1938 FIFA World Cup
| 1938 FIFA World Cup | |
| Coupe du Monde 1938 | |
| Tournament details | |
| Host country |  France |
| Teams | 15 (from 4 confederations) |
| Venue(s) | 10 (in 10 host cities) |
| Final positions | |
Champions  |
 Italy (2nd title) |
Runners-up  |
 Hungary |
Third place  |
 Brazil |
| Fourth place |  Sweden |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 18 |
| Goals scored | 84 (4.67 per match) |
| Attendance | 483,000 (26,833 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | Leônidas (7 goals) |
The 1938 FIFA World Cup was the third staging of the World Cup, and was held in France from 4 June to 19 June. France was chosen as hosts by FIFA in August 1936. Italy retained the championship, beating Hungary 4-2 in the final.
Contents |
Qualification
FIFA's decision during the celebration of the 1936 Summer Olympics to hold the tournament in France caused outrage in South America where it was believed that the venue would alternate between the two continents. Instead, it was the second tournament in a row to be played in Europe. As a result neither Uruguay nor Argentina entered the competition. Spain had the record to be the first country to be out of the World Cup because of a war (the Spanish Civil War).
It was the first time that the hosts (France) and the title holders (Italy) qualified automatically. Title holders were given an automatic entry into the World Cup until 2006 when this was abolished.
Originally 16 nations were going to take part. Austria had qualified but after the Anschluss to Germany in March, they withdrew, leaving 15 teams to take part. FIFA didn't offer participation to the runner-up of the qualification group, that Austria played in, Latvia.
Summary
The tournament was again held in a knockout format, similar to 1934. This was the last tournament where there was not a group stage.
Germany, France, Italy, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Cuba and Brazil were seeded for draw taking place in Paris, on 5 March, 1938. [1]
Five of the first round matches required extra time to break the deadlock; two games still went to a replay. The replays saw Switzerland oust the team of Germany, to which some Austrian players had been added for political reasons, with a score of 4-2, while Cuba managed to advance to the next round at the expense of Romania.
Sweden advanced directly to the quarter-finals due to Austria's withdrawal, and they proceeded to beat Cuba 8-0. The hosts, France, were beaten by the holders, Italy (wearing a provocative all-black 'fascist' strip), and Switzerland were seen off by Hungary. Czechoslovakia took Brazil to extra time in a notoriously feisty match in Bordeaux before succumbing in a replay; the South Americans proved too strong for the depleted Czechoslovak side (both Oldřich Nejedlý and František Plánička had suffered broken bones in the first game) and won 2-1.
Hungary destroyed Sweden in one of the semi-finals 5-1, while Italy and Brazil had the first of their many important World Cup clashes in the other. The Brazilians rested their star player Leônidas confident that they would qualify for the final, but the Italians won 2-1. Brazil topped Sweden 4-2 for third place.
The final itself took place at the Stade Olympique de Colombes in Paris. Vittorio Pozzo's Italian side took the lead early, but Hungary equalised within two minutes. The Italians took the lead again shortly after, and by the end of the first half were leading the Hungarians 3-1. Hungary never really got back into the game. With the final score favouring the Italians 4-2, Italy became the first team to successfully defend the title and were once more crowned World Cup winners.
Some argued that Hungary - or at least its goalkeeper - allowed Italy to win, as a measure to save the lives of the Italian Team, which had received telegrams by Benito Mussolini with "Vincere o morire!" (mistranslated as "Win or die") written on them. Hungarian goalkeeper Antal Szabó expressed his relief following his side's defeat against Italy despite letting in four goals in the loss. Referring to Mussolini's pre-match threats, Szabó quipped "I may have let in four goals, but at least I saved their lives". Actually, this is not the case. "Win or die" was a typical slogan of encouragement from fascist era, meaning "Victory or bust!" or "do your best to get victory". The fascist regime held sporting heroes and champions in high regard, greatly using them in their propaganda machine, so an act like the one suggested by Szabó was not realistic. Szabó's words may have been perhaps an honest misunderstanding. [2]
Due to World War II, the World Cup would not be held for another 12 years, until 1950. As a result, Italy were the reigning World Cup holders for a record 16 years, from 1934 to 1950. The Italian Vice-President of FIFA, Dr. Ottorino Barassi, hid the trophy in a shoe-box under his bed throughout the Second World War and thus saved it from falling into the hands of occupying troops.[3]
Venues
Ten cities hosted the tournament:
- Antibes, Stade du Fort Carré
- Bordeaux, Parc Lescure
- Le Havre, Stade Cavée Verte
- Lille, Stade Victor Boucquey
- Lyon, Stade Gerland (the only match there was cancelled)
- Marseille, Stade Vélodrome
- Paris, Parc des Princes and Stade Olympique de Colombes
- Reims, Vélodrome Municipal
- Strasbourg, Stade de la Meinau
- Toulouse, Stade Chapou
Squads
For a list of all squads that appeared in the final tournament, see 1938 FIFA World Cup squads.
Results
| First Round | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | |||||||||||
| 5 June - Paris | ||||||||||||||
| France |
3 | |||||||||||||
| 12 June - Paris | ||||||||||||||
 Belgium |
1 | |||||||||||||
| France |
1 | |||||||||||||
| 5 June - Marseille | ||||||||||||||
| Italy |
3 | |||||||||||||
| Italy (a.e.t.) |
2 | |||||||||||||
| 16 June - Marseille | ||||||||||||||
 Norway |
1 | |||||||||||||
| Italy |
2 | |||||||||||||
| 5 June - Strasbourg | ||||||||||||||
| Brazil |
1 | |||||||||||||
| Brazil (a.e.t.) |
6 | |||||||||||||
| 12 June – Bordeaux (replayed 14 June) |
||||||||||||||
 Poland |
5 | |||||||||||||
| Brazil |
1 (2) | |||||||||||||
| 5 June - Le Havre | ||||||||||||||
 Czechoslovakia |
1 (1) | |||||||||||||
| Czechoslovakia (a.e.t.) |
3 | |||||||||||||
| 19 June – Paris | ||||||||||||||
 Netherlands |
0 | |||||||||||||
| Italy |
4 | |||||||||||||
| 4 June - Paris (replayed 9 June) |
||||||||||||||
| Hungary |
2 | |||||||||||||
 Germany |
1 (2) | |||||||||||||
| 12 June - Lille | ||||||||||||||
 Switzerland |
1 (4) | |||||||||||||
| Switzerland |
0 | |||||||||||||
| 5 June - Reims | ||||||||||||||
| Hungary |
2 | |||||||||||||
| Hungary |
6 | |||||||||||||
| 16 June – Paris | ||||||||||||||
| Dutch East Indies |
0 | |||||||||||||
| Hungary |
5 | |||||||||||||
| 5 June - Lyon | ||||||||||||||
| Sweden |
1 | Third place | ||||||||||||
| Sweden |
w/o | |||||||||||||
| 12 June - Antibes | 19 June - Bordeaux | |||||||||||||
 Austria[4] |
||||||||||||||
| Sweden |
8 | Brazil |
4 | |||||||||||
| 5 June - Toulouse (replayed 9 June) |
||||||||||||||
 Cuba |
0 | Sweden |
2 | |||||||||||
| Cuba |
3 (2) | |||||||||||||
 Romania |
3 (1) | |||||||||||||
First round
| 4 June 1938 18:00 |
Germany |
1 – 1 (a.e.t.) | Switzerland |
Parc des Princes, Paris Attendance: ~30,000 Referee: Langenus (Belgium) |
Gauchel  29' |
(Report) | Abegglen 43' |
| 5 June 1938 17:00 |
Hungary |
6 – 0 | Dutch East Indies |
Vélodrome Municipal, Reims Attendance: ~8,000 Referee: Conrié (France) |
| Kohut 14' Toldi 16'Sárosi 25' 88'Zsengellér 30' 67' |
(Report) |
| 5 June 1938 | Sweden |
walkover Austria withdrew [4] |
Austria |
Stade Gerland, Lyon |
| 5 June 1938 17:00 |
Cuba |
3 – 3 (a.e.t.) | Romania |
Stade Chapou, Toulouse Attendance: ~6,000 Referee: Scarpi (Italy) |
| Socorro 44' Fernández 87'Tuñas 117' |
(Report) | Bindea 35' Baratky 88'Dobay 105' |
| 5 June 1938 17:00 |
France |
3 – 1 | Belgium |
Stade Olympique de Colombes, Paris Attendance: ~32,000 Referee: Wüthrich (Switzerland) |
| Veinante 1' Nicolas 16' 69' |
(Report) | Isemborghs 38' |
| 5 June 1938 17:00 |
Italy |
2 – 1 (a.e.t.) | Norway |
Stade Vélodrome, Marseille Attendance: ~18,000 Referee: Beranek(1) (Germany) |
| Ferraris 2' Piola 94' |
(Report) | Brustad 83' |
| 5 June 1938 17:30 |
Brazil |
6 – 5 (a.e.t.) | Poland |
Stade de la Meinau, Strasbourg Attendance: ~16,000 Referee: Eklind (Sweden) |
| Leônidas 18' 93' 104' Romeu 25'Perácio 44' 71' |
(Report) | Scherfke 23' (pen.) Wilimowski 53' 59' 89' 118' |
| 5 June 1938 18:30 |
Czechoslovakia |
3 – 0 (a.e.t.) | Netherlands |
Stade Cavée Verte, Le Havre Attendance: ? Referee: Leclerq (France) |
| Košťálek 93' Nejedlý 111'[5]Zeman 118'[6] |
(Report) |
Replays
| 9 June 1938 18:00 |
Germany |
2 – 4 | Switzerland |
Parc des Princes, Paris Attendance: ~22,000 Referee: Eklind (Sweden) |
| Hahnemann 8' Lörtscher 22' (o.g.) |
(Report) | Walaschek 42' Bickel 64'Abegglen 75' 78' |
| 9 June 1938 18:00 |
Cuba |
2 – 1 | Romania |
Stade Chapou, Toulouse Attendance: ~5,000 Referee: Birlem (Germany) |
| Socorro 51' Oliveira 57' |
(Report) | Dobay 35' |
Second Round
| 12 June 1938 17:00 |
Switzerland |
0 – 2 | Hungary |
Stade Victor Boucquey, Lille Attendance: ~14,000 Referee: Barlassina (Italy) |
| (Report) | Sárosi 40' Zsengellér 89'[7] |
| 12 June 1938 17:00 |
Sweden |
8 – 0 | Cuba |
Stade du Fort Carré, Antibes Attendance: ~6,000 Referee: Krist (Czechoslovakia) |
| Keller 9'[8], 80'[9], 81'[10] Wetterström 32'[11], 37' 44'Nyberg 84'Andersson 90'[12] |
(Report) |
| 12 June 1938 17:00 |
France |
1 – 3 | Italy |
Stade Olympique de Colombes, Paris Attendance: ~58,000 Referee: Baert (Belgium) |
| Heisserer 10' |
(Report) | Colaussi 9' Piola 51' 72' |
| 12 June 1938 17:00 |
Brazil |
1 – 1 (a.e.t.) | Czechoslovakia |
Parc Lescure, Bordeaux Attendance: ~25,000 Referee: von Hertzka (Hungary) |
| Leônidas 30' |
(Report) | Nejedlý 65' (pen.) |
Replay
| 14 June 1938 18:00 |
Brazil |
2 – 1 | Czechoslovakia |
Parc Lescure, Bordeaux Attendance: ~20,000 Referee: Capdeville (France) |
| Leônidas 57' Roberto 62'[13] |
(Report) | Kopecký 25' |
Semi-finals
| 16 June 1938 18:00 |
Hungary |
5 – 1 | Sweden |
Parc des Princes, Paris Attendance: ~22,000 Referee: Leclerq (France) |
| Zsengellér 19' 39' 85' Titkos 37'Sárosi 65' |
(Report) | Nyberg 1' |
| 16 June 1938 18:00 |
Italy |
2 – 1 | Brazil |
Stade Vélodrome, Marseille Attendance: ~30,000 Referee: Wüthrich (Switzerland) |
| Colaussi 55' Meazza 60' (pen.) |
(Report) | Romeu 87' |
Third place match
| 19 June 1938 17:00 |
Sweden |
2 – 4 | Brazil |
Parc Lescure, Bordeaux Attendance: ~20,000 Referee: Langenus (Belgium) |
| Jonasson 28' Nyberg 38' |
(Report) | Romeu 44' Leônidas 63' 74'Perácio 80' |
Final
| 19 June 1938 17:00 |
Hungary |
2 – 4 | Italy |
Stade Olympique de Colombes, Paris Attendance: ~60,000 Referee: Capdeville (France) |
| Titkos 8' Sárosi 70' |
(Report) | Colaussi 6' 35' Piola 16' 82'[14] |
Awards
| 1938 FIFA World Cup Winners |
|---|
Italy Second title |
Scorers
|
7 goals
6 goals
5 goals
4 goals
3 goals
2 goals
Own goals
|
1 goal
|
Footnotes
- ↑ History of the World Cup Final Draw
- ↑ On this date in 1938, the most ominous of World Cup soccer games ever was played [...] The Italian team received a telegram from dictator Benito Mussolini reading simply, "Vincere o morire". The world, including Hungarian goalie Antal Szabó (ph), was told of the simple, terrifying translation, "Win or die". Hungary lost to Italy that day. Some say they lost deliberately, 4 to 1. "I may have let in four goals," said the net minder Szabó, "but at least I saved their lives." Only problem, "Vincere o morire," translated literally as "win or die", in Italian sports vernacular, however, it simply meant, “"Give it your all, guys." Oops. (Keith Olbermann, 19 june 2006) [1]
- ↑ Jules Rimet Cup FIFAWorldCup.com
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Austria unable to compete because of the Austrian Anschluss in March 1938, so Sweden advanced automatically
- ↑ RSSSF credits this goal as coming in the 118th minute.
- ↑ RSSSF credits this goal as coming in the 111th minute.
- ↑ RSSSF credits this goal as coming in the 90th minute.
- ↑ RSSSF credits this goal to Harry Andersson
- ↑ RSSSF credits this goal as coming in the 60th minute.
- ↑ RSSSF credits this goal to Harry Andersson in the 61st minute.
- ↑ RSSSF credits this goal as coming in the 22nd minute.
- ↑ RSSSF credits this goal as coming in the 89th minute.
- ↑ FIFA initially credits this goal to Leônidas, but changed it to Roberto in 2006. [2]
- ↑ RSSSF credits this goal as coming in the 85th minute.
See also
- Polish roster at 1938 FIFA World Cup
External links
- FIFA World Cup 1938
- Details at RSSSF; note that they often disagree with FIFA on goal scorers and times
- History of the World Cup-1938
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Uruguay 1930 | Italy 1934 | France 1938 | Brazil 1950 | Switzerland 1954 | Sweden 1958 | Chile 1962 | England 1966 | Mexico 1970 | West Germany 1974 | Argentina 1978 | Spain 1982 | Mexico 1986 | Italy 1990 | United States 1994 | France 1998 | Korea/Japan 2002 | Germany 2006 | South Africa 2010 | Brazil 2014 | 2018 |
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