PASADENA, Calif. - There were plenty of skeptics when the United States was awarded the 1994 World Cup. Soccer fans around the world wondered how the tournament could succeed in a country where the sport was barely a blip on the radar, where the national team was close to irrelevant.
The full stadiums around the country and the passionate fans found in every city where games were played put those concerns to rest. The 52 matches saw an average of 69,000 fans, and the full tournament attendance of nearly 3.6 million set a World Cup record that still stands, despite the fact that the tournament has since expanded from 24 to 32 teams, thus allowing for more games.
On the field, the United States surprised many by advancing out of the group stage, with help from an own goal by Columbia's Andres Escobar. Escobar's murder 10 days after the World Cup - apparently in retaliation for the own goal - cast a permanent pall over the tournament.
The biggest individual star of the tournament was probably Roberto Baggio of Italy, who, after being held scoreless in group play, scored five goals in the next three games to lead the Italians to the final against Brazil.
As for the final ... well, there have been more exciting games played. Played on July 17 in front of 94,000 fans at the Rose Bowl, Italy and Brazil played a careful, slow-paced game, devoid of many scoring chances. The match went into extra time scoreless and became the first World Cup Final to be decided on penalty kicks. There, with Brazil leading 3-2, Baggio had another chance to be the hero for Italy, but his attempt went over the bar, giving Brazil its fourth championship.
Baggio's miss:
Showing posts with label World Cup. Show all posts
Showing posts with label World Cup. Show all posts
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
June 29, 1950: The Miracle on Grass
BELO HORIZONTE, Brazil - It only takes one chance. A team can be dominating a game in every aspect, controlling the pace of play completely and exerting their will over an inferior opponent, but one shot, one little flick of the head, can knock them out.
In the second group stage game of the 1950 World Cup, England was dominating play in the first half against the United States. This was to be expected, as England entered the tournament with a record of 23-4-3 since the War ended, while the United States had lost its last seven international games by a combined score of 45-2. England was one of the favorites to win the first World Cup in 12 years, while even the United States coach admitted that his team had no chance against England.
It took the U.S. 25 minutes to get their first shot against England, while the English were peppering U.S. goalkeeper Frank Borghi with shot after shot. In the 37th minute, American high school teacher Walter Bahr took a long shot, one that English goalkeeper Bert Williams moved into position to easily stop. But Williams never touched the ball. Joe Gaetjens, a Haitian playing for the American team, dove head-first and deflected the ball - just a little flick of the head - and it got past a stunned Williams and into the net.
Under today's rules, Gaetjens wouldn't be allowed to play on the American team. Born in Haiti to German parents, he had dual citizenship to both countries, but played professionally in America. In 1950, one only had to declare an intention to become an American citizen to be allowed to play for America, and so Gaetjens did, putting him in Brazil and in position to shock the world.
That's no understatment, either. Gaetjens' goal, the only one of the game, truly did shock the world. The Brazilian fans watching the game exploded in cheers at the thought that the Americans would actually take the lead against England. When the 1-0 scoreline held up, people reading the score in newspapers in England were sure it was a misprint, some even believing it should have said 10-0 for England. Only one American newspaper was there to cover the game, and that reporter, Dent McSkimming of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, had to pay his own way and take vacation time to cover it; the paper wouldn't cover his expenses.
The years following that shocking result further drove home the magnitude of the upset. The U.S. didn't qualify for another World Cup until 1990. Gaetjens never played for the U.S. again, travelling to France before returning to Haiti to play for the Haitian national team. He never applied for U.S. citizenship and was presumed murdered in Haiti the day after a political coup in 1964.
England and the United States didn't meet again in soccer until the 2010 World Cup last week, playing to a 1-1 draw.
In the second group stage game of the 1950 World Cup, England was dominating play in the first half against the United States. This was to be expected, as England entered the tournament with a record of 23-4-3 since the War ended, while the United States had lost its last seven international games by a combined score of 45-2. England was one of the favorites to win the first World Cup in 12 years, while even the United States coach admitted that his team had no chance against England.
It took the U.S. 25 minutes to get their first shot against England, while the English were peppering U.S. goalkeeper Frank Borghi with shot after shot. In the 37th minute, American high school teacher Walter Bahr took a long shot, one that English goalkeeper Bert Williams moved into position to easily stop. But Williams never touched the ball. Joe Gaetjens, a Haitian playing for the American team, dove head-first and deflected the ball - just a little flick of the head - and it got past a stunned Williams and into the net.
Under today's rules, Gaetjens wouldn't be allowed to play on the American team. Born in Haiti to German parents, he had dual citizenship to both countries, but played professionally in America. In 1950, one only had to declare an intention to become an American citizen to be allowed to play for America, and so Gaetjens did, putting him in Brazil and in position to shock the world.
That's no understatment, either. Gaetjens' goal, the only one of the game, truly did shock the world. The Brazilian fans watching the game exploded in cheers at the thought that the Americans would actually take the lead against England. When the 1-0 scoreline held up, people reading the score in newspapers in England were sure it was a misprint, some even believing it should have said 10-0 for England. Only one American newspaper was there to cover the game, and that reporter, Dent McSkimming of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, had to pay his own way and take vacation time to cover it; the paper wouldn't cover his expenses.
The years following that shocking result further drove home the magnitude of the upset. The U.S. didn't qualify for another World Cup until 1990. Gaetjens never played for the U.S. again, travelling to France before returning to Haiti to play for the Haitian national team. He never applied for U.S. citizenship and was presumed murdered in Haiti the day after a political coup in 1964.
England and the United States didn't meet again in soccer until the 2010 World Cup last week, playing to a 1-1 draw.
Joe Gaetjens being carried off the field by Brazilian fans after scoring
the only goal in the United States' 1-0 victory over England.
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