. Brian Glanville, the distinguished journalist and World Cup historian, has written a fascinating history of the event. Here are the men who played, the goals they scored, the triumphs, the failures, the sho.
2 Sir Bobby Charlton - the Significance of the World Cup for the Player
3 A World Cup for Football - the Concept
4 1930 Uruguay
5 Semi-Finals: Argentina V USA; Uruguay V Yugoslavia
6 1934 Italy
7 The Tournament Was Played on a Straight Knock-Out Basis
8 The Final: Italy V Czechoslovakia
9 1938 France
10 The Semi-Finals: Hungary V Sweden; Italy V Brazil
11 The Final: Italy V Hungary
12 1950 Brazil
13 The Final Pool: Uruguay, Brazil, Spain, Sweden
14 The Final: Brazil V Uruguay
15 1954 Switzerland
16 The Quarter-Finals
17 The Semi-Finals: Hungary V Uruguay; West Germany V Austria
18 The Final: West Germany V Hungary
19 1958 Sweden
20 The Quarter-Finals
21 The Semi-Finals: Sweden V West Germany; Brazil V France
22 The Final: Sweden V Brazil
- Disc 2 -
1 1962 Chile
2 The Quarter-Finals
3 The Semi-Finals: Brazil V Chile; Czechoslovakia V Yugoslavia
4 The Final: Brazil V Czechoslovakia
5 1966 England
6 The Quarter-Finals
7 The Semi-Finals: England V Portugal; West Germany V Soviet Union
8 The Final: England V Germany
9 1970 Mexico
10 The Quarter-Finals
11 The Semi-Finals: Italy V West Germany; Brazil V Uruguay
12 The Final: Brazil V Italy
13 1974 West Germany
14 Two Final Pools
15 The Final: Germany V Holland
16 1978 Argentina
17 Group a
18 Group B
19 The Final: Argentina V Holland
20 1982 Spain
21 Groups A-C
22 The Semi-Finals: Italy V Poland; West Germany V France
23 The Final: Italy V West Germany
- Disc 3 -
1 1986 Mexico
2 The Second Round
3 The Quarter-Finals
4 The Semi-Finals: West Germany V France; Argentina V Belgium
5 The Final: Argentina V Germany
6 1990 Italy
7 The Second Round
8 The Quarter-Finals
9 The Semi-Finals: West Germany V England; Argentina V Italy
10 The Final: Germany V Argentina
11 1994 USA
12 The Second Round
13 The Quarter-Finals
14 The Semi-Finals: Italy V Bulgaria; Brazil V Sweden
15 The Final: Brazil V Italy
16 1998 France
17 The Second Round
18 The Quarter-Finals
19 The Semi-Finals: Brazil V Holland; France V Croatia
20 The Final: France V Brazil
- Disc 4 -
1 2002 Korea and Japan
2 In Saitama, in Group F, England
3 What of Brazil?
4 The Second Knock-Out Round
5 The Quarter-Finals
6 The Semi-Finals: Germany V Korea; Brazil V Turkey
7 The Final: Brazil V Germany
8 2006 Germany
9 The Second Round
10 The Quarter-Finals
11 The Semi-Finals: Portugal V France; Italy V Germany
12 The Final: Italy V France
13 1950 - Brazil: My First Awareness of the World Cup
14 1954 - Switzerland: Watched By Brazil
15 1958 - Sweden: On the Subs Bench - Watching Pele
16 1962 - Chile: England Gets to the Quarter-Final
17 1966 - England: Victory
18 1966 - the Toughest Team: Argentina
19 1966 - the Final Against West Germany
20 1966 - One of the Best World Cup Finals
21 1966 - That Goal!
22 1970 - It Is a Good Habit Winning
23 The Game Today
24 I Don't Want to Talk England Up Too Much
The World Cup is the largest sports event outside the summer Olympics: The progress of the 32 countries which qualify for the finals is watched by billions all over the globe. Since the very first World Cup in Uruguay in 1930, there have been 18 finals, held every four years (with a 12-year break over the World War II period). The World Cup in South Africa will be the 19th. Brian Glanville, the distinguished journalist and World Cup historian, has written a fascinating history of the event. Here are the men who played, the goals they scored, the triumphs, the failures, the sho.