Random World Cup Facts

Over the past 5 WCs, the 8 countries that finished in the final 8 more than once are:

1. Germany: all 5 times
2. Brazil: all 5 times
3. Argentina: 4 times
4. France: 3 times
5. Holland: 3 times
6. Italy: 2 times
7. Spain: 2 times
8. England: 2 times

All in all, kind of what you would expect, with maybe Italy and Spain having underachieved.

The countries that made it once are:

Belgium, Costa Rica, Colombia, Uruguay, Paraguay, Ghana, Portugal, Ukraine, Turkey, South Korea, USA, Senegal, Croatia, Denmark.

 

Semi-finalists over the last 5 World Cups:

1. Germany: 4 times
2. Brazil: 3 times
3. Holland: 3 times
4. France: 2 times

Countries that have made it once: Argentina, Spain, Uruguay; Italy, Portugal, South Korea, Turkey, Croatia.

 

Irelands 1990 qualyfing campaign has some remarkable figures:

They played 8 matches vs. Spain, N. Ireland, Hungary and Malta
They did not score a single goal in the first 3 matches.
They did not concede a single goal in the last 6 matches, with the 3rd match in Budapest contributing to both streaks.

 

It's strange that Uruguay which won the opening World Cup in 1930 hasn't won since past 67 years. A generation of the country would be waiting for its win.

 

Uruguay is what it is.
A team with a lot of grit and a lot of strength, defense and organization. A lot of passionate players. Also good set pieces, and individual players who are some of the best.

But it takes more than that to win. For many years now they just lack the creativity and the technique it takes to control the game in the midfield. Their style of game and culture is just not suit up for the tiki-taka that has become the ideal winning formula these days.

Also, there is always an issue with depth. They seem to always call up the same base of 18 players and there is a big drop off in quality and leadership after that.

 

Not strange at all if you look at all World Cup winners in the modern era. Uruguay has a very low population and a relatively low GDP. These are pretty good predictors of footballing success, along with footballing history.

Actually, Uruguay are punching above their weight considering these factors.

You have the best shot at a World Cup if you're a rich, highly populated country with strong footballing culture.

 

Uruguay were semifinalists as recently as 2010. Not too shabby.

 

You have to "hand" it to them.

 

they found their bite again....

 

They seem to hate the Germans.

Germany (or West Germany) missed the WC only twice: 1930 & 1950
Those were the only times Uruguay won the title. They'll have to wait until the next time the Germans miss on qualifying it seems.

 

West Germany is Germany.

 

I wouldn't take it so tough on them, since Uruguay's longest gap without reaching semi's at the WC, was for only 40 years (semi's in 1970, till semi's in 2010).

Biggest gap, between 2 successive semi's at the WC for teams of South America (where only 3 teams have reached semi's more than once), belongs to Argentina, whom from their first semi (1930 WC), till their second time ever reaching semi's (1978 WC), counts for up to 48 years.



Take a guess, whom is the team from South America that has lost more times the final match at the WC......(among the 3 big teams in South America, Uruguay has won it, every time they reach that last match).

 

I'm pretty sure it's Argentina - 3 losses 1930, 1990, 2014. Brazil has 2 losses if I'm not mistaken (1950 (if you count that) + 1998)

 

That's right (in any case, I wanted whom wrote the OP, to answer that one.....).

Argentina is the only team among teams whom have ever won the WC before, that has more defeats than wins at the final match of WC's (both Germany and France, are up to now, even, on this)

 

So Argentina either have to win another world cup soon before losing another, or hope that Holland, Hungary or Czech Republic win a world cup to take this record away from them... I guess Slovakia could also do it, too...

 

The last defeat was hurting as it entered final almost after 15 years and it was the team of the World's best player.

 

Agreed! But it was good that its team finished in the final four of the event in 2010 losing to Netherlands.

 

'Tis better to have loved and lost reached a World Cup final and lost than to have not loved reached a World Cup final at all.

 

I'd say it's better to know that you've lost the final rather than losing in the semi and wondering whether you would have won/lost in the final.

 

"Cebollitas".......


(ask someone from Argentina to explain what it refers to. Just in case, it's not a bad word or anything like it)

 

I fully agree.

You have to experience it by yourself to know how heart-breaking it is to see your team losing in the final.