In 1950, Brazil lost 1:2 to arch-rival Uruguay in the decisive match at the Maracana. When it finally got another chance to host the tournament, the whole country expected that it would finally erase this streak with its sixth triumph.
But a far worse defeat came: a humiliating 1-7 thrashing by Germany in the semi-finals, compounded by a 3-0 win for the Netherlands in the fight for third place.
The Brazilians did not take home any medals.
After the defeat in 1950, the Brazilians decided to abandon their traditional white jerseys and switch to yellow, which after all goes better with the blue shorts. They became Canaries. In yellow, they conquered the world five times (1958, 1962, 1970, 1994 and 2002), but at home they suffered embarrassment.
The German coach intervened at halftime
The first half at the Estádio Mineirão in Belo Horizonte was horrendous for the home team. The Germans mercilessly bet behind goalkeeper Júlio César one goal after another, stopping at number five.
As it later emerged, at the request of FIFA officials, the coach of the German team, Joachim Löw, urged his charges not to continue the demolition too much, because there was already enough shame. The European team added only two hits in the second half, and the Brazilians also scored an honorable goal a minute before the end.
Stories from the history of the World Cup
Politics does not belong in football, says the age-old rule. It’s really just wishful thinking. Seznam Zprávy brings you a series from the history of all world football championships from 1930 to the present day.
If in 1950 the whole country was crying, now the inhabitants were literally horrified. No one could have imagined this even in their dreams.
Destroyed national self-confidence
It is argued that football is more than a religion in Brazil, however, it is a major political force. Two years before the start of the championship, Sports Minister Aldo Rebelo proclaimed in a fiery speech. “We cannot repeat the national tragedy of 1950. It affected not only football, but also the self-confidence of the whole country. That’s also why the triumph at the home championship is important,” he emphasized.
After the German beating, the citizens remembered how much money, which could have been used elsewhere – e.g. in healthcare or education – was spent on the organization. There was a strike during the construction of the stadiums, during the Confederations Cup, which was played the year before to show how the championship was ready, millions of disaffected people took to the streets.
They were to be soothed by the great glory of victory. It didn’t happen. National self-confidence was destroyed and the country became even more mired in an unflattering economic situation.
Masters without Aryan dictation
Germany claimed the 4th title in history, unlike the previous ones (1954, 1974 and 1990) it was won by a very cosmopolitan team.
Offensive midfielder Sami Khedira has a Tunisian father, defender Shkodran Mustafi does not deny his Albanian origin and Muslim faith.
Stopper Jérôme Boateng deserves special attention, born in Berlin from a mixed marriage – his mother is German, his father is from Ghana. His older paternal half-brother Kevin-Prince Boateng represented Ghana and they faced each other in a Group E match in Fortaleza with a 2-2 draw. A brother (albeit a half-brother) prevented a sibling from scoring a goal for his team. He succeeded, others succeeded.
From a traitor’s lover
The offensive midfielder of Turkish origin, Mesut Özil, went through many difficult moments. When he acquired German citizenship in 2007 and decided to play for his new homeland, three years later he was booed by Turkish fans during a head-to-head match. When he helped win the world gold, Germany knelt at his feet, Chancellor Angela Merkel took pictures with him and fed on his fame and popularity.
Four years ago, during the Turkish election campaign, he had his picture taken with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, a former league footballer, and became a traitor. He was criticized the most by the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany party. Relations between the states have cooled so much since 2007 that any friendly gesture towards Turkey’s first man is considered objectionable.
Özil faced the criticism by giving up the national team. “I don’t feel respect for my person,” he explained this step. A year later, President Erdoğan was his best man at his wedding.
Polish native record holder
Striker Miroslav Klose contributed two goals to the gold medal, making him the best goalscorer in history with 16 hits at the world championships (scoring in four), surpassing the Brazilian striker Ronaldo. He scored 71 times in the German national team, three goals ahead of the legendary Gerd Müller, world champion from 1974.
He was born in Opole, Poland, his parents fled the totalitarian regime when he was eight years old. He trained as a carpenter, played amateur football, but it didn’t look like a big career for a long time. Everything turned around when he was noticed by a scout of the famous 1. FC Kaiserslautern. The Polish native is a German legend.
At the championship in Brazil, Lukas Podolski, who was born in Hlivice, appeared in the offensive line alongside him rather in the role of a substitute. In a city that went down in history when Nazi propaganda in September 1939 used a fake attack on the local radio station as a pretext to start World War II.
World Cup 2014 – Brazil
Participants (32): France, Argentina, Belgium, Spain, Italy, Germany, Brazil, England, Croatia, Netherlands, Russia, Greece, Portugal, Switzerland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Chile, Ecuador, Uruguay, Colombia, USA, Mexico, Costa Rica, Honduras, Australia, South Korea, Iran, Japan, Ghana, Algeria, Cameroon., Ivory Coast, Nigeria
Semifinals: Argentina-Netherlands 0:0 (4:2 penalty kicks), Germany-Brazil 7:1
For 3rd place: Netherlands-Brazil 3:0 (2:0)
Finals: Germany-Argentina 1:0 after extra time. (0:0)
Photo: ČTK / imago sportfotodienst
