FIFA World Cup History

1958 FIFA World Cup

Date Champion Runner-Up 3rd Place Host

June 8 - June 29
Brazil
Sweden
France
Sweden




After Switzerland, Sweden was named host country for the 1958 FIFA World Cup - a Cup which, on 16 October 1956, lost its founding father, when Jules Rimet died in Paris at the age of 83.

Brazil, inspired by a 17-year-old youngster called Pelé, won the trophy for the first time. Pelé scored against Wales, hit a hat-trick in a 5-2 win over France in the semi-finals and struck two more in the final, a 5-2 triumph over the hosts.

Frenchman Frenchman Just Fontaine scored 13 goals in the tournament, a record which still stands. It was also the first FIFA World Cup in which a match ended in a 0-0 draw: the first round game between England and Brazil.

By television to the world
For the first time the FIFA World Cup received international television coverage and the world could watch the mastery of the stars of modern football: Kopa, Fontaine, Charlton, Yashin, Garrincha, Vava and Pelé, who at 17 scored six goals, including two in the final when the Brazilians, at last, were crowned world champions.

The sixth FIFA World Cup was also to be marked by a record number of countries taking part (55). The qualifying rounds threw up some startling surprises: Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Spain, Uruguay and, most unexpectedly, Italy, all failed to qualify. The first round of the finals offered the public the chance to discover new footballing nations such as Wales, Northern Ireland, the USSR and Sweden.

Most notably, however, it was the team from France which caught the public's eye with its incisive attacking trio of Kopa, Piantoni and Fontaine. The "Blues" were to garner a string of honors: Best goal-scorer (Just Fontaine-13 goals; Fontaine's record stands to this day, unlikely ever to be suppressed), best attack (23 goals) and best player, elected by an international panel, Raymond Kopa. France finished top of its group in the first round, scoring 11 goals in three games. The fairy-tale ended in the semi-finals, however, against the competition favorites Brazil.

After consecutive disappointments in 1950 and 1954, the Brazilians set out to make amends. They finished on top of a difficult group which included Austria (3-0), England (0-0) and the USSR (2-0). In the quarter-finals against Wales, Brazil pegged away for an hour before a stroke of brilliance by a young 17-year old made the difference. This was the first FIFA World Cup goal scored by Pelé - a star was born. In the semis, Pelé went on to devastate a French side which could do nothing to stop him scoring.

Mercenaries and magicians
Once again Brazil had made it to the final, this time against Sweden. The Swedes' presence in the final was astonishing in that it was a side built from scratch for the tournament, a great deal of debate having gone on before deciding whether to make professional players in the Italian league eligible for FIFA World Cup competition. Yet the Swedes proved to be a solid, well-built unit, beating West Germany, the defending Champions, in the semi-finals (3-1). In the "mercenaries" vs. "magicians" final, it was the former who started more strongly. For the first time in the competition the Brazilians were behind. Not for long, however: thanks to goals by Zagallo, Vava and above all Pelé, who scored twice, Brazil won its first FIFA World Cup (5-2). FIFA President Arthur Drewry presented the gold statuette to the Brazilian captain Bellini.