In 2022, in November, we will have another FIFA men's football world championship, one of the most popular. And researching about it, we discovered several interesting facts about the World Cup!
That's why we decided to post 21 of them here for those of you who love the World Cup festivities so you can start getting in the mood! 🥳💚💛
Let's check it out?
1. Prohibited sport
First, to talk about the curiosities of the World Cup, let's go back a little to the history of football.
In the Middle Ages, football was banned in its precursor country, England, because it was a very violent sport. It was only accepted again after the creation of rules.
When it became accepted again, it was practiced only by young students and nobility at the time.
The sport faced several social barriers, such as racism, prejudice and resistance to professionalization.
However, over time he overcame them all and continues to overcome obstacles. 💪
2. Speaking of the country of football…
The English, who are known for being the inventors of football, have no tradition in the cup.
The English team reached the final and won only once, in the 1966 championship.
3. The only player to win 3 World Cups
Yes, it was ours Pele, the youngest player to win a cup, at just 17 years old. He was champion in 1958, 1962 and 1970.
It's worth remembering that in addition to winning the cup, Pelé was one of the great figures who contributed to the breakdown of racism in football!
4. Zagallo – the only four-time champion footballer
Another Brazilian who holds the record for FIFA titles is our dear Zagallo, who brought the joy of Tetra to Brazilians. 🏅🏅🏅🏅
It has 4 titles:
2 as a player, in 1958 and 1952.
2 as a coach, in 1970 and 1994.
5. The curse on the Argentine national team
Our brothers say that the selection Argentina suffers from a curse, after the coach of the 1986 Argentine champion team made a promise and didn't keep it.
He was supposed to make a pilgrimage if he won and he didn't. Since then, the Argentine team has never won the World Cup again.👻
6. The Greatest Finalist
Germany is the country that has played in the most World Cup finals, totaling 8. It is the team that has also lost the most in finals.
Fortunately, German perseverance made her four-time champion! Deserved, right?
7. Copa or Mega Sena stickers?
Economist Samy Dana did the math and discovered that the chances of hitting the Mega Sena's six tens are one in 50 million.
This is the same chance to complete 22% of the album of World Cup stickers without repeating them.
The chance of completing the entire album without removing any repeated stickers is practically impossible.🤦♂️
8. The World Peace Cards
More peaceful than the UN, the yellow and red cards are the ones that brought world peace within football. 🟨🟥
It may seem like an exaggeration, but it all started in the 1966 World Cup, when in an England game against Argentina there was great confusion due to language misunderstandings.
An English referee had expelled the captain of the Argentine team from the field, who did not understand the act or even his explanation in English, which made the fight even bigger.
The solution was to create colorful cards inspired by traffic rules, but which would be understood by everyone when viewing them.
The yellow card is a warning and the red card is expulsion.
9. Only two World Cups have been decided on penalties. Do you know what they were?
The first penalty shootout was in 1994, when the Brazil beat Italy 3-2.
It was during this dispute that Galvão Bueno said the phrase: “Say it’s yours, Taffarel”, which ended up becoming gibberish.
In 2006, another dispute reached penalties. This time, Italy won the cup from France, 5-3.
10. The first broadcasts on TV and radio in Brazil
It is interesting to know that the first World Cups were covered by the main media at the time: newspapers, radio and cinema. 🗞️📻📺
The first live radio broadcasts took place in 1938 and Brazilians were already flocking to listen to coverage of the games over the loudspeakers.
That's how we enjoyed our first cup victory.
The World Cup only arrived on TV around the world in 1954, but Brazilians were able to see the first coverage of the games on television in 1970.
Still in black and white in most cities, except for the locals who had the pleasure of watching the games on a color TV that year. 🤩
11. Does FIFA have more associated countries than the UN?
FIFA has 211 associated countries, more than the UN with its 193 member countries.
The explanation for this lies in differences in representation. For example at the UN, some countries represent several of its annexed countries, such as the United Kingdom.
In FIFA, these countries are associated with their own flag, such as Scotland, Wales, Gibraltar, among others.
12. Million Cup
The trophy used today is 37 cm tall, weighs just over 6 kg and is made of 18 carat gold.🏆
According to USA Today, the cup costs around US$20 million.💰
13. The World Cup Cup has been stolen twice
Of course, 20 million would make many thieves' eyes widen, but it wasn't the Trophy we know today that was stolen.
Until the 70 World Cup, the prize for the World Cup winners was the Jules Rimet cup, which weighed around 4 kg, made of gold and semi precious stones.
It was stolen for the first time in 1, in London. The thief demanded a reward for not melting the cup, but a little dog named Pickles found the trophy hidden in a vacant lot.
The second robbery took place in 2, inside the CBF building in Rio de Janeiro. Those responsible were discovered, and it is believed that the cup was probably melted down and sold.😔
14. The oldest player to play in the World Cup
It was the Egyptian El-Hadary aged 45 years and 5 months. He played in the 2018 World Cup in Russia as a goalkeeper.
15. Did you know that the 2022 World Cup final will be in a city created for this purpose?
Qatar built an entire city from scratch to host the World Cup final and an impeccable infrastructure to receive thousands of tourists.
Work began in 2005. Lusail is 20 km from the capital and cost at least US$45 billion, designed to be the smartest city in the world. 🤓
This is because it makes good use of technologies such as solar energy, intelligent cooling of stadiums and some areas of the city, and traffic monitoring.
16. How much will the winner of the World Cup earn?
The prize for the winning World Cup team will be US$42 million. The value is equivalent to around R$200 million, at the current price.🤑
17. What is the biggest crowd for a World Cup game?
The biggest audience at a football game happened here in Brazil!
It was in the 50's World Cup, during the last match between Brazil and Uruguay. FIFA registered an audience of more than 199 thousand people at Maracanã.😱 The episode became known as Maracanaço.
18. Never give up on your dreams
Bulgaria has lost 17 consecutive games in the World Cup. It is the record for the most consecutive defeats in World Cups.
After many draws and defeats, the country only won one match in 1994, in a 4-0 match against Greece.
19. What was the World Cup match with the most goals scored?
Anyone who watched the Austria x Switzerland game in 1954 witnessed the first defeat in the history of the World Cup. The score was 7-5, with the Austrians winning.
20. Brazil taught how to celebrate a victory!
The Brazilian team, in addition to being the greatest world champion, also created trends in its celebrations.
This happened in Brazil's first title in 1, when the champions raised the cup shortly after winning to celebrate the title.
From then on, this act became common in several competitions, in addition to the World Cup.
21. The last of the little Cups
Finally, to conclude our curiosities about the World Cup, know that in 2022 it will be the last cup with 32 teams.
The International Football Federation (FIFA) has already announced that from 2026, the event will have the participation of 48 teams.⚽🏃
World Cup Curiosities | Conclusion
And you, did you already know any of these interesting facts about the World Cup? Which one did you find the most interesting?
After discovering so much about this tournament so loved by fans from all over the world, we at Tarobá Hotel are already in the World Cup mood! 🤩🥳
For more tips like this, keep exploring our blog or follow our social media to stay up to date with everything about tourism in the Land of Falls.
Editor: Joelma Oliveira | Review: Anna Dasped
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