Football World Cup 1978

FIFA World Cup 1978
Argentina '78 Campeonato Mundial De Futbol
Number of nations	16  (of 106 applicants)
World Champion	Argentina (1st title)
venue	Argentina
Opening game	June 1, 1978 ( Buenos Aires )
Endgame	June 25, 1978 (Buenos Aires)
Games	38
Gates	102  (⌀: 2.68 per game)
spectator	1,545,791  (⌀: 40,679 per game)
Top scorer	Mario Kempes (6 goals)
yellow cards	58  (⌀: 1.53 per game)
Red cards	3  (⌀: 0.08 per game)

Daniel Passarella

The final round of the FIFA World Cup 1978 ( span .: Campeonato Mundial de Futbol) was the eleventh playout this important tournament for football - teams and took place in the first to 25 June 1978 Argentina instead. Host country Argentina became world champion in the final against the Netherlands, who lost their second World Cup final in a row.

In Germany and Austria, this World Cup is remembered because of the intermediate round match between the two teams in Córdoba , which Austria won 3-2.

Award

Argentina won the 1978 FIFA World Cup finals at the FIFA Congress in London on July 6, 1966. At the same time, the 1974 World Cup was awarded to Germany and the 1982 World Cup to Spain.

The host

Argentina under the military dictatorship

The military academy ESMA served the dictatorship as a secret prison, also during the World Cup. A total of around 4,700 people were illegally detained, tortured and, with the exception of a few survivors, murdered there. It is located near the River Plate Stadium, where, among other things, the World Cup final took place.

→ Main article : Argentine military dictatorship (1976–1983)

Argentina was considered to be a very difficult host for the World Cup, as the country had been ruled by a military dictatorship since 1976 . Torture and the disappearance and murder of alleged opponents of the regime were the order of the day. Today, up to 30,000 fatalities are assumed, most of which simply disappeared without a trace (see Desaparecidos ). Although the full extent of secretly executed Dirty War became known only after the end of the dictatorship in 1983, there were already before the World Cup adequately demonstrate the serious human rights violations . In Germany there was even a discussion about boycotting the World Cup for this reason, which is why the political aspect was often in the foreground when it came to assessing the events. The commentary on the magnificent opening ceremony was then not synchronized with the picture, but rather politically shaped.

The football journalist David Winner wrote in retrospect in 2008:

“The more you learn about the 1978 World Cup in Argentina, the clearer it becomes: this tournament should never have taken place. One of the reasons is a friendly-looking building complex (note: the ESMA military academy ) at the northern end of the busy Avenida del Libertador in Buenos Aires. The facility is located in the immediate vicinity of the River Plate Stadium , where many World Cup games were played, including the final. (…) ESMA became the busiest of the 340 concentration camps. One of the most sadistic torturers called himself "Menguele" in adoration of the notorious Nazi doctor Josef Mengele . The victims were brought by plainclothes police after they were brutally dragged from their homes. Under torture, they revealed the names of their companions, who were then also kidnapped. Soon almost all 2000 members of the two strongest left groups were dead. But the terror never ended and was directed against a growing list of groups: trade unionists, students, lawyers, artists, writers, left-wing priests, Jews, psychoanalysts and school children. Whole families were sometimes wiped out. "

Undoubtedly, like the Falklands War four years later, the World Cup should  stabilize the Argentine rulers' rule in the country. In contrast to the lost Falklands adventure, the plan worked out halfway in 1978, because Argentina hosted a World Cup without serious incidents, with the exception of the controversial postponement of the last intermediate group game between Argentina and Peru, in which the Brazilians beat Poland 3-1 in the afternoon with a 6-0 even more than was equalized. As a result, Argentina moved into the finals as the group winners in the intermediate rounds and ultimately became world champions. The fact that some Argentine players, and especially the coach César Luis Menotti, were anything but supporters of the dictators, clouded the colonel's joy.

Gate pole at Peru against Scotland with a black band at the bottom

It is often mistakenly assumed that the black paintwork on the lower edge of the goal posts was meant to express a silent protest by stadium staff against the military dictatorship. In truth, however, the posts were painted black as early as 1953 in a friendly against England, and this continued into the years to come. Originally, the black painting was intended as a visual aid for the players, as the goal lines were already white and a lot of white confetti was thrown into the penalty area by the fans. Over time, however, it became more of a decoration, which came to an end in 1988: FIFA stated in its rulebook that all posts and crossbars must be white.

Behavior of German players and functionaries in the context of the Argentine military dictatorship

During the World Cup, the former air officer and National Socialist propagandist Hans-Ulrich Rudel visited the German national team in the training center in Ascochinga . Hermann Neuberger , the President of the German Football Association , defended the visit with the words that criticizing Rudel's appearance would be "an insult to all German soldiers". The extreme right-wing press like the German national newspaper welcomed Neuberger's behavior and that of the national team. Neuberger reprimanded the players of the finalists and vice world champions Netherlands, because they refused to shake hands with the Argentine dictator Videla and the members of the military junta. This behavior, which was also demanded by Paul Breitner, who was not taken into account , had previously been prohibited by Neuberger to the German players in the event of participation in the final. After the tournament, in which he led the German team as captain, Berti Vogts said of the ruling military junta : “Argentina is a country where order reigns. I haven't seen a single political prisoner . ” According to media reports, Manfred Kaltz from Hamburger SV said:“ I go there to play football, nothing else. It doesn't bother me that there is torture there. I have other problems ”.

Venues

The World Cup games were played in six stadiums in five different Argentine cities.

* The capacity refers to the time of the 1978 World Cup.

city	Stadion	Games	Capacity*	Buenos Aires Cordoba Mar del Plata Mendoza Rosario
Buenos Aires	Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti (River Plate)	9	76,600
Buenos Aires	Estadio José Amalfitani (El Fortin)	3	49,300
Cordoba	Estadio Olímpico Chateau Carreras	8th	46,800
Mar del Plata	Estadio José María Minella	6th	42,700
Mendoza	Estadio Ciudad de Mendoza	6th	44,000
Rosario	Estadio Gigante de Arroyito	6th	40,600

statistics

city	Stadion	Games	Capacity*	Total number of viewers	cut	Play with the most viewers	Play with the fewest spectators
Buenos Aires	River Plate	9	76,600	625.389	69,488	Italy – Argentina (1st final round) 71,712	Italy – Austria (2nd final round) 66,695
Buenos Aires	Estadio José Amalfitani (El Fortin)	3	49,300	124.397	41,466	Spain – Sweden (1st final round) 42,132	Austria – Spain (1st final round) 40,841
Cordoba	Estadio Olímpico Chateau Carreras	8th	46,800	237.170	29,646	Federal Republic of Germany – Netherlands (2nd final round) 40,750	Scotland – Iran (1st final round) 7938
Mar del Plata	Estadio José María Minella	6th	42,700	194,594	32,432	Italy – France (1st final round) 42,373	France – Hungary (1st final round) 23,127
Mendoza	Estadio Ciudad de Mendoza	6th	44,000	202,838	33,806	Brazil – Poland (2nd final round) 39,586	Netherlands – Peru (1st final round) 28,125
Rosario	Estadio Gigante de Arroyito	6th	40,600	161.403	26,901	Argentina – Brazil (2nd final round) 37,326	Poland – Tunisia (1st final round) 9624

qualification

→ Main article : Qualifying for the 1978 World Cup

The following teams qualified for the 1978 World Cup:

10 from Europe	BR Germany	France	Italy	Netherlands	Hungary
	Austria	Poland	Scotland	Sweden	Spain
3 from South America	Argentina	Brazil	Peru
1 from North and Central America	Mexico
1 from Africa	Tunisia
1 from Asia	Iran

World map of the participants with their placements

draw

• Seeded teams: Argentina • Italy • Germany • Brazil • Netherlands
• Pot 1: Poland • Scotland • Spain
• Pot 2: Sweden • Hungary
• Pot 3: Mexico • Peru
• Pot 4: France • Austria • Iran • Tunisia

Even before the start of the draw, a pairing was already determined. Host Argentina (position 1) will face Italy (position 4) in group 1 in their last group game. This was done for purely commercial reasons, as a lot of Argentines are of Italian descent and the Argentina group played in the largest stadiums. The defending champion Germany was placed in group 2 for the opening game (position 6). Record world champions Brazil came in group 3 (position 12) and vice world champions Netherlands in group 4 (position 13).

• First of all, three European teams from lot 1 were distributed specifically to groups 2 to 4.
• Pot 2 contained two European teams that were specifically drawn to the groups from Argentina and Brazil.
• Pot 3 contained only two American teams that were specifically drawn into groups 2 and 4. This prevented two American teams from playing in a group.
• In the end, each of the four groups was freely drawn a team from Pot 4.

Group 1	Group 2	Group 3	Group 4
1: Argentina	5: Poland	9: Austria	13: Netherlands
2: Hungary	6: FRG	10: Spain	14: Iran
3: France	7: Tunisia	11: Sweden	15: Peru
4: Italy	8: Mexico	12: Brazil	16: Scotland

For information on the individual groups and squads of the teams, click on the respective link.

mode

The mode of competition was the same as at the 1974 World Cup. 16 teams played in four groups of four. The group winners and runners-up moved into the second final round. There was played in two groups of four. The two group winners contested the final and the two runners-up played for 3rd place.

First round

Group 1

Pl.	country	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Italy	3	3	0	0	006: 200	+4	06-00
2.	Argentina	3	2	0	1	004: 300	+1	04: 20
3.	France	3	1	0	2	005: 500	± 0	02: 40
4th	Hungary	3	0	0	3	003: 800	−5	00: 60

June 2, 1978, 1:45 p.m. (5:45 p.m. CET) in Mar del Plata
France	-	Italy	1: 2 (1: 1)
June 2, 1978, 7:15 p.m. (11:15 p.m. CET) in Buenos Aires
Hungary	-	Argentina	1: 2 (1: 1)
June 6, 1978, 1:45 p.m. (5:45 p.m. CET) in Mar del Plata
Italy	-	Hungary	3: 1 (2: 0)
June 6, 1978, 7:15 p.m. (11:15 p.m. CET) in Buenos Aires
Argentina	-	France	2: 1 (1: 0)
June 10, 1978, 1:45 p.m. (5:45 p.m. CET) in Mar del Plata
France	-	Hungary	3: 1 (3: 1)
June 10, 1978, 7:15 p.m. (11:15 p.m. CET) in Buenos Aires
Italy	-	Argentina	1: 0 (0: 0)

At the start of Group 1, the French, who had been in a World Cup finals for the first time since 1966, were left behind with 1: 2 against the Italians despite a lightning start in Mar del Plata. That of Bernard Lacombe in the first minute scored 1: 0 was not enough, as the Italians the game thanks to the first World Cup finals goal by Paolo Rossi won and another goal from Zaccarelli yet. Argentina's opening game in the Monumental Stadium ended with a 2-1 win against the Hungarians, who ended the game with only nine men after being sent off by Tibor Nyilasi and Töröcsik. In the next group game against Italy, the Hungarians fell out. After a 2-1 win by the Argentines in their second group match against Equipe Tricolore, the hosts and Italy were already in the second final round before the last group match day. In the final meeting of the two teams, the Italians secured the group victory after a goal scored in the 67th minute by Roberto Bettegas . As a result, the Argentinians, who were now second in the final standings, had to compete in the second round in the relatively small Rosario stadium, while Italy was allowed to play three times in the Estadio Monumental. In the other game of the last matchday, which was insignificant from a sporting perspective, the French won 3-1 over the Hungarians. Curiously, Michel Platini's team had to wear short-term organized, green and white striped jerseys from the Argentine second division side Kimberley de Mar del Plata , as both France and Hungary wanted to play in white. FIFA had ordered France to be blue, but the French no longer had blue jerseys with them. Due to this logistical faulty planning, the game was only able to start 40 minutes late. As a result, it was found that both the French team, which was threatened with a fine (there was ultimately only a strict reprimand), and referee Coelho (who should have checked the shirt colors half an hour before the start of the game ) were to blame .

Group 2

Pl.	country	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Poland	3	2	1	0	004: 100	+3	05: 10
2.	BR Germany	3	1	2	0	006-000	+6	04: 20
3.	Tunisia	3	1	1	1	003: 200	+1	03: 30
4th	Mexico	3	0	0	3	002:120	−10	00: 60

June 1, 1978, 3:00 p.m. (7:00 p.m. CET) in Buenos Aires
BR Germany	-	Poland	0-0
June 2, 1978, 4:45 p.m. (8:45 p.m. CET) in Rosario
Tunisia	-	Mexico	3: 1 (0: 1)
June 6, 1978, 4:45 p.m. (8:45 p.m. CET) in Córdoba
Mexico	-	BR Germany	0: 6 (0: 4)
June 6, 1978, 4:45 p.m. (8:45 p.m. CET) in Rosario
Poland	-	Tunisia	1: 0 (1: 0)
June 10, 1978, 4:45 p.m. (8:45 p.m. CET) in Cordoba
Tunisia	-	BR Germany	0-0
June 10, 1978, 4:45 p.m. (8:45 p.m. CET) in Rosario
Mexico	-	Poland	1: 3 (0: 1)

The opening game of the tournament between defending champions Germany and the third place in the 1974 World Cup, Poland, ended 0-0. In the second game of the first matchday, played in front of less than 20,000 spectators in Rosario, Tunisia beat the favored Mexicans 3-1. It was the first ever World Cup final victory for an African team and was Tunisia's last in a World Cup tournament until 2018 . The Germans were then able to win against the Mexicans, who clearly defeated the Central Americans 6-0 in their second group game in Córdoba. In this game, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge scored his first two of a total of nine World Cup goals scored in the course of his career. The Poles also got two points in their second match. At 1: 0. Grzegorz Lato , the top scorer in the 1974 World Cup, before further negative backdrop in Rosario. After the somewhat mixed start, the Eastern Europeans finally managed to win the group with a 3-1 win against Mexico in the last group game. Poland benefited from the German team's 0-0 draw against the Tunisians, who also played well on the last matchday. The German national team could not build on their own good performance against Mexico. Goalkeeper Sepp Maier secured his team the next round with a few parades.

Group 3

Pl.	country	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Austria	3	2	0	1	003: 200	+1	04: 20
2.	Brazil	3	1	2	0	002: 100	+1	04: 20
3.	Spain	3	1	1	1	002: 200	± 0	03: 30
4th	Sweden	3	0	1	2	001: 300	−2	01: 50

June 3, 1978, 1:45 p.m. (5:45 p.m. CET) in Buenos Aires (Vélez)
Spain	-	Austria	1: 2 (1: 1)
June 3, 1978, 1:45 p.m. (5:45 p.m. CET) in Mar del Plata
Sweden	-	Brazil	1: 1 (1: 1)
June 7, 1978, 1:45 p.m. (5:45 p.m. CET) in Buenos Aires (Vélez)
Austria	-	Sweden	1: 0 (1: 0)
June 7, 1978, 1:45 p.m. (5:45 p.m. CET) in Mar del Plata
Brazil	-	Spain	0-0
June 11, 1978, 1:45 p.m. (5:45 p.m. CET) in Buenos Aires (Vélez)
Sweden	-	Spain	0: 1 (0: 0)
June 11, 1978, 1:45 p.m. (5:45 p.m. CET) in Mar del Plata
Brazil	-	Austria	1: 0 (1: 0)

The Brazilian team did not know how to convince in the first final round of 1978. The Brazilian offensive player Zico , who was highly regarded before the World Cup , did not succeed in justifying the hopes placed in him. Roberto Rivelino , a star of the Brazilian teams from 1970 and 1974, lost his regular place with the Brazilians after the first game against Sweden. In that game, the Brazilians scored 1-1. They were denied a goal that was actually a regular goal after a corner kick in the final second. Referee Thomas from Wales decided to the annoyance of the South Americans that the goal had come after his final whistle. The subsequent protests by the Brazilian players brought nothing. In the second group game, Brazil scored 0-0 against Spain. The advancement of the three-time world champion only ensured a 1-0 victory over the Austrians in Mar del Plata who were already qualified for the next round. They had eliminated the GDR in qualifying and were the surprise team in Group 3 for some outside observers. On the first two days of the first final round, they were able to narrowly defeat the Spaniards and Swedes, who were rated higher by some observers before the tournament. A major contribution to the success of the Austrians had their striker Hans Krankl from Rapid Vienna, who scored the winning goal both in the 2-1 at the start against the Iberians and in the 1-0 against the Scandinavians in the following group game. For the Swedes around goalkeeper Ronnie Hellström , only fourth place remained in this group, as they also lost the last group game against Spain. Spain, host of the next World Cup in 1982, ended up third in the group that Austria finished as group winners ahead of the Brazilians despite the defeat against Brazil.

Group 4

Pl.	country	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Peru	3	2	1	0	007: 200	+5	05: 10
2.	Netherlands	3	1	1	1	005: 300	+2	03: 30
3.	Scotland	3	1	1	1	005: 600	−1	03: 30
4th	Iran	3	0	1	2	002: 800	−6	01: 50

June 3, 1978, 4:45 p.m. (8:45 p.m. CET) in Córdoba
Peru	-	Scotland	3: 1 (1: 1)
June 3, 1978, 4:45 p.m. (8:45 p.m. CET) in Mendoza
Iran	-	Netherlands	0: 3 (0: 1)
June 7, 1978, 4:45 p.m. (8:45 p.m. CET) in Córdoba
Scotland	-	Iran	1: 1 (1: 0)
June 7, 1978, 4:45 p.m. (8:45 p.m. CET) in Mendoza
Netherlands	-	Peru	0-0
June 11, 1978, 4:45 p.m. (8:45 p.m. CET) in Córdoba
Peru	-	Iran	4: 1 (3: 1)
June 11, 1978, 4:45 p.m. (8:45 p.m. CET) in Mendoza
Scotland	-	Netherlands	3: 2 (1: 1)

The Scots around coach Ally McLeod traveled to Argentina with high hopes after they beat European champions CSSR in qualifying. At the beginning of the tournament, however, they had to accept two disappointments. The Peruvians lost 3-1 on the first day of Group 4. Here, Peru's star Teófilo Cubillas towered over , among other things, a free-kick goal to make it 3-1. On the second day of the match, the Scots only drew 1-1 with the newcomer Iran. To qualify for the second final round, the Scottish national team now needed a big win against the Netherlands. The Dutch, who were trained by Ernst Happel and competed in this World Cup without Johan Cruyff , had won their opener against the Iranians 3-0 and then achieved a 0-0 draw against Peru. Despite a leading goal by Rob Rensenbrink with a penalty, the 1000th goal in World Cup history, they were 3-1 down against Scotland in the final group game. Scotland's Archie Gemmill scored two goals in this game, including a remarkable 3-1 lead. Another Scottish goal at this point would have meant the early Dutch end. But Johnny Rep scored the 3-2 goal for the Netherlands in the 72nd minute and instead sealed Scotland's early elimination. The Netherlands finished second behind the Peruvians in the final standings. Peru finally defeated Iran 4-1. Peru's Cubillas scored a total of five goals in the three preliminary round matches, which meant that he was temporarily at the top of the top scorer ranking.

Second round

Group A

Pl.	country	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Netherlands	3	2	1	0	009: 400	+5	05: 10
2.	Italy	3	1	1	1	002: 200	± 0	03: 30
3.	BR Germany	3	0	2	1	004: 500	−1	02: 40
4th	Austria	3	1	0	2	004: 800	−4	02: 40

June 14, 1978, 1:45 p.m. (5:45 p.m. CET) in Cordoba
Austria	-	Netherlands	1: 5 (0: 3)
June 14, 1978, 1:45 p.m. (5:45 p.m. CET) in Buenos Aires
BR Germany	-	Italy	0-0
June 18, 1978, 4:45 p.m. (8:45 p.m. CET) in Córdoba
Netherlands	-	BR Germany	2: 2 (1: 1)
June 18, 1978, 4:45 p.m. (8:45 p.m. CET) in Buenos Aires
Italy	-	Austria	1: 0 (1: 0)
June 21, 1978, 1:45 p.m. (5:45 p.m. CET) in Córdoba
Austria	-	BR Germany	3: 2 (0: 1)
June 21, 1978, 1:45 p.m. (5:45 p.m. CET) in Buenos Aires
Netherlands	-	Italy	2: 1 (0: 1)

Italy, Germany, Austria and the Netherlands had qualified for this intermediate round group, which was held in the Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires and in Córdoba, and thus became a purely European matter. The Italian team started with a 0-0 win against West Germany, followed by an Italian 1-0 win over the Austrians on matchday two, who had previously been clearly defeated by the Dutch with 5-1. On the second day of Group A, the 1974 World Cup final between the Federal Republic and the Netherlands was reissued. The German national team has now taken the lead twice through Rüdiger Abramczik and Dieter Müller . Six minutes before the end of regular time, René van der Kerkhoff managed to equalize to make it 2-2. A German final before the last match day was unlikely. Only a relatively high victory of the Germans over the already eliminated Austrians with a simultaneous draw between Italy and Holland could have brought the defending champions into the final.

In the so-called shame of Córdoba the DFB-Elf against Austria - in Austria understandably referred to as the "miracle of Córdoba" - the Germans lost 3-2 in the last World Cup match under the aegis of national coach Helmut Schön . It was Austria's first victory over a German team in 47 years. Two goals, including the decisive 3: 2, were scored by “Goleador” Hans Krankl , who was then celebrated by his compatriots and in particular by the Austrian radio reporter Edi Finger in a legendary report (“I get narrisch”). The goal to equalize 1: 1 for Austria was caused by the later German national coach Berti Vogts with an own goal. If Heinrich Strasser had n't played a back pass in the game against Italy, which was more of a template for Paolo Rossi , who didn't miss the chance and scored the 1-0 winner for the Italians, then the Austrians would be, who in retrospect would have been a draw would have been enough to get into the game for third place.

Ernst Happels Dutchman finally secured group victory and participation in the finals . In the 2-1 win against Italy in Buenos Aires, the Azzurri were initially dominant, Paolo Rossi could hardly be held or his guard Johan Neeskens was not always in the picture. With his own goal in the 19th minute, Ernie Brandts also ran down goalkeeper Piet Schrijvers , so that he had to be replaced by Jan Jongbloed . The Squadra Azzurra besieged the gate of Jongbloed without stopping until the break . Brandts scored at the beginning of the second half with a long-range shot to equalize in an urgent period for the Netherlands. The decision was made by Arie Haan , who, similar to the 1-1 draw against Germany , defeated Italy's keeper Dino Zoff with a long shot from almost 30 meters . This was the second time in a row that the Dutch were in a World Cup final.

Group B

Pl.	country	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Argentina	3	2	1	0	008-000	+8	05: 10
2.	Brazil	3	2	1	0	006: 100	+5	05: 10
3.	Poland	3	1	0	2	002: 500	−3	02: 40
4th	Peru	3	0	0	3	000:100	−10	00: 60

June 14, 1978, 4:45 p.m. (8:45 p.m. CET) in Mendoza
Brazil	-	Peru	3: 0 (1: 0)
June 14, 1978, 7:15 p.m. (11:15 p.m. CET) in Rosario
Poland	-	Argentina	0: 2 (0: 1)
June 18, 1978, 1:45 p.m. (5:45 p.m. CET) in Mendoza
Peru	-	Poland	0: 1 (0: 0)
June 18, 1978, 7:15 p.m. (11:15 p.m. CET) in Rosario
Argentina	-	Brazil	0-0
June 21, 1978, 4:45 p.m. (8:45 p.m. CET) in Mendoza
Brazil	-	Poland	3: 1 (1: 1)
June 21, 1978, 7:15 p.m. (11:15 p.m. CET) in Rosario
Peru	-	Argentina	0: 6 (0: 2)

The South American teams and Poles were in intermediate group B. The game was played in Rosario and Mendoza. The Argentinians won 2-0 against Poland at the beginning. With this success, the future top scorer Mario Kempes met for the first time during the tournament. He scored the two Argentine goals, but also caused a Polish penalty with a handball on the goal line, which Kazimierz Deyna could not convert in the 38th minute when the score was 0: 1 from a Polish point of view against Argentina's goalkeeper Ubaldo Fillol . Brazil initially won against the Peruvians. The Peruvian team lost to the Poles in the second group game. The game between the hosts and Brazil ended in a 0-0 draw. César Luis Menotti's team fell behind the Brazilians as the latter had the better goal difference before the decisive games. Brazil also won their last game against Poland 3-1.

So Argentina needed a victory with at least four goals difference to the already eliminated Peruvians to reach the final, which it also achieved in Rosario with a 6-0 victory. The circumstances of this triumph, in which Kempes scored twice again, are still controversial today. On the one hand, many astonished the fact that the game was only scheduled after the final whistle of the encounter between Brazil and Poland, supposedly so that the Argentines knew which result they needed to advance. On the other hand, the suspicion persists to this day that the Argentine military junta bought the victory with eventual deliveries of grain to the Peruvian state. In Ricardo Gotta's book “We Were World Champions”, Peruvian national players report calls from their head of state and visits from Videla and US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger to their cabin. Defender José Velazquez found it "pretty strange, there was pressure". Goalkeeper Ramón Quiroga, a native of Argentina, didn't have a good day at 6-0 and later said he was “sure that some people have taken something. We saw strange things. ”It was the first time since 1930 that Argentina made it into a World Cup final. Brazil came into play for 3rd place.

Final round

3rd place match

Brazil won two of their games in the second final round, just like the eventual world champions Argentina, but in the end had the goal difference three goals worse. After the game for third place against Poland, which they lost at the 1974 World Cup, the South Americans secured third place against Italy this time. After Franco Causio led the Italians 1-0 at the break, the Brazilians converted the game into a 2-1 win in the second half with goals from Nelinho and Dirceu .

June 24, 1978, 3:00 p.m. (7:00 p.m. CET) in Buenos Aires
Italy	-	Brazil	1: 2 (1: 0)

final

For a long time (until 2010) it was the last World Cup final without a former world champion. Both countries had already lost a final, Argentina the first in 1930 and the Netherlands that of the previous tournament. The final took place in a heated atmosphere. On the way to the stadium, the Dutch bus made difficult progress due to crowds of local passers-by. The Dutch accused the Argentines of delaying the game, as they complained to the referee through their captain Daniel Passarella about the admissibility of a plaster cuff that René van de Kerkhof was wearing on his wrist. Van de Kerkhof broke his hand in the first game against the Iranian team , so that he ran into the cuff in subsequent games. Referee Sergio Gonella ordered van de Kerkhof back into the cabin. Coach Ernst Happel then sent his entire team back to the catacombs. Only after the cuff had been wrapped in soft fabric and tape , Gonella showed understanding and van de Kerkhof was allowed to run up. Mario Kempes was the first to score before Dick Nanninga equalized shortly before the end of the game. Rob Rensenbrink then failed on the post. In extra time, Kempes and Bertoni scored for Argentina. Kempes also secured the title of top scorer.

Argentina		Netherlands		Lineup
	Sunday: June 25, 1978 at 3 p.m. in Buenos Aires ( Estadio Monumental ) Result: 3: 1 n.V. (1: 1, 1: 0) Spectators: 71,483 Referee: Sergio Gonella ( Italy )   Match report
	Ubaldo Fillol - Daniel Passarella - Jorge Olguín , Luis Galván , Alberto Tarantini - Osvaldo Ardiles (65th Omar Larrosa ), Mario Kempes , Américo Gallego - Daniel Bertoni , Leopoldo Luque , Oscar Ortiz (74th René Houseman ) Trainer: César Luis Menotti	Jan Jongbloed - Ruud Krol - Wim Jansen (72nd Wim Suurbier ), Ernie Brandts , Jan Poortvliet - Willy van de Kerkhof , Arie Haan , Johan Neeskens - René van de Kerkhof , Johnny Rep (59th Dick Nanninga ), Rob Rensenbrink Trainers: Ernst Happel ( Austria )
	1: 0 Kempes (38th) 2: 1 Kempes (105th) 3: 1 Bertoni (115th)	1: 1 Nanninga (82nd)
	Ardiles (40th), Larrosa	Krol (15th), Suurbier (94th), Neeskens (96th)

Comment: It was the first final since World War II in which neither Germany nor Brazil were represented.

World champion Argentina

The world championship team: Ubaldo Fillol ; Luis Galván , Jorge Olguín , Daniel Passarella , Alberto Tarantini ; Norberto Alonso , Osvaldo Ardiles , Américo Gallego , Omar Larrosa , Miguel Oviedo , Ricardo Villa ; Daniel Bertoni , René Houseman , Mario Kempes , Leopoldo Luque , Oscar Ortiz , José Daniel Valencia .

Mario Kempes was named Footballer of the Year in Argentina and South America's Footballer of the Year .

Best goal scorers

rank player Gates 1  Mario Kempes 6th 2  Teófilo Cubillas 5  Rob Rensenbrink 5 4th  Hans Krankl 4th  Leopoldo Luque 4th 6th  Johnny rep 3  Karl-Heinz Rummenigge 3  Roberto Dinamite 3  Dirceu 3  Paolo Rossi 3

rank player Gates 11  Archie Gemmill 2  Nelinho 2  Dieter Müller 2  Heinz Flea 2  Zbigniew Boniek 2  Ernie Brandts 2  Daniel Bertoni 2  Roberto Bettega 2  Grzegorz Lato 2  Arie Haan 2

In addition, there were 40 players with a hit. There were also three own goals.

See also

• Soccer World Cup / Records

Web links

Commons : Football World Cup 1978  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Official website of FIFA for the 1978 World Cup
• All details on Fussballdaten.de
• Statistics World Cup qualification 1978
• Statistics World Cup finals 1978
• Page no longer available , search in web archives: radio reports online! Edi Finger from the WM - Austrian Media Library.
• Summary of the final on YouTube
• David Winner: The perverse tournament. At: 11Freunde .de. January 10, 2010. Background article in the magazine about the systematic torture and mass murder by the dictatorship, as well as the strong indications for a politically motivated manipulation of decisive games of the tournament.
• Christian Koller : 40 years ago: Junta generals become soccer world champions , in: Sozialarchiv Info 2 (2018). Pp. 14-28.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} David Winner: The perverse tournament. At: 11Freunde .de. January 10, 2010, original English: But Was This The Beautiful Game's Ugliest Moment?  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.   In: ft.com . June 21, 2008.
2. ↑ Martin Mazur: 11Freunde Spezial: The other story of the World Cup . In: Matthias Hörstmann (Ed.): 11Freunde Spezial: https://www.11freunde.de/heft/11freunde-spezial-die-andere-geschichte-der-wm . 11FREUNDE Verlag GmbH & Co. KG, Berlin May 2018, p. 20-23 .
3. ↑ World Cup anecdotes. A game of the century and a scandal of the century. At: Spiegel.de. July 6, 2010.
4. ↑ Ulrich Pramann (Ed.): Football and Torture. Argentina ´78. Reinbek, 1978. p. 30.
5. ↑ Refuse a handshake . In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna April 6, 1978, p. 10 ( berufer-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized). Top left.
6. ↑ Whirlwind in the German team about visit from Nazi pack: Now resignations . In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna June 12, 1978, p. 1 ( berufer-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized). Top right.
7. ↑ ^{a b} Peter Burkhardt: Cheers within earshot of the torture chambers. In: Sueddeutsche.de . June 25, 2008.
8. ↑ Sport in a tight spot. How political does football have to be? ( Memento of April 13, 2014 in the Internet Archive ). At: zdf.de/aspekte. May 11, 2012.
9. ↑ "Mind work in the mental area". May 31, 2012.
10. ↑ Beckenbauer's embarrassing statement about working conditions in Qatar. 19th November 2013.
11. ↑ It was different once in a while: The 1978 World Cup in Argentina. In: Focus.de. May 2, 2012.
12. ↑ Peter Maxwill: Argentina's Scandalous Triumph. In: Spiegel.de. May 28, 2014.
13. ^ Edición del Saturday January 14 de 1978, Página 9. At: hemeroteca.mundodeportivo.com. (Click on "Ver texto" to make the text visible!)
14. ^ 1978 World Cup: The Shame of Cordoba. At: dfb.de. DFB website for the 1978 World Cup.
15. ↑ Delay for a ridiculous reason . In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna June 11, 1978, p. 15 ( berufer-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized). Column 3, middle.
16. ↑ Dressenstreit: Punishment for the French . In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna June 12, 1978, p. 10 ( berufer-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized). Column 3, middle.
17. ↑ "Jersey scandal" brought the French severe reprimand . In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna June 24, 1978, p. 14 ( Arbeiter-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized). Bottom right.
18. ↑ Finale: Holland. Holland – Italy 2-1 (0-1) . In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna June 22, 1978, p. 15 ( berufer-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized). top right.
19. ↑ World Cup semi-finals. Holland – Argentina. Who does Maxima's heart beat for? ( Memento of July 11, 2014 in the Internet Archive ). At: ZDFsport.de. July 8, 2014.