Skip to main content

1958 FIFA World Cup, the Beginning of Samba Supremacy

Image
By

 


The 1958 World Cup is inseparable from Brazil, as it was at this tournament that marked the rise of the Samba. The South American giant truly began their dominance and were crowned by the emergence of their greatest legend, Pelé, on Swedish soil.

Beyond everything related to the Seleção, this edition of the World Cup was the first to adopt a standardized tournament format that remains in use to this day. Group winners and runners-up progressed to the knockout stage from a round-robin group phase, in which each team faced every other side in the group. 

Sweden 1958 was also one of the editions in which Indonesia had a genuine chance of qualifying. At the time, Egypt and Sudan, who were supposed to face Indonesia in the playoff round, withdrew in protest against Israel, their prospective opponent. The Southeast Asian side eventually followed suit after FIFA rejected its proposal to play Israel at a neutral venue.

1958 World Cup Fun Facts

 Sweden 1958 produced a number of unique stories worthy of note. Here are some of the tournament’s most interesting facts:

* The Soviet Union made its World Cup debut.

* All four Home Nations from the British Isles qualified for the finals, a record that still stands today.

* Wales, who had originally failed to qualify, were given a place in an intercontinental playoff against Israel after Egypt, Sudan and Indonesia withdrew.

* This was the first World Cup to be televised in multiple countries.

* For the first time, an official match ball was used throughout the tournament.

* There were no officially seeded teams at the group draw, unlike the modern era.

* Playoff matches in the group stage were still used to decide qualification when teams finished level on points.

* Several major sides such as Italy, Uruguay and Spain failed to qualify.

* Goal difference had initially been selected to separate teams level on points, but FIFA scrapped the rule after the tournament had begun following pressure from the Swedish FA, which insisted on playoff matches to boost revenues.

Brazil End Europe’s Dominance

At this World Cup, European supremacy was finally broken. Despite being staged on European soil, none of the continent’s representatives managed to lift the trophy. Defending champions West Germany and 1954 finalists Hungary failed to arrive at full strength. While the German squad was beginning to show its declining form, the Mighty Magyars were without their biggest stars, including Ferenc Puskás, 1954 top scorer Sándor Kocsis, and Czibor.

Brazil’s journey proved relatively smooth, even though Pelé only made his first appearance in the third group match. Finishing top of a group that included the Soviet Union, England and Austria, Didi and his teammates edged past Wales 1–0 in the quarter-finals and swept aside France 5–2 in the semi-finals. Hosts Sweden, slightly favoured on home soil, reached the final after defeating the Soviet Union 2–0 and West Germany 3–1.

The final itself became a showcase of jogo bonito at its finest. Despite falling behind early to a Nils Liedholm goal, Brazil responded emphatically, scoring five times through Didi (two), Mário Zagallo and Pelé (two). The Blågult could only reduce the deficit through Simonsson.

Top scorer: Just Fontaine (France) – 13 goals

Best player: Didi (Brazil)

Best young player: Pelé (Brazil)


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Notable Short Goalkeepers at the Top Level in History

By
  A few short goalkeepers did manage to make their mark at the top level, but not anymore today. A goalkeeper has been a crucial position in football, and height has become a more and more important requirement to be a shot stopper, especially at the top level. In addition, goalkeepers have been pushed to have ball control and reading the game ability as they tend to be integrated in attacking build-up in the modern game. Regarding the height, it is almost impossible to find a man between the sticks who is below 175 cm tall. The shortest goalkeeper in the European top five is still 180 cm tall. He is the current Real Valladolid man, Jordi Masip. Nevertheless, there have been such notable short goalies at the top level in football history. Two of them even got a nod to feature in two FIFA World Cup finals. Here are those distinguished shot stoppers without the height advantage but still managed to be the first choice in his club and earn international caps. Juan Botasso (Argen...
Post a Comment
Read more

Renowned Goalkeepers who won Gold Medals at the Olympics

By
  Top goalkeepers who have won Olympic gold medals are extremely rare throughout the tournament's history. Football appears to be destined as the Olympics' secondary global tournament. Despite its distinguished status, it is not on the FIFA international calendar. As a result, those involved in the competition, from players to managers, are either past their prime or have yet to become well-known. Due to the Olympics' schedule, top players, particularly those between the sticks, are unlikely to compete. The goalkeepers named to the squad are mostly understudies or veterans from the senior teams. It's no surprise that only a few of them eventually received gold medals. The last renowned shot stoppers to win medals at the Olympics were Mexico’s Guillermo Ochoa and Spain’s Unai Simon. The former earned a bronze medal in the Tokyo 2020 summer Olympics after beating the host, Japan, in third place , while the latter only received a silver medal as he was unable to help Sp...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Most Entertaining Finals in Football at the Olympics

By
 A few finals in football at the Olympics have been regarded as the most entertaining ones as they produced goals galore. Goals are undoubtedly the source of excitement in football. No wonder that goal galore is always preferable to stalemate. The 2022 FIFA World Cup final is one recent example. Both sides traded goals, resulting in a high-scoring draw of 3-3. It is the first in World Cup history as well as considered the most entertaining one. In football at the Olympics, the goal galore has not taken place for a while. In fact, in the past 20 years, only a few goals have been scored. In Paris 2024, the fans would surely expect the clash between France and Spain to end more like the 2022 World Cup final than the 2024 EURO final, although that does not necessarily mean the latter match is less interesting than the former. Nevertheless, the goals always prevail in the eyes of the fans. Here are the four most entertaining finals in football at the Olympics that produced four go...
Post a Comment
Read more