The biggest football World Cup surprises ever witnessed

Nothing makes headlines like a low-ranked or unfancied team performing admirably to defeat a big name.


The 2022 FIFA World Cup is the most anticipated sporting event of the year.

Fans are excited to see which team wins the coveted trophy, who scores the most goals, and who puts on the best show on the big stage.

While it is exciting to see who will be the champion, another aspect of the tournament that always amazes spectators is upsets on the field.

In some shocking World Cup results, defending champions were knocked out in the group stages, minnows thrashed historical giants of the game, and, on some occasions, the shock was not at the result but at the sheer lack of effort and the resulting score.

Here are some of the most shocking upsets in World Cup history:

USA 1-0 England (1950)

The post-war England team, which included Alf Ramsey, Tom Finney, and Billy Wright, was one of the favorites to win the World Cup on its debut. Meanwhile, the Americans assembled a crew of part-timers, including a dishwasher, a letter carrier, and a teacher. The mixed group practiced together for one day before embarking on a boat to Brazil.
Joe Gaetjens scored a header in the 38th minute to put the United States ahead. England's attack was relentless in the second half, but USA goalkeeper Frank Borghi kept them from scoring an equalizer and etched his team's name in history.

West Germany 3-2 Hungary (1954)

A West German team staging a comeback to win a World Cup match today would not be considered an outlier.

However, this was a lesser-known West German side from the 1950s facing Hungary's Mighty Magyars, led by football's first superstar Ferenc Puskas.

Hungary came into the World Cup in Switzerland as the favorite, and they delivered by thrashing South Korea 9-0 and West Germany 8-3 in the first two games.
The two teams met again in the final. Hungary scored two goals in the first half and appeared to be on track until the opponents scored two.

North Korea 1-0 Italy (1966)

It was surprising enough that North Korea was able to land a team in England for the World Cup.
During its cold war with the Western allies' preferred South Korea, the English FA considered refusing the North Korean team's visa.

Giacomo Bulgarelli kept Italy together on the field. The midfielder was injured during the game, reducing the Italian team to 10 men because substitutions were not permitted then.

Pak Doo Ik scored seven minutes later, winning the match and knocking out the two-time world champions.

The game is regarded as one of the most shocking upsets in World Cup history, and the original match ticket is housed in FIFA football.

Algeria 2-1 West Germany (1982)

West Germany went into the 1982 World Cup as the reigning European champions, two-time winners, and one of the favorites.
Hansi Mueller, Wolfgang Dremmler, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, and Lothar Matthäus were among the German all-stars.

Algeria, on the other hand, was a team comprised of names unfamiliar in Western football but had been performing well in the lead-up to the World Cup.

The Germans' nonchalance turned into complacency. Rabah Madjer's goal in the 54th minute dealt the Germans their first setback.

Just as Rummenigge's goal brought Germany level, the now-legendary Algerian forward Lakhdar Belloumi scored a goal that stunned West Germany and the world.

Cameroon 1-0 Argentina (1990)

Argentina had a seemingly easy opening match at the 1982 World Cup as holders, favorites, and led by the world's greatest footballer at the time, Diego Maradona.

Cameroon was making their World Cup debut and was the only Sub-Saharan African country to compete. They were made up of players who no one knew much about because they mostly played club football at home.
The first World Cup match was held at the mighty San Siro stadium.

Although Argentina started well, the Cameroonians gained confidence as the game progressed without any damage being done to them.

Francois Omam-Biyik latched onto a free kick halfway through the second half and headed his team into a lead that would last until the final whistle.

France 0-1 Senegal (2002)

Check: World Cup holders vs. debutants.

Check: former colonisers vs colony.

Check for the tournament's first game.
Finally, holders were knocked out in the first round: check.

The opening game of the 2002 World Cup featured all of the potential subplots for an exciting match. What the pundits and the French team failed to predict was the meticulously planned Senegalese suffocation of the French attack.

With El Hadji Diouf's pace and a goal in the 30th minute from Papa Bouba Diop, Senegal led the group at the end of 90 minutes.

France's journey came to an end with another defeat and a draw. Senegal went on to become the only African country to reach the quarter-finals.

Germany 7-1 Brazil (2014)

The 2014 World Cup appeared to be the ideal opportunity for Brazil to right the wrongs of 1950, when they lost the final against Uruguay at home despite being overwhelming favorites.

With Brazil being crowned champions for the sixth time, the stage was set for football's biggest party to light up the samba nation.
There were only two more matches to go. Or so the Brazilians believed.

Up against them was Germany, a team that should never be underestimated in a World Cup knockout match. Both teams followed a similar path to the semi-finals, topping their groups and facing off in the knockouts.

Brazil, on the other hand, lost their star forward Neymar Jr to injury in the quarterfinals, as well as captain Thiago Silva to yellow card accumulation.

Netherlands 5-1 Spain (2014)

The first game of Group B in the 2014 World Cup pitted the previous World Cup's finalists against each other.

Spain came into the tournament as the reigning European and world champions, as well as one of the favorites.

When Xabi Alonso scored in the 27th minute, everything seemed to be going well for the star-studded Spanish team. But, one minute before halftime, came the goal that became the tournament's most iconic image.

Robin van Persie latched on to a looping ball 15 yards from goal and scored a stunning header that stunned Iker Casillas and the rest of the Spanish team.

South Korea 2-0 Germany (2018)

The defending champions have suffered some of the biggest upsets in World Cup history, and the 2018 tournament was no exception.

The holders were eliminated at the first hurdle for the third time in a row.

Germany needed a win in their final group match to advance. South Korea was playing for pride because they were out of the tournament.

Germany has historically been one of the World Cup teams that can never be counted out. The game appeared to be heading to a goalless draw, so the Germans focused all of their efforts on scoring the game-winning goal.


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