1966 World Cup games ... in colour?

Discussion in 'Soccer History' started by Gregoriak, Feb 10, 2006.

  1. Gregoriak

    Gregoriak BigSoccer Supporter

    Feb 27, 2002
    Munich
    Alright, all World Cup games up to 1966 - if available - are only in black-and-white, however I have seen footage of various 1966 World Cup games in bright colour in documentaries. But the actual games, if you watch 'em in full length, they are always in standard b&w. Does anybody know the background story to that? If the BBC had colour television by 1966, why are not all 1966 games viewable in colour today? If they come from the BBC archive, they should be in colour, shouldn't they? So why are they in black and white?
     
  2. Excape Goat

    Excape Goat Member+

    Mar 18, 1999
    Club:
    Real Madrid
    I believed they used modern technology to add colors to the film. That technology came in the 1980s. I believed they even made a colored version of the movie Casablanca. My HS teacher who was a fan of the movie was damn pissed. Seriously, I think I recalled reading something similiar to WC story.
     
  3. Gregoriak

    Gregoriak BigSoccer Supporter

    Feb 27, 2002
    Munich
    That thought crossed my mind, too, but today I have seen a German "Football History" documentary from 1974, and it featured coloured footage of Portugal-Brazil, North Korea-Italy and England-West Germany, all from 1966. Unfortunately I had nothing to tape it. These games must be available in colour somewhere. It was awesome watching that footage, really fresh looking. I know even parts of the 1954 World Cup final were filmed in colour (not colourized later). Thankfully I have that footage (it was shown on German TV in 2004 due to the 50th anniversary).
     
  4. FunfzuEins2001

    FunfzuEins2001 New Member

    Feb 9, 2006
    They are colourized later. BBC did not shoot in colour in 1966, for a start this would have been seen as a little pointless, as all televisions were black and white. Colour transmissions began in 1967, but only really took hold in 1969

    (not to do with the 1966WC, but still a cool little story: http://www.focalint.org/machinerm_may04.htm)
     
  5. Gregoriak

    Gregoriak BigSoccer Supporter

    Feb 27, 2002
    Munich
    Maybe they were testing the technology in 1966. If they colorized it later, it would have had to be done by 1974, as the documentary I watched with that colour footage dates back to that year. But what would the point have been to colourize 1966 World Cup games in the early seventies? It was old news by then and not historically relevant as it was fairly recent.

    Anyway, colourized or not, this footage is awesome and I wonder why it is so rarely shown.
     
  6. Teso Dos Bichos

    Teso Dos Bichos Red Card

    Sep 2, 2004
    Purged by RvN
    It's tainted by the stench of cheating. :p


    I agree with you though Gregoriak. The colour version is far superior.
     
  7. Disco Dale

    Disco Dale Member

    Nov 29, 2005
    N8
    The 1966 World Cup final was televised live in Black and White... however any footage you have seen in colour was not "colourised", it was shot (in colour) on film, and released (in cinemas) as a film later that year, called "Goal!" - highly original title, hey? Goal! World Cup 1966
     
  8. Disco Dale

    Disco Dale Member

    Nov 29, 2005
    N8
    I ought to point out that I have seen bits of the film, and as Gregoriak it is awesome... really refreshing to see, and also Brain Glanville is always a treat to listen to...
     
  9. Gregoriak

    Gregoriak BigSoccer Supporter

    Feb 27, 2002
    Munich
    Thanks for solving the mystery!

    They must have taped these games in full length then.
     
  10. rangers00

    rangers00 Member

    Jun 1, 2000
    Notice in Goal, all the games footage were in black and white except the final.
     
  11. Spurs74

    Spurs74 Member

    Nov 10, 2003
    To better clear this up, Goal was the movie made for theatrical release in 1966 that was done in color. I know because I had a copy and that you can get almost anywhere now; Ebay, Amazon, SLS. It was narrated by an actor named Nigel Patrick; Brian Glanville scripted the commentary to be spoken. The matches themselves were all in Black & White and were either a joint production between BBC & ITV. Or just BBC which you can catch most of the play-by-play by Kenneth Wolstenholme, David Coleman, etc. If the matches existed in color, I'd be shocked because, BBC didnt show color matches until late 1969. The technology just did not come in vogue for that World Cup.
     
  12. Fiorentina lives!

    May 5, 2004
    Confusing, huh?

    Well, there is a difference between colour FILM and colour video TV.

    Colour FILM was widely available WAY before colour TV and videotape, even though the inventor of TV, Baird, already invented colour TV BEFORE the 1940s (a crude version, mind you) and some Americans had colour TVs at the start of the sixties.

    By the 60s colour TVs were starting to appear worldwide but films had been in colour for a LONG while by 1966.

    That's why you can have 1966 WC footage in colour (film) but videotape footage is B&W.

    PS: Interesting tidbits...

    1- Spain only converted to colour TV in 1975... the same year dictator Franco died and democracy was restored in Spain. Coincidence? Nah. :p

    2- Argentina was still in B&W until the 1978 WC. I sure haven't seen and cannot find any colour footage of Argentinian TV'd matches before the WC.
     

Share This Page