In the next seven World Cups to follow 1962, the World Cup would see almost nonstop growth into becoming a cultural phenomenon. Legends of the game like Cruyff, Maradona and Beckenbauer all leaving an impact on the sports most coveted prize. From black and white to technicolour, from the Jules Rimet Trophy to the World Cup Trophy we know today! This is the story of most memorable games from each World Cup from 1962 – 1990.
1966. North Korea 1 – Italy 0
Okay, hear me out all you English readers wondering where the 1966 final is! Going into this final group stage game played in Middlesbrough, no one gave the secluded secretive nation of North Korea a chance against the consensus, much better Italian side. North Korea sat on one point whilst Italy sat on two (two points for a win at this point), so they knew what they had to do – win. But it certainly wasn’t going to be easy. Italy was a team littered with stars such as Sandro Mazzola, Giacinto Facchetti and Gianni Rivera. Many of the Italian players played for the two Milan giants – Inter and AC, and from 1963-1969, both Inter and AC Milan combined for four European Cups. In contrast, you would be hard pressed to find anyone who knew anything about the North Korean side.
In front of 18,727 fans at Ayresome park, Italy made a strong start and could easily have gone 2-0 up if Marino Perani was more clinical in front of goal. However, North Korea grew into the game, and indeed as fate would have it – they were to be given a huge advantage. In an age before substitutions, Italy’s Giacomo Bulgarelli has to be taken off the field due to injury which forced the Italian to play with ten men. Now with a man advantage, North Korea got the ball into the box and with forty-one minutes on the clock, Pak Doo-Ik. wrapped his foot around the ball and slotted it into the bottom left corner to give his side a shock lead! Italy pushed in the second half, but they couldn’t find an equaliser and North Korea held onto secure one of the biggest World Cup shocks of all time! They has made the quarterfinals of the World Cup at Italys expense. North Korea would eventually bow out in the next round to Portugal in a game that finished 5-3. Not much is known about North Korea even today in 2022 – but that doesn’t change the fact that on July 19th 1966, they had their moment in the sun!
1970. Italy 4 – Germany 3
At the time, this was known as one of the Mexico 1970 World Cup Semi-Final’s, today – it is known as ‘The Game of The Century!’ By 1970, Germany was regarded as one of the best sides in Europe. World Cup runners up in 1966 and winners of the still to come 1972 Euros and 1974 World Cup, this was a team that didn’t fear anyone. Meanwhile Italy had won the 1968 Euros, and if not for a shock to North Korea in the 1966 group stage could’ve perhaps had a big impact in that tournament. It would indeed be Italy who made the brighter start, taking the lead eight minutes in through Roberto Boninsegna. From that point, the game was absolutely end to end with both teams having an abundance of chances to ass to the scoreline. Germany in particular had glorious chance after glorious chance to equaliser before Karl-Heinz Schnellinger finally fired home the equaliser in the ninety-second minute – sending the game to extra time.
If normal time was about two teams struggling to be clinical, extra time was anything but! First, German goal-machine Gerd Müller latched onto an Italy mistake to instinctively give Germany the lead four minutes into extra time, and from this point in the floodgates opened. Germany returned the favour with their own defensive error just four minutes later to allow Tarcisio Burgnich to equalise. Shortly after, Italy capped off a perfect counter-attack with a goal from Gigi Riva, giving Italy a 3-2 less pas going into the second half of extra time. German talisman Gerd Müller scored his second goal five minutes after the restart to make it 3-3, but before you could catch your breath, Boninsegna found Gianni Rivera who made it 4-3 just seconds after Italy kicked off from conceding mere second beforehand, in the space of just twenty-two minutes of play, the game went from 1-0 to 4-3! Italy held on from there, the game has been immortalised by a bronze plaque at the Estadio Azteca – the venue for the game, and to anyone who has watched it, it’s no wonder it it’s the nickname it does!
1974. West Germany 0 – East Germany 1
This wasn’t the highest scoring game, nor was it played in the latter stages, but because of the politics of the time – this was a must watch game! Since 1945, Germany has been split into two, a capitalist West and a communist East. In a time of Cold War, proxy wars and nuclear threat, East and West Germany became a microcosm of the biggest geo-political issues of the time. Even the city of Berlin was separated in two by a literal and heavily guarded wall. So when West and East Germany we’re drawn against each other in the 1974 World Cup that happened to be played in West Germany, the world gathered to watch the ideologically opposed brothers meet on the football pitch.
West Germany were favourites, by the mid seventies – German side Bayern Munich were dominating Europe and a huge contingent of the Bayern team where in that West Germany side. Meanwhile East Germany was competing in its first and only World Cup. The game was played at Hamburg’s Volksparkstadion and 60,200 fans crammed in to watch the most politically charged game the World Cup had seen to that point! Although the hosts were clear favourites, the Easterners scored late on through Jürgen Sparwasser, sealing a famous 1-0 win for communist east! As was customary at the time, the East Government used the win as a political win to showcase communisms superiority over capitalism. However the west would have the last laugh, with West Germany going on to win their second World Cup title!
1978. Argentina 6 – Peru 0
Look away now Brazil fans…this one will more than likely make you angry! The 1978 is controversial now, and was controversial then. Argentina was under a military dictatorship, and the regime was determined to put on a good show by using Argentina’s success as a propaganda tool. That would require La Albiceleste to deliver on the pitch and going into their final game of the second group stage. In 1978, there was two group stages and the winners of both groups would compete in the final. Brazil lead Argentina’s group after three game’s- however Angelina still had their game to play against Peru. The task was tough, to reach the final Argentina would have to win AND overturn a four goal deficit.
Argentina could consider themselves lucky they weren’t 2-0 down, as Peru twice hit the woodwork from counter attacks, but the 37,091 crowd at Rosario’s Estadio Gigante de Arroyito we’re given reason to believe as goals from Mario Kempes and Alberto Tarantini gave the hosts a 2-0 lead going into the half. In the second half, Argentina continued to pile the pressure on a Peru side that played very poorly on the day, and managed to score four more goals to win comfortably 6-0. To be frank, this game is me memorable as it’s became synonymous with everything wrong about the 1978 World Cup. The entire tournament was shrouded in alleged corruption, with it being obvious to anyone paying attention that everything possible was being done to help Argentina win, with there being very clear and vocal accusations of cheating . That game against Peru is riffed with conspiracy theories about why Peru played so poorly – most related to Argentina dictator Jorge Rafael Videla having made some sort of deal with his Peruvian counterpart. Videla even made multiple trips into the Peruvian teams dressing room before and after the game. In hindsight, the 1978 World Cup win may have helped the dictatorship remain in power, leading to thousands more innocent Argentinian deaths, while this game against Peru was memorable – it was memorable for all the wrong reasons!
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1982. France 3 – West Germany 3 (W. Germany wins 5-4 on penalties)
I was initially thinking of putting Italy 3 – Brazil 2 in this slot, but ultimately there was no way I could leave out one of the most iconic World Cup semi final games of all time – played in Sevilla, Spain. While it’s hard to imagine now, France we’re a relatively small team back then, far from a European and world powerhouse. Other than a third place finish in 1958, they had failed to get passed the group stage since 1938, and had failed to qualify more often than not. But this France team was different, stars like Dominique Rocheteau, Alain Giresse and Michel Platini spearheaded the best France side in a generation, leading them to the semi-finals against the much fancied West Germans.
Germany opened the scoring early on through winger Pierre Littbarski tucking in a rebound. But France soon responded when their talisman, Michel Platini converted from the penalty spot to make it 1-1 after twenty-seven minutes. The game would continue to be very open with both teams creating plenty of chances, most notably when French right back Manuel Amoros hit the crossbar right at the end of the ninety-minutes! Extra time was required, and early on it looked like French would be reaching their FIFA World Cup final after goals from Marius Trésor and Alain Giresse gave France a seemingly comfortable 3-1 lead. But undeterred, the Germans fought back with Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and Klaus Fischer levelling it up and resulting in the first ever World Cup penalty shootout! Misses from Uli Stielike (GER) and Didier Six (FRA) meant that the shootout went to sudden death – Horst Hrubesch kept his nerve…Maxime Bossis. Germany goalkeeper Toni Schumacher, who should’ve been sent off earlier for a horror challenge on Frances Patrick Battiston was the hero as West Germany won a classic! It was also the start of a great World Cup stats about the Germans and penalties, Germany/ West Germany has never lost a World Cup penalty shootout, indeed only failing to convert one spot kick ever on the biggest stage!
1986. Argentina 2 – England 1
Diego Armando Maradona. If the world remembers him for one game and one game only, this is the one. In a quarterfinal match in Mexico City, against a country his homeland was at war with just four years ago – El Pibe de Oro would play the game that would define him to billions. A massive crowd of 114,580 spectators was in attendance at Mexico’s Estadio Azteca and they witnessed Argentina start the game better. They dominated possession in the first half and created some chances, although England arguably had the best chance when Peter Beardsley‘s angled shot sailed just wide. Both teams came out for the second half with the score still 0-0, but that would soon change.
Six minutes into the second half, Maradona and Argentina advanced the ball upfield towards England’s eighteen-yard box. Jorge Valdano received the ball but was quickly disposed by Steve Hodge who kicked the ball directly up in the air towards the path of his goalkeeper Peter Shilton. But before the 6ft 1 inch goal keeper could collect the ball, he was out jumped by the 5ft 5 inches Diego Maradona, who appeared to “head” the ball into the next making it 1-0 Argentina. England were incensed! Replays showed that Maradona used his hand to bat the ball in the net, but the referee missed the foul. Maradona would later coin the term “The Hand of God” to describe the goal. If that goal was unforgettable, what happened next was also the stuff of football immortality. Just four minutes later, Maradona picked the ball up in his own half and decided to go for a run. He immediately spun past England players, and then began a sixty-yard direct run towards the England goal, Maradona went past two more England and when bearing down on goal, jinx to the left and slotted the ball calmly passed Shilton. Today it is known as “The Goal of The Century” – if you haven’t seen it, go source it out. Gary Lineker cut the deficit in half but it wasn’t enough, Maradona had almost single ‘handily’ defeated England. This is not just one of the most famous games in World Cup history, it’s one of the most famous games in sports history! – All thanks to one man.
1990. England 3 – Cameron 2
The 1990 World Cup in Italy was not much of classic. While some countries like Germany, Ireland and England might have fond memories – the tournament has became synonymous with low scoring defensive matchups. But in a sea of poor football came a match that was genuinely entertaining, the Quarter-Final between England and Cameroon in Naples. Cameroon had been the darlings of the tournament, talisman Rodger Milla had lead to Cameroon improbable wins against Argentina, Romania and Colombia – becoming the first ever African side to reach the last eight of the World Cup! Their reward was an England side that yet to fully find their groove, but they would go about changing that early on.
Twenty-five minutes to the first half, midfielder David Platt headed in a Stuart Pearce cross to make it 1-0, and it stayed that way going half time. But West African nation wasn’t about to give up so easily. Cameroon did have a one or two chances in the first half, but the injection of the thirty-eight year old Milla gave them new impotence. Milla won a penalty at the hour mark, and Emmanuel Kundé made no mistake from the spot. Then just minutes later, Milla played a defence splitting ball through to Eugène Ekéké who made it 2-1 to Cameroon, stunning the English! England would eventually get a penalty of their own and Gary Lineker’s finish would send the game to extra time. In the 105th minute, Lineker ran onto a through ball from Paul Gascoigne, which would lead to him being fouled in the box. Lineker scored the third penalty of the game to make it England 3 – Cameroon 2. England would hold on to win a thriller, and reach their first Semi-Final since 1966. Cameron could also hold their head high by putting an entire continent on the map!
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