Candidate for the biggest upset in the history of the World Cups, Argentina’s defeat by Saudi Arabia, by 2 to 1, this Tuesday (22), in fact entered the list of the great surprises of the World Cups according to the official FIFA ranking (International Football Federation). But, according to this criterion, it is not the greatest of them.
Messi and company landed in Qatar in third place, just behind Brazil and Belgium. The Alviceleste team also arrived as South American champions and owner of an unbeaten run of 36 games, just one game away from the new world record. One of the favorites, therefore, to lift the cup.
On the other hand, Saudi Arabia occupies only 51st place. Among the 32 teams classified for this edition of the Cup, it is only ahead of Ghana (61st) in the FIFA score.
This difference, of 48 positions, has only been surpassed on three occasions since the 1994 Cup, the first disputed after the creation of the ranking. The context of the other matches, however, indicates that the disappointments may have been minor in some of them.
In 2010, playing as hosts, South Africa celebrated a surprise victory over France, by 2-1, in the closing of the group stage. The home team occupied the 83rd place in the ranking, while the Europeans were in the 9th position. Both teams were eliminated.
The favorites, however, were going through a serious internal crisis, exposed to the world in a discussion between striker Anelka and coach Raymond Domenech, with a boycott of training sessions and other episodes. They reached the last round staggered, after a draw with Uruguay and a defeat against Mexico.
In addition, the distance in the ranking was increased by the low number of matches played by South Africa in the period prior to the World Cup. The selection was already classified automatically for hosting the event, did not play in the continental knockout games and scored much less than it normally would.
The second biggest upset, by this criterion, was the defeat of Spain (15th) to Nigeria (74th) in the 1998 World Cup, by 3-2, also in the first phase. In that edition, the Africans qualified, and the Europeans packed their bags for home.
Once again, however, the rankings did not faithfully reflect the disparity between the teams, as Nigeria had not played in the previous two editions of the African Cup of Nations. The first by choice (1996) and the second by punishment (1998, a few months before the World Cup), precisely because he had not participated in the previous competition.
Then comes the fall of Germany (1st) against South Korea (57th) in the 2018 World Cup. The then defender of the world title and ranking leader was defeated by the Asians by 2-0, with two goals in second-half stoppage time , for the last round of the first phase. Both teams were eliminated, and the four-time world champion finished bottom of the group.
Now surpassed by the fiasco of Argentina, Ghana’s victory over the Czech Republic by 2-0, in the 2006 World Cup, completes the top of the list.
The European team arrived as the second best in the world, according to FIFA, and was defeated by the then 48th placed in the ranking. The Czechs ended up eliminated, and the Africans advanced to the round of 16.
Other big upsets occurred before the creation of the Fifa ranking. The most famous of them is perhaps the victory of the United States over England in 1950, by 1 to 0, due to the fact that the North American team that traveled to Brazil was formed by amateur athletes.
Played at the Independência stadium, the match became known as “The Miracle of Belo Horizonte”. A movie story in the capital of Minas Gerais, taken to the screen in the movie “Duel of Champions”, starring Gerard Butler.
Argentina itself had already been a victim, in 1990. It arrived as world champion and debuted with a 1-0 defeat by Cameroon.
The Lions were the winners of the African Cup and became the first team from the continent to reach the quarterfinals at the World Cup. Despite the stumbling block, Maradona’s team made it to the decision and took the runner-up position.
Another historic surprise was North Korea’s triumph over Italy, 1-0, in the 1966 World Cup. At the time, the European team had already been world champion twice. He ended up saying goodbye in the first phase and saw the Asians go ahead.
Also with two world trophies on the shelf, Germany was surprised by Algeria in 1982. It lost by 2 to 1, in its debut, but managed to qualify and was runner-up that year.
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