The FIFA World Cup, also known as the Soccer World Cup, World Cup, or simply World Cup, whose original name was the World Soccer Championship, is the main official international men’s soccer tournament at the national team level in the world.
This FIFA has been held every four years since 1930, except in 1942 and 1946, in which it was respectively suspended due to the development and consequences of World War II. It has two main stages: a qualifying process in which nearly 200 national teams currently participate and a final phase held every four years at a venue defined as of the 2026 edition, 48 teams will take part in the advance. for a period of about a month. The official ball is manufactured by the German sports equipment company Adidas.
The FIFA world cup’s final phase is the most important sporting event in a single discipline in the world (the final of the 2002 World Cup was watched by more than 1.1 billion people), 1 and the second most important overall after the Olympic Games.
It has been held 21 times, in which eight « football-sized » —corresponding to the historical world powers and candidates— have lifted the cup: Brazil is the most successful team, Argentina, France, and Uruguay have all won it twice, while England and Spain have each won it once. Germany leads with five victories, Italy is second with four, and Germany is third with three.
The European teams have won the title twelve times, while the South American. They have done it in nine. Only two teams from other confederations have reached the semi-finals: the United States in 1930 and South Korea in 2002.
The history of football is full of epic matches, with great comebacks, impossible goals, and added time that changed the history of a sport that moves passions and masses all over the world.
Football has been giving us good times for decades. Below we review what have been, without a doubt, the most anticipated matches in the history of this king sport and that have marked a before and after.
1. World Cup Mexico ’86 quarterfinals
In the quarterfinals of the Mexico ’86, World Cup faced Argentina and England and the result was 2-1. This game was wrapped in a special morbidity, making it one of the best games of the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. It was a soccer game in which good play prevailed and exceeded all possible expectations. Maradona scored two well-remembered goals that gave Argentina victory. The first of them was with the hand and then leaving behind the entire English team for the collective euphoria of the demonstration of the best football.
2. Argentina- Italy, semifinals World Cup Italy ’90
From the preview of this match, all eyes were on Maradona. It was a match that was played at the San Paolo Stadium in Naples, an area in which the Argentine aroused passion to such an extent that many Neapolitans went with Argentina, something unusual that ended up taking Argentina to the final in a memorable match.
3. 2001 UEFA Final: Liverpool-Alaves
The history of the humble team that reaches a UEFA final was given in 2001 by the hand, in addition, of a Spanish team: Alavés. Faced with that situation, all of Spain positioned itself with Alavés. It was a good game that ended with an own goal that gave Liverpool the victory. But Alavés got the great recognition of all and proved to play, and very well, football.
4. Germany World Cup Semifinal 2006: Germany – Italy
The 2006 World Cup semi-final in Germany between host Germany and Italy was a game to remember for its good play. Although indeed, he was not marked by having many goals, only those of Grosso and Del Piera, he was an example of how wear and tear can mark the course of a match in equal parts. A meeting to remember that took place in Dortmund.
5. Barcelona – Real Madrid, semifinals of the Champions League 2011
The rivalry between Barcelona and Real Madrid has always been on the surface but at that time it was at its height. A game that had incentives such as seeing Messi face Cristiano Ronaldo and Pep Guardiola with José Mourinho on the bench. This game took place in a context in which Real Madrid had just beaten ‘Barça’ in the Copa Del Rey final in Valencia. The rematch had its effect and this time it was Barça who won the game.
Barcelona won the first leg at the Bernabéu 2-0 to draw 1-1 at Camp Nou. Enough to go through to the final that would play against Manchester United and that Barça would also end up winning, being champion of the Champions that same year.
6. Real Madrid – Atletico Madrid, Champions final League 2014
This team had unforgettable ingredients. It was the first time in the history of the Champions League that two teams from the same city reached the final. It was about Real Madrid and Atletico de Madrid and the truth is that the city in the run-up to this final that took place in Lisbon was paralyzed. An epic game in many ways. Atletico de Madrid led by Simeone was very close to winning, but Sergio Ramos leveled the game in stoppage time to end in extra time that gave rise to a 4-1 as tremendous as it was unforgettable.
7. Boca vs River, final of the Copa Libertadores 2018
It was the first time that Boca and River faced each other in the final of the Copa Libertadores. A match that is a classic of world relevance and that paralyzed the world and especially Madrid since that was where it was played. The match ended with three goals from River to 1 from Boca in a memorable game that all lovers of good football remember.