Romario was the tournament’s most lethal scorer, and coach Carlos Alberto Parreira combined discipline with the great flair for which his players were known. The early front-page stories focused on Diego Maradona and Andres Escobar. Before failing a drug, test and getting eliminated from the tournament, Maradona scored an incredible goal against Greece. Escobar, who scored their own purpose for Colombia against the United States, was killed by gunfire in his native country.
Italy advanced to the final thanks mainly to Roberto Baggio, who saved them against a strong Nigeria team in the second round and scored the game-winning goal against Spain in the quarterfinals. In the semi-finals, two more goals helped Bulgaria defeat Germany, which had startled them earlier, but the final held the cruellest surprises for him.
Brazil made calm progress. After edging Holland 3-2 in the quarterfinals, they faced surprise semi-final opponent Sweden, whom Romario won thanks to a superb finish. The conclusion was a huge let-down. No goals meant the first World Cup final shootout in history, and Baggio’s missed shot was the game-winner.
FIFA World Cup Trivia from 1994
– Despite allegedly not playing soccer, the USA 94 World Cup had the most significant overall and average attendance ever. 3.5 million people watched the games, up from 2.5 million and 48,000 in Italia 90.
– Several of Russia’s top athletes stayed at home in opposition to Pavel Sadyrin’s hiring as a coach.
– Bulgaria defeated Greece by a score of 4-0, marking their first victory in six World Cup finals. They were motivated by striker Hristo Stoichkov and balding playmaker Iordan Lechkov, and they defeated top-ranked Germany to get to the semi-finals.
– Andres Escobar’s own goal cost Colombia a humiliating 2-1 loss to the USA. Escobar was shot dead upon his arrival home, purportedly because the outcome lost the nation’s drug and gambling gangs a sizable sum of money.
– Roger Milla, the outstanding player for Cameroon in 1990, entered the World Cup finals at 42. When he scored in Russia’s 6-1 defeat, he broke the record for the oldest player to score. Rigobert Song, a 17-year-old for Cameroon, was given his marching orders against Brazil, making him the youngest player to be dismissed.
– Singer Diana Ross missed a penalty attempt from two yards at the opening ceremony, casting immediate doubt on the USA’s chances.
– Stefan Effenberg of Germany was ejected from the game against South Korea for making an offensive gesture to the crowd. The Bayern Munich midfielder never again represented his country on the field.
– The second-round match between Mexico and Bulgaria was delayed by 15 minutes due to a broken crossbar that needed to be fixed.
Brazil dedicated their victory to Ayrton Senna, a Brazilian Formula One driver who had died earlier in 1994 at Imola, Italy. Between 17 June and 17 July, the United States hosted the 15th World Cup. Before the FIFA World Cup’s final round of play, 147 national teams competed in qualification. The United States, the host nation, and Germany, the defending champions, were two of the 24 teams who advanced to the World Cup final event. Greece, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia have all been successful in qualifying.
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