1954 World Cup: "Battle of Bern” | Dicas Educação Física

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Introduction: 1954 World Cup

In the 1954 World Cup, many believed that the new colors of the Brazilian national team uniform would bring luck. But what it got was a battle in one of the most violent games in the history of the World Cup that television has recorded.

1954 Cup in Switzerland

The World Cup was returning to Europe, which was already recovering from the great financial depression it had suffered. Switzerland, which was now the home of FIFA, was chosen to host the 1954 World Cup.

There was a great deal of emphasis on the Hungarian national team. The team was undefeated in games since 1950 and had received a large government investment. The whole team was well-integrated and came in as one of the great favorites.

Brazilian National Team in the 54th World Cup

The shock of losing the final of the 1950 World Cup in their own country made some people blame even the color of the jersey for the bad luck. But, superstition or not, the uniform of the Brazilian national team really changed for the ’54 World Cup.

The yellow jersey with green details finally appeared to represent the colors of the country, a combination that would forever mark the history of football.

The “canarinho team” – nickname received by radio broadcaster Geraldo José de Almeida – opened with a 5-nil thrashing of Mexico. In Brazil’s next game, against Yugoslavia, the final score of 1-1 caused confusion for the Brazilian team.

Thinking that a draw would not qualify the team for the quarterfinals, the Brazilian players were distraught at the end of the game. Some even left crying, imagining they were eliminated. The news of the qualification would only be received through the Press.

The “Battle of Bern”

In the quarterfinals, Brazil would face the mighty Hungary. But after 25 minutes of play, violence took over the match. Three players were sent off (two from Brazil), for aggressive plays, and 42 fouls were The shock of losing the final of the 1950 World Cup in their own country made some people blame even the color of the jersey for the bad luck. But, superstition or not, the uniform of the Brazilian national team really changed for the ’54 World Cup.

The yellow jersey with green details finally appeared to represent the colors of the country, a combination that would forever mark the history of football.

The “Battle of Bern”

Even after the end of the match (4-2) that eliminated Brazil from the 54th World Cup, football shoes flew, bottles were broken, and punches were transferred among the players. A regrettable episode for the sport, which became known as “The Battle of Bern”.

54th World Cup Final

For the final match of the Cup, the Hungarian team could count on the return of its star player Ferenc Puskás, who had been injured in the group stage. On the other hand, the German team, which arrived shy to the championship, had studied the opponent and thought of new tactics on the field.

More than 60,000 people came to Bern’s Wankdorf Stadium to watch the World Cup final between Hungary and Germany (West). In a rainy game, the German style of play prevailed over the strong Hungarian team.

Germany thus became champion of the 5th edition of the World Cup, 3-2. This feat was also made into a movie: The Miracle of Bern.

First World Cup Broadcast on Television

The ’54 World Cup was the first to be televised, although only to certain European countries. It was also in this Cup that the Hungarian team introduced warm-ups before their matches, an uncommon practice at the time.

This would explain how the team managed to get big advantages at the beginning of all the games it played in the Cup, despite the final defeat.