Football world cup of 1954

The fifth Football world cup was held in Switzerland of the June 16th with the July 4th 1954.

The team of Hungary, known as the eleven of gold, was regarded as large favorite tournament. Indeed, the made up formation stars such Ferenc Puskas, Nándor Hidegkuti, Sándor Kocsis and others Gyula Grosics had been unconquered for four years, was Olympic champion and just had beaten by twice the English team, including the famous 6-3 with Wembley.

The Magyars passed the first turn without main issue, inflicting even a severe 8-3 with the German team. But the German trainer, Sepp Herberger, regarding the match as lost in advance, had aligned a team especially made up of reservists. Under the strength of the German tacles, the Puskás high-speed motorboat left wounded this meeting and missed the following parts.

The quarterfinal vis-a-vis the Brésil was much harder for the men of Gusztáv Sebes. Dominated on the level of the play, the Brazilian ones produced an increasingly aggressive play, often with the limit of the regularity. But they could not prevent the Hungarian victory. The semi-final vis-a-vis the Uruguay, if it were much more regular on the level of the play, was also testing. Under the impulse of the Sebes trainer, who required the maximum with each match, the players started to tire. They were essential all the same, but in the prolongations of a demanding match.

Other side, Germany, being qualified in the match of stopping vis-a-vis the Turkey, had known a course much easier in quarters and half, respectively eliminating a team from disappointing Yugoslavia (2-0) and a team of Austria of a rather average level (6-1). The Germans thus presented themselves in better physical condition and prepared better to the conditions weather.

Indeed, the rain which fell on the stage from Wankdorf from Bern the day from the finale did not favor the Hungarian play. But the latter, counting Puskás in their rows again, took the advantage quickly and carried out 2-0 after eight minutes. But the eleven German returned to the score in the minutes which followed, and Helmut Rahn, one of the two German heroes of the finale with the guard Anton Turek, still equalized after 18 minutes. With the return of the cloakrooms, the Hungarian players always dominated their adversaries, but did not manage to mark, concerning the framework on several occasions. On the contrary, it was again Rahn which marked the 3-2 to five minutes of the end. A last goal of Puskás, in the ultimate minutes, was cancelled for off-side.

On a side, the Hungarian players were brought back in discretion, in order to avoid confrontation with the disappointed supporters to them. In a few years, the team was decimated. Indicated like scapegoat by the official ones, the Grosics guard was isolated national selection for two years. The stars, very abroad with dimensions, started to exile themselves, such Puskás with the Real Madrid or Kocsis with the Barça. Opposite, the German players were celebrated on their return, as of the crossing of frontiers. But all, except for Fritz Walter and of Rahn, fell down in a certain anonymity in the years which followed, having taken their retirement of the sporting world. The German team did not play any more but one match in the victorious composition in Bern: a match of official reception in 1967.

The victorious course of the team of Germany inspired the film the Miracle of Bern (2003) of Sönke Wortmann.

Preliminary round

Final stage

First turn

Group has

* after prolongation

Classification

Group B

Classification

Match of support

Group C

Classification

Group D

* after prolongation

Classification

Match of support

Quarterfinals

Semi-finals

* after prolongation

Match for the third place

Finale

22 world champions

See the article Team of Germany of football to the world cup 1954

Better strikers

11 goals

Sándor Kocsis (Hungary)

6 goals

Erich Probst (Austria)
Maximilian Morlock (FRG)
Josef Hügi (Swiss)

Chart of the participating nations

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