World Cup Brazil 2014

World Cup in South Africa will be the 19th of all times. Only Brazil attended all 18 Cups so far, only Brazil will have attended all 19 Cups when the South Africa event is over, and only Brazil can say for sure that will have participated in all 20 Cups until 2014.

Recently, Brazil qualified for the World Cup 2010; as Brazil is host of the 2014 World Cup, the Brazilian team has a secured presence in that tournament.

Brazil will have hosted the Cup in two occasions (1950 and 2014); Brazil was champion five times, but in only three of these occasions (1958, 1962, 1970) was the champion automatically qualified for the next Cup; in 1930, the teams were chosen by invitation. In the other 14 times that Brazil attended a World Cup, the team had to earn it in the field.

Italy (four times World Champion) was out of the 1930 Cup, but one may say that the Italians prudently didn’t want to take a long trip to play a then non-important tournament in distant Uruguay (only four European countries attended the Cup in Uruguay: Belgium, France, Romania and Yugoslavia);  however, Italy failed to qualify for the 1958 World Cup.

Germany also declined from going to Uruguay in 1930, and were banned from the 1950 Cup, the first one after the World War II (hard to say whether the German team would qualify to the 1950 Cup, as the country was wrecked by the War; however, it must be noticed that the Germans won the next Cup, in 1954).

No other country comes close to Brazil, Italy and Germany in terms of World Cup participations.

Argentina withdrew from playing the qualifyings in 1938, 1950 and 1954; in 1970, Argentina failed to qualify to the Cup in Mexico. France did not qualify for the tournament in 1950, 1962, 1970, 1974, 1990 and 1994.

While most countries see the qualification for a World Cup as an achievement to be celebrated, Brazilians see it as an obligation of the football team.

This entry was posted on Monday, September 7th, 2009 at 9:03 am and is filed under history, team.