The World Cup is held every four years to determine the world's best national soccer team. Its creation more than 80 years ago created a legacy of global sporting events that continues to grow and thrive. Yet the first World Cup was not perfect. It featured only a few teams and created a host of problems.
Facts
The first World Cup was held from July 13 to July 30, 1930, in Uruguay. It included only participating nations: Belgium, France, Romania, Yugoslavia, Mexico, USA, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay. Average match attendance was 32,808 people who watched 18 matches in which 70 goals were scored. Uruguay prevailed over Argentina 4-2 in the final match. The United States took third place and Yugoslavia fourth.
Creation
Prior to the creation of the World Cup, world championship soccer matches had only been a part of the Olympic Games. Starting at the 1924 Olympics in Paris, the Federation Internationale de Football Association, or FIFA, was asked to run the organization of the Olympics' soccer matches. After the successful organization of world championship tournaments at the 1924 and 1928 Olympics, FIFA decided to host its own international championship, and the World Cup was created.
Problems
At the time of the first World Cup, host country Uruguay was a small South American soccer powerhouse. Furthermore, Uruguay agreed to finance the entire tournament and accept the penalties of any debt that accrued from running it while sharing any profits that were earned. Unfortunately, because travel to Uruguay in 1930 required long ocean crossings, many European teams opted out of the tournament. In fact, only four teams from Europe joined the tournament: Belgium, Romania, France and Yugoslavia. Several other European nations, including Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden, broke their promise to take part. In protest, Uruguay refused to participate in the following FIFA World Cup.
Significance
The first World Cup had significant effects on the soccer world. It set the stage for what would become the most globally celebrated tournament of the world's most popular sport. The organization of the tournament, including host countries, tournament draws, qualifying matches and player eligibility were all decided by that first tournament. It also secured FIFA's role as the de facto international authority for all soccer matches.
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