Brazil Football History
Early history (1914–1957)
The first match of the Brazil national football team ever is generally believed to be a 1914 match between a Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo select team and the English club Exeter City, held in Fluminense's stadium.[6][7] Brazil won 2–0 with goals by Oswaldo Gomes and Osman,[6][7][8] whilst others claim a 3–3[9][10] draw. In contrast to its future success, the national team's early appearances were far from brilliant, partly due to an internal strife within Brazilian football associations over professionalism, which rendered the Brazilian Football Confederation unable to field full-strength teams. In particular, disputes between the São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro state football federations meant that the team would not be composed of players coming from either of the federations.[11][12] In both the 1930 and 1934 tournaments, Brazil were knocked out at the very first stage.[13][14] But 1938 was a sign of things to come, as Brazil ended up in third place, with Leonidas da Silva finishing the tournament as the top scorer of the tournament.
Brazil hosted the 1950 FIFA World Cup, which was the first tournament to be held after World War II. It is the only time Brazil has hosted this championship to date (excluding the upcoming 2014 tournament). The 1950 tournament was unique in not having one single final, but rather a final round-robin stage of four teams. However, for all intents and purposes, the deciding match between Brazil and Uruguay acted as that tournament's "final". The match was hosted at the Maracanã stadium in Rio de Janeiro, watched by 199,854 people, and Brazil only needed a draw to win, but lost the match 2–1 after being up 1–0. This match has since been known in South America as the "Maracanazo". In Brazil it is called the "Final Fatídica" ("fateful final").[15]
For the 1954 FIFA World Cup in Switzerland, the Brazilian team was then almost completely renovated, so as to forget the Maracanã defeat, but still had a group of good players, including Nílton Santos, Djalma Santos, and Didi. Brazil didn't go very far though. The quarterfinals saw the favorites Hungary beat Brazil 4–2 in one of the ugliest matches in football history, which would become infamous as the Battle of Berne. The Golden Era and Pelé (1958–1970)
Brazil's coach, Vicente Feola, imposed strict rules on the squad for the 1958 FIFA World Cup, held in Sweden. The players were given a list of forty things that they were not allowed to do, including wearing hats or umbrellas, smoking while wearing official uniforms and talking to the press outside of allocated times. They were the only team to bring a psychologist to the training camp (because the memories of 1950 still affected some players) or a dentist (for, because of their humble origins, many players had dental problems, which caused them infections and also had negative impact on performance), and had sent a representative to Europe to watch the qualifying matches a year before the tournament had begun. Brazil were drawn in the toughest group, with England, the USSR and Austria. They beat Austria 3–0 in their first match, then drew 0–0 with England. The Brazilians had been worried about their match with the USSR, who had exceptional fitness and were one of the favourites to win the tournament; their strategy was to take risks at the beginning of the match to try and score an early goal. Before the match, the leaders of the team, Bellini, Nílton Santos, and Didi , spoke to coach Vicente Feola and persuaded him to make three substitutions which were crucial for Brazil to defeat the Soviets and win the Cup: Zito, Garrincha, and Pelé would start playing against the USSR. From the kick off, they passed the ball to Garrincha who beat three players before hitting the post with a shot. They kept up the pressure relentlessly, and after three minutes, which were later described as "the greatest three minutes in the history of football",[17] Vavá gave Brazil the lead. They won the match by 2–0. Pelé scored the only goal of their quarter-final match against Wales, and they beat France 5–2 in the semi-final. Brazil beat the host Sweden, in the final by 5–2, winning their first World Cup and becoming the first nation to win a World Cup title outside of its own continent. A celebrated fact was that Feola would sometimes take naps during training sessions and would sometimes close his eyes during matches, giving the impression that he was asleep. Because of this, Didi was sometimes said to be the real coach of the team, as he commanded the midfield.
In the 1962 FIFA World Cup, Brazil has conquered its second title with Garrincha as the star player; a mantle and responsibility bestowed upon him after the regular talisman, Pelé, was injured during the first group match against Mexico and unable to play for the rest of the tournament.
In the 1966 FIFA World Cup, the preparation of the team was affected by political influences. All the major Brazilian clubs wanted their players included in the Brazilian team, to give them more exposure. In the final months of preparation to the World Cup, the coach Vicente Feola was working with 46 players, of which only 22 would go to England; this caused lots of internal dispute and psychological pressure on the players and managing staff. The result was that, in 1966, Brazil had their worst performance in all World Cups. Another perhaps bigger issue was that Pelé, who possibly had been at the height of his career at this stage, was chopped off at seemingly every opportunity in the group matches.
Brazil won its third World Cup in Mexico in the 1970 FIFA World Cup. Brazil fielded what has since then been considered the best football squad ever, led by Pelé in his last World Cup final, captain Carlos Alberto Torres, Jairzinho, Tostão, Gérson and Rivelino. After winning the Jules Rimet Trophy for the third time, Brazil were allowed to keep it for good. 1994 World Cup
Brazil, to the surprise of many, went 24 years without winning a World Cup or even participating in a final. Their struggles ended at the 1994 tournament in the United States, where a solid, if unspectacular side headed by the likes of Romário, Bebeto, Dunga, Taffarel, and Jorginho won the World Cup for a then-record 4th time. Highlights of their campaign included a 1–0 victory over the host in the round of 16, a sensational 3–2 win over the Dutch in the quarter-finals (often cited as the game of the tournament) and a 1–0 win over the Swedes in the semis. This set up a classic confrontation, Brazil vs. Italy, in the final. After a dour and unexciting 0–0 draw, penalty kicks loomed, and when Roberto Baggio lifted his spot kick over the crossbar, Brazil were champions once again. A new era of dominance had begun. 1998 World Cup
Brazil finished runner-up in the 1998 FIFA World Cup. After a very respectable campaign during which they beat Netherlands on penalties in the semi-final following a 1–1 draw with goals from Ronaldo and Patrick Kluivert, the team lost to host France 3–0 in a problematic final game. Brazilian marking at defensive set pieces was poor, and Zinédine Zidane was able to score two headed goals from France's corner kicks. Also, Brazilian star Ronaldo suffered an epileptic seizure a few hours before the match. Many criticized the decision to reinstate Ronaldo into the starting lineup as he put on a poor performance. 2002 World Cup
Fuelled by the scintillating play of the "Three R's" (Ronaldo, Rivaldo, Ronaldinho), Brazil won its fifth championship at the 2002 FIFA World Cup held in South Korea and Japan. The groupings appeared at first glance to favor Brazilian team; their adversaries would be Turkey, China and Costa Rica. In the end, a stronger than expected Turkey finished the tournament in third place. Brazil went on to beat all three opponents, scoring 11 goals and conceding only three, and topping the group.
In Brazil's opening game against Turkey, Rivaldo fell to the ground clutching his face after Turkey's Hakan Ünsal had kicked the ball at his legs. Hakan Ünsal, who had already been booked, was sent off while Rivaldo jumped to his feet and continued playing. Rivaldo escaped suspension but was fined £5,180 for play-acting. He became the first player ever ,to be punished in FIFA's crackdown on "simulation" and "diving." They followed with a 4–0 win over China and a 5–2 win over Costa Rica.
Next, Brazil defeated Belgium 2–0, in the round-of-16. Against England in the quarter finals, Brazil won 2–1. Ronaldinho scored the winner with a remarkable lofted free kick and also assisted teammate Rivaldo for their first goal, but was sent off for stamping on the right ankle of England's Danny Mills. The semifinal was against Turkey, which Brazil had faced in their group. Again, this match was difficult, as Brazil won 1–0 with a goal by Ronaldo. Rivaldo had scored one goal in all five games up to this one but did not manage to hit the target in the sixth. He had seemed all set to repeat Jairzinho´s great achievement in 1970 when he scored in every game of the World Cup.
The final was between two of the most successful teams in the competition's history: Germany and Brazil. Incredibly, the teams had never played each other in the World Cup before, besides a match between Brazil and East Germany in the 1974 FIFA World Cup. German goalkeeper Oliver Kahn had been the tournament's best keeper, but was not able to maintain his post unscathed in this match, as Ronaldo vanquished his France '98 demons by scoring both goals in the Brazilian 2–0 triumph. Brazilian's coach Carlos Alberto Parreira presented a formation nicknamed "The Magic Square" by the Brazilian sport journalists, based in 4 offensive players: Ronaldo, Adriano, Kaká, and Ronaldinho.
During the preparation stages, the team presented some problems. The team's greatest star Ronaldo had got a bad build-up, after returning from a two-month injury recovery. He also had blisters on his feet and a fever during the training matches.[22]
Despite winning the first 2 games against Croatia (1–0) and Australia (2–0), the "Magic Square" didn't seem to work as expected and struggled to beat the opponents' defense. In the third game, manager Parreira tried a new squad with five former reserve players, including Robinho, and Cicinho. The changes were successful, as the team put on a comfortable 4–1 win against Japan. During the second round, they defeated Ghana 3–0. However, Brazil was eliminated in the quarterfinals against France by a score of 1–0. France was led by a rejuvenated Zinédine Zidane and by a strong defence which kept the Brazilian strikers under check for the duration of the game. Brazil were shut out, attempting just one shot at French goalkeeper Fabien Barthez. The game was also notable for being the first time that the Brazil team had been shut out in 3 consecutive matches against France, now has a 2–1–1 all-time record in 1986, 1998 and 2006 in World Cup matches.
After elimination to France, the Brazil team was largely criticized by the press and the fans. The media circulated images from the left wingback Roberto Carlos tying his shoes while Henry runs unmarked to score the winning goal. The sporting legend Pelé blamed coach Parreira and Ronaldinho for the team's early elimination. Copa América 2007
Brazil participated in the Copa América 2007 which was hosted by Venezuela. They were placed in Group B with Mexico, Ecuador, and Chile. Brazil surprisingly lost to Mexico 2–0 in their opening match, then bounced back with a comfortable 3–0 victory over Chile with three goals from Robinho, and won 1–0 against Ecuador, Robinho scoring on a penalty kick. They advanced to the quarter-finals, where they defeated Chile again 6–1. The semi-final was against Uruguay, after a 2–2 draw, Brazil won 5–4 on penalties. Their opponent in the final was Argentina, which were the favorites to win, having won all their matches on the way to the final. However Brazil scored early in the 4th minute when Júlio Baptista scored, and then in the 45th minute, defender Roberto Ayala scored on an own goal. Later in the second half, in the 69th minute, substitute Dani Alves scored Brazil's third goal, as the scoreline became 3–0. After the tournament, Robinho was awarded the Golden Boot in addition to being named the best player in the tournament
2009 FIFA Confederations Cup
The Brazilian team won the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup in South Africa. Although they started with a shaky 4–3 victory over Egypt scoring a last minute penalty, having led 3–1 at half-time only for Egypt to pull level with two quick goals at the start of the second half. Egypt is also credited as the only African team to score three goals against Brazil. Brazil comfortably beat the USA, as well as Italy, both with a 3–0 scoreline. After beating South Africa in the semi-final with a late free kick, they went on to a rematch against USA in the final which they won 3–2, after coming in 2–0 down at half-time, to seal their third Confederations Cup title.[29] Kaká was named as the player of the tournament and Luís Fabiano won the top goalscorer award with five goals in five matches.
