Random World Cup Facts

Discussion in 'FIFA and Tournaments' started by Every Four Years, Jun 23, 2022.

  1. Christina99

    Christina99 Member+

    Argentina
    Sep 22, 2013
    Buenos Aires
    Nat'l Team:
    Argentina
    But Argentina, to win the world cup, beat both the current champion (France) and current runner up (Croatia).

    Not wc related but a data to have in count: in the last year and a half Argentina also beat the Champion of America (Brazil, 2021) to win the Copa America, and the champion of Europe (Italy, 2022), to win the Finalissima. And then went on to beat the champion and subchampion of the world to win the world cup.
     
  2. Gibraldo

    Gibraldo Member+

    radnicki nis
    Serbia
    Nov 17, 2005
    Club:
    FK Crvena Zvezda Beograd
    Mac Allister did not feature in the opener which Argentina lost to Saudi Arabia.

    So, most of his prominent teammates like Messi or de Paul do have a loss at this world cup.

    now i was wondering if any other team has players which only featured in winning games at this world cup and could not remember a single one.
     
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  3. californiabloke

    Jan 16, 2010

    I see your point here. However, URU and ENG were not amongst the favorites in 1986, and ITA were a shadow of the excellent team in 1982.

    Argentina's victory in 1986 also involved playing four teams in the KO stage that each lost a match in the first round (URU, ENG, BEL, and WGER). Only West Germany were a really good side here. ARG played very well in the final indeed and thus were deserved champions.

    The only WC winning team to play more than two teams in the KO rounds that lost a group-stage match were BRA in 1994 (USA, NED, and ITA).
     
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  4. californiabloke

    Jan 16, 2010
    #254 californiabloke, Dec 26, 2022
    Last edited: Dec 26, 2022
    Yes, interesting points for sure.

    However, one cannot be impressed with the circumstances:
    -FRA: missing three world-class players, including the World Player of the Year;
    -ITA: not qualifying for the WC by being eliminated at home by North Macedonia;
    -CRO: fortunate to reach the WC semi-final with one shot on target overall in 120" vs. Brazil;
    -BRA: lost the 2021 Copa America Final to ARG 0-1 at home in a virtually empty stadium.

    ARG losing to the Saudis 1-2 at the WC was not impressive either.
     
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  5. r0adrunner

    r0adrunner Member+

    Jun 4, 2011
    London, UK
    Club:
    AS Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    Also ARG is the first world champion to require two victories on penalties in the KO stage in order to win the WC.
     
  6. unclesox

    unclesox BigSoccer Supporter

    Mar 8, 2003
    209, California
    Club:
    FC Barcelona
    Regardless, Argentina did what was required of them to end up with the trophy.
     
  7. SupaMario

    SupaMario Member+

    Aug 31, 2009
    Los Angeles
    Club:
    CA Tigre
    Nat'l Team:
    Argentina
    Yes, indeed. That’s a big one! France had Kante, Pogba and Benzema and dominated the Euros a year and half back. They were so good and scary! Just ask the Swiss!

    Oh, wait!

    [​IMG]
     
  8. Every Four Years

    May 16, 2015
    Miramar, Florida
    Nat'l Team:
    India
    Yeah, international football is a completely different beast. France may just play better with Giroud after all, if only on account of squad continuity and chemistry.
     
  9. Paul Calixte

    Paul Calixte Moderator
    Staff Member

    Orlando City SC
    Apr 30, 2009
    Miami, FL
    Club:
    Orlando City SC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    #259 Paul Calixte, Dec 28, 2022
    Last edited: Dec 29, 2022
    Ok, let's look through them and see if any of this is actually Argentina's fault...

    That's on FIFA for screwing up the calendar by accepting Qatar's bait-and-switch ("Sure, we can host this in June!... actually, even putting AC in the stadiums won't be enough, how about November?") and forgetting their lessons from 2002 by having the WC start barely a week after the club season paused. Multiple injury-related absences were inevitable, including Argentina's own Lo Celso.

    Absolutely nothing to do with Argentina, Italy have just been piss-poor at WCQ in recent years.

    That's on Brazil for failing to manage the game after their go-ahead goal.

    IMO - and, apparently, in the Brazilian players' opinions as well - that Copa América should never have happened. But they had the chance to up and boycott (wouldn't have been unprecedented... see 2001) and didn't, so they'll have to own the embarrassment of blowing that Final to their archrivals at home.

    For some reason, FIFA never took up my idea of only offering a silver WC trophy to champions who lose in the group stage :rolleyes:

    Call it a weak field all you want (as long as you're willing to do the same for 2002 Brazil), but Scaloni's side beat - or overcame on PKs, which is an impressive achievement in its own right in what some, less accomplished football cultures consider to be a crapshoot :cautious: - the opponents in front of them to win the title. The rest is conjecture and documentary fodder.
     
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  10. californiabloke

    Jan 16, 2010
    Yes indeed, this was a rather weak field, quite similar to BRA in 2002, who were never seriously challenged. Too much was made of Brazil's qualification matches prior to the WC, where they struggled somewhat.

    The reality now is that the UEFA Champions League has superseded the WC in terms of quality; this has been true for many years. The last really good WC sides were GER in 2014, and ESP in 2010, the best team in the past 20 years by far and loaded with world-class players.

    ARG in this last WC reminded me of the Chicago Bulls in the mid to late 1990s, where an aging superstar dominated the NBA, with hardly any serious competition.
     
  11. Gibraldo

    Gibraldo Member+

    radnicki nis
    Serbia
    Nov 17, 2005
    Club:
    FK Crvena Zvezda Beograd
    almost half of the teams at this world cup had either the home or away kit in full red.

    however you need to go back to the final of WC 1966 with England to relive the last time, a team with a red shirt played in a WC final.

    Spain wore red as their home shirt in 2010, but played in dark blue in the final against the Dutch.

    one can debate about Croatia in 2018 with their red and with their checkers, but indont count that as full red.

    Morocco was quite close this time.

    So if we look to the semi finals, does it look better?

    no!

    Not one single team of the 2nd rounds of WCs 1974 and 1978 had a red home kit! Poland and Peru played on red but it was thier reserve shirts.

    As for semi finalists, we only had Belgium 1986, South Korea and Turkey 2002, Portugal 2006, Spain 2010, Belgium 2014 and now Morocco 2014 playing in a red shirt. So only 7 teams out of 44 semi finalists since 1970.

    ... and they always say, red is a fierce and winning color.

    Doesn't look like that at World Cups.
     
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  12. HomietheClown

    HomietheClown Member+

    Dusselheim FC 1971
    Sep 4, 2010
    Club:
    --other--
    Al I could think about is the song Red, Red wine when I read that post.
     
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  13. Gibraldo

    Gibraldo Member+

    radnicki nis
    Serbia
    Nov 17, 2005
    Club:
    FK Crvena Zvezda Beograd
    World Cup 2018 and 2022 had some strange similiarities.

    in both world cups, the group winner of Group C played the winner of Group D and in both occassions the winner of C won.

    in both world cups, the other semi-finalists were coming from the same group, group G in 2018 and group F in 2022 and so, both met again in the 3rd place match.

    Consequently, for 2 world cups now, not a single team of the groups A, B, E and H reached a semi final.
     
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  14. f_herman_28

    f_herman_28 Member

    May 9, 2013
    Club:
    Liverpool FC
    32-team WC champions with the most points - Brazil 02' with 21 points (7-0-0)
    32-team WC champions with the fewest points - Argentina 22' with 14 points (4-2-1)

    Overall ranking
    1 - 21 Brazil 02' (7-0-0)
    2 - 19 Germany 14' (6-1-0) +14 GD
    3 - 19 France 98' (6-1-0) +13 GD
    4 - 19 France 18' (6-1-0) +8 GD
    5 - 18 Spain 10' (6-0-1)
    6 - 17 Italy 06' (5-2-0)
    7 - 14 Argentina 22' (4-2-1)
     
  15. Viking lord

    Viking lord Member

    Uruguay
    Aug 4, 2022
    Nat'l Team:
    Uruguay
    I was compiling some date, so I came up with this small trivia:

    Easy:
    - Who was the only team that faced teams from all 5 confederations at the 2022 World Cup? (you know, without OFC)

    Not that easy, but still:
    - Which non-North American teams that participated in Qatar 2022 have never played against a CONCACAF team at a world cup?
    - Which non-African teams that participated in Qatar 2022 have never played against a CAF team at a world cup?
    - Which non-Asian teams that participated in Qatar 2022 have never played against an AFC team at a world cup?

    Canada is the only participating non South American team in 2022 that didn't play or has never played against a CONMEBOL team at any world cup.
    Everyone played or has at least played against a UEFA team before.
     
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  16. Hayaka

    Hayaka Member+

    Jun 21, 2009
    San Francisco North Bay, Bel Marin Keys
    Club:
    --other--
    Nat'l Team:
    Denmark
    Just off the top of my head:

    Easy:
    - Who was the only team that faced teams from all 5 confederations at the 2022 World Cup? (you know, without OFC)

    Croatia

    Not that easy, but still:
    - Which non-North American teams that participated in Qatar 2022 have never played against a CONCACAF team at a world cup?

    Qatar, Senegal, Denmark, Australia, Serbia (if Yugoslavia doesn't count as Serbia's predecessor).

    - Which non-African teams that participated in Qatar 2022 have never played against a CAF team at a world cup?

    Wales, Costa Rica

    - Which non-Asian teams that participated in Qatar 2022 have never played against an AFC team at a world cup?

    Canada
     
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  17. Every Four Years

    May 16, 2015
    Miramar, Florida
    Nat'l Team:
    India
    Serbia played Costa Rica in 2018.
     
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  18. Hayaka

    Hayaka Member+

    Jun 21, 2009
    San Francisco North Bay, Bel Marin Keys
    Club:
    --other--
    Nat'l Team:
    Denmark
    Yep. I forgot that one.
     
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  19. Gibraldo

    Gibraldo Member+

    radnicki nis
    Serbia
    Nov 17, 2005
    Club:
    FK Crvena Zvezda Beograd
    Which 2 nations participated 5 times together at the same world cup edition and 1 time at the same euro but never played a competitive match against each, final tournaments, qualifiers and nations league included?
     
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  20. Hayaka

    Hayaka Member+

    Jun 21, 2009
    San Francisco North Bay, Bel Marin Keys
    Club:
    --other--
    Nat'l Team:
    Denmark
    Hmm. I don't know the answer, but i would guess that the one Euro is one of the last two when the Euros expanded to 24 teams. Probably one or both of the teams went to a lot of the early World Cups, but has declined since.

    Maybe Austria and Hungary?
     
  21. Hayaka

    Hayaka Member+

    Jun 21, 2009
    San Francisco North Bay, Bel Marin Keys
    Club:
    --other--
    Nat'l Team:
    Denmark
    Oh yeah, can't be them. They were both at the last two Euros.
     
  22. Gibraldo

    Gibraldo Member+

    radnicki nis
    Serbia
    Nov 17, 2005
    Club:
    FK Crvena Zvezda Beograd
    No,
    Austria and Hungary played against each other at WC 1934, in WC-Qualifiers for 1966, 1974, 1986,.
    And they crossed swords in Euro 2016 Group Stage and EC-Qualifiers 1976.
    So 10 competitive matches.
     
  23. Every Four Years

    May 16, 2015
    Miramar, Florida
    Nat'l Team:
    India
    Is one of the teams Scotland or Bulgaria by any chance? There are only a small handful of teams which have such a poor record in the Euros yet historically have a decent record of qualifying for World Cups.
     
  24. Hayaka

    Hayaka Member+

    Jun 21, 2009
    San Francisco North Bay, Bel Marin Keys
    Club:
    --other--
    Nat'l Team:
    Denmark
    Are we including teams that have disappeared, e.g. USSR and Yugoslavia?
     
  25. pipinogol

    pipinogol Member+

    May 20, 2016
    Club:
    Cary RailHawks U23
    If defunct teams don't count one of the two 100% has to be Bulgaria/Romania/Scotland/Denmark/Netherlands since they are the only 5+ WC teams that skipped at least one the last two euros, in which basically everyone qualified.
     

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