Greatest FIFA World Cup Upsets: From Dream Runs to Titanic Blowouts

Introduction
Fitting finales: Famous upsets to lift the trophy
- 1. Uruguay 2–1 Brazil (1950): “El Maracanazo”
- 2. West Germany 3–2 Hungary (1954): The “Miracle of Bern”
- 3. West Germany 2–1 Netherlands (1974): “Der Bomber” spoiled the Dutch party
- 4. France 3–0 Brazil, 1998: Zidane steals the show
Champions with feet of clay
- 5. Cameroon 1–0 Argentina (1990): San Siro stunner
- 6. Norway 2–1 Brazil (1998): Flonaldo’s triumph
- 7. Senegal 1–0 France (2002): Opening day upset
- 8. Slovakia 3–2 Italy (2010): Italy’s painful exit
- 9. Netherlands 5–1 Spain (2014): The “Flying Dutchman”
- 10. South Korea 2–0 Germany (2018): Double knockout in Kazan
- 11. Tunisia 1–0 France (2022): Exit on a high note
Beyond their wildest dreams: Underdogs on fairy-tale runs
- 12. Wales (1958): Delightful debut for the Dragons
- 13. North Korea (1966): The Chollima joins the big leagues
- 14. Algeria (1982): All roads lead to Gijón
- 15. Bulgaria (1994): Breaking the long jinx
- 16. Croatia (1998): The Vatreni’s blazing debut
- 17. South Korea (2002): The ultimate hometown heroes
- 18. Costa Rica (2014): A Cinderella story
- 19. Japan (2022): David vs. a group of Goliaths
- 20. Morocco (2022): An African record
Group-stage giant slayers
- 21. United States 1–0 England (1950): The “Miracle on Grass”
- 22. East Germany 1–0 West Germany (1974): Hosts shocked in Hamburg
- 23. Northern Ireland 1–0 Spain (1982): The “Miracle in Valencia”
- 24. Nigeria 3–2 Spain (1998): Sunday’s Saturday surprise
- 25. Switzerland 1–0 Spain (2010): Pinball in Durban
- 26. Saudi Arabia 2–1 Argentina (2022): The “Lusailazo”
- 27. Chile 2–0 Spain (2014): The death of tiki-taka
Clash of titans in the knockout stage
- 28. Germany 7–1 Brazil (2014): The “Mineirazo”
- 29. Russia 1–1 (4–3) Spain (2018): Akinfeev’s shoot-out heroics

References & Edit History Related Topics

Images

Robin van Persie of the Netherlands celebrates joyfully with teammates after scoring a goal against Spain during the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Salvador, Brazil.

Miroslav Klose of Germany, wearing a black and red jersey celebrates scoring his team's second goal during the 2014 FIFA World Cup semifinal against Brazil at Estadio Mineirao on July 8, 2014, in Belo Horizonte.

Aerial view of Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, filled with spectators, showing the circular structure and surrounding cityscape.

West German soccer players and staff jubilantly embrace on the field after winning the 1954 FIFA World Cup final in Bern, with cheering crowds in the background.

West Germany captain Franz Beckenbauer raises the FIFA World Cup trophy as teammates Sepp Maier and Paul Breitner and a cheering crowd look on at the 1974 final in Munich.

Zinedine Zidane of France and Hussein Al Sulaimani of Saudi Arabia compete for the ball during the 1998 World Cup match at Stade de France, with spectators in the background.

Francois Omam-Biyik of Cameroon heads the ball to score against Argentina during the 1990 FIFA World Cup, with Argentine defenders and goalkeeper nearby.

Senegalese defender Aliou Cisse kneels on the field with arms raised in celebration after Senegal's 1-0 win over France at the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Seoul.

Animated gif of Robin Van Persie diving forward to head a football (soccer ball) and score for the Netherlands at the FIFA World Cup.

North Korea national football team players celebrate on the field after defeating Italy 1-0 at the 1966 FIFA World Cup in England, with jubilant teammates embracing.

Greatest FIFA World Cup Upsets: From Dream Runs to Titanic Blowouts: Media

Images

Robin van Persie of the Netherlands celebrates joyfully with teammates after scoring a goal against Spain during the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Salvador, Brazil.

Netherlands vs. Spain at the 2014 World Cup

Dutch player Robin van Persie (center) and his teammates celebrating after scoring...

© Alex Grimm—FIFA/Getty Images

Miroslav Klose of Germany, wearing a black and red jersey celebrates scoring his team's second goal during the 2014 FIFA World Cup semifinal against Brazil at Estadio Mineirao on July 8, 2014, in Belo Horizonte.

Miroslav Klose

German footballer Miroslav Klose celebrating a goal against Brazil in the 2014 FIFA...

© Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

Aerial view of Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, filled with spectators, showing the circular structure and surrounding cityscape.

Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro

An aerial view of a large crowd at Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro.

© Ullstein bild Dtl/Getty Images

West German soccer players and staff jubilantly embrace on the field after winning the 1954 FIFA World Cup final in Bern, with cheering crowds in the background.

The “Miracle of Bern”

Members of the West German World Cup football team celebrating after winning the...

© Bongarts/Getty Images

West Germany captain Franz Beckenbauer raises the FIFA World Cup trophy as teammates Sepp Maier and Paul Breitner and a cheering crowd look on at the 1974 final in Munich.

1974 FIFA World Cup

West German captain Franz Beckenbauer raising the FIFA World Cup trophy at the award...

© Werner Schulze—ullstein bild/Getty Images

Zinedine Zidane of France and Hussein Al Sulaimani of Saudi Arabia compete for the ball during the 1998 World Cup match at Stade de France, with spectators in the background.

Zinedine Zidane at the 1998 World Cup

French midfielder Zinedine Zidane (blue shirt) played a huge part in helping his...

© Simon Bruty—Anychance/Getty Images

Francois Omam-Biyik of Cameroon heads the ball to score against Argentina during the 1990 FIFA World Cup, with Argentine defenders and goalkeeper nearby.

Cameroon stuns Argentina at the 1990 World Cup

François Omam-Biyik (green shirt) of Cameroon scoring one of the most famous World...

© David Cannon—Allsport/Getty Images

Senegalese defender Aliou Cisse kneels on the field with arms raised in celebration after Senegal's 1-0 win over France at the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Seoul.

Senegal vs. France at the 2002 World Cup

Senegalese defender Aliou Cissé celebrating after his team defeated reigning champion...

© Kim Jae-Hwan—AFP/Getty Images

Animated gif of Robin Van Persie diving forward to head a football (soccer ball) and score for the Netherlands at the FIFA World Cup.

Robin van Persie, the Flying Dutchman

In the Netherlands vs. Spain group-stage match at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Dutch...

© Ryan Pierse—FIFA/Getty Images; Animation Encyclopædia Britannica Inc.

North Korea national football team players celebrate on the field after defeating Italy 1-0 at the 1966 FIFA World Cup in England, with jubilant teammates embracing.

North Korea at the 1966 World Cup

Members of the North Korean national football team celebrating after defeating Italy...

© Central Press—Hulton Archive/Getty Images

South Korean World Cup soccer players celebrate on the field, waving national flags, after defeating Italy in extra time at the 2002 FIFA World Cup, with cheering fans in the background.

South Korea at the 2002 World Cup

Members of the South Korean football team celebrating following their victory over...

© Kim Jae-Hwan—AFP/Getty Images

Black-and-white photo of the 1950 USA World Cup soccer team posing on the field before their match against England, with players and coaches in two rows, and a large crowd in the background.

The 1950 World Cup U.S. team

Members of the American squad that faced England during the 1950 World Cup, at Estádio...

© EMPICS—PA Images/Getty Images

Franz Beckenbauer of West Germany and Bernd Bransch of East Germany shake hands at midfield before their 1974 FIFA World Cup match, surrounded by referees and media.

East Germany vs. West Germany

Franz Beckenbauer (white shirt), captain of West Germany, shaking hands with Bernd...

© Allsport—Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Switzerland defender Stephan Lichtsteiner raises his arms in celebration as Spain striker David Villa, wearing number 7, looks down after Switzerland's 1-0 victory at the 2010 World Cup.

Switzerland vs. Spain at the 2010 World Cup

Swiss defender Stephan Lichtsteiner (white shirt) celebrating as Spanish striker...

© Karim Jaafar—AFP/Getty Images

Saudi Arabia soccer players celebrate together on the field after scoring against Argentina at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, with cheering fans in the background.

The “Lusailazo” at the 2022 World Cup

Saudi Arabian players celebrating during the team's 2022 FIFA World Cup group-stage...

© Clive Brunskill/Getty Images

A Germany fan with a painted face celebrates among sad Brazil fans after Germany's 7-1 win at the 2014 FIFA World Cup semifinal in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.

The “Mineirazo” at the 2014 World Cup

A German fan (white shirt) reacting while surrounded by dejected Brazilian fans after...

© Michael Steele/Getty Images

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