1970 World Cup in Mexico: toothless Czechoslovakia, change in football rules, Brazil golden again

The 1970 World Championships were hosted by Mexico, the first World Championships to be held outside South America and Europe. However, this championship brought many things – Brazil’s third gold, stellar performances by Pelé and Gerd Müller, and what can certainly be described as a very significant intervention in the rules of football. Czechoslovakia finished without a single point.

A total of 75 teams took part in the qualification for the 1970 World Cup in Mexico, whereas at that time the final tournament was a classic 16-team event.

Mexico then hosted this, the ninth World Championship, in 5 cities – Ciudad de México, Puebla, Toluca, Guadalajara, León. The 1970 World Cup in Mexico was otherwise a real success and was one of the few championships in those days to record an overall average attendance of over 50,000 in the stadiums.

In fact, a total of 1 603 975 fans attended the tournament. The 1970 World Cup in Mexico saw 32 matches played and 95 goals scored. On average, therefore, 2.78 goals were scored per game.

Czechoslovakia without a single point

After an absence from the previous tournament, the Czechoslovak football team took part in this championship, but did not achieve any significant success. Czechoslovakia was in Group C along with Brazil, England and Romania.

In their first match, the national team blew up when they lost to Brazil 1:4. Subsequently, the Czechoslovak national team was also defeated by Romania, and in its last match of the group phase it also lost to England 0:1.

The final record? Three matches, three losses, zero points and a negative score of 2::7. Compared to the 1962 World Cup in Chile, where Czechoslovakia won silver medals and recorded one of its greatest achievements in football history, it has experienced somewhat dark times, especially since the 1970s.

However, you can find out more about Czechoslovakia’s performance at the 1970 World Cup in Mexico in our World Cup special attached above.

Brazil gold again

Brazil had a truly golden time in those days. After the championships in 1958 and 1962, when the Brazilians won gold, they did not advance out of the group at the 1966 World Cup in England, but at the tournament in Mexico they were already celebrating the overall championship again.

The Brazilian national team went through the group without a single defeat, beating Czechoslovakia 4:1, England 1:0 and Romania 3:2. The final record in the group therefore speaks for itself – 3 matches, 3 wins, 6 points and a score of 8::3.

It should be added, the Brazilians seem to have increased their speed in the knockout phase. They have not won a single match by less than two goals. In the quarter-finals they beat Peru 4:2, in the semi-finals they beat Uruguay 3:1 and they certainly enjoyed the final match. Italy took the win by a shameful 1:4.

It should be noted that this was no surprise. After all, Brazil had such stars as Roberto Rivelino, Pelé and Jairzinho. The Brazilians deservedly celebrated their third gold in four World Cups.

A major intervention in the rules of football

As well as great football, the 1970 World Cup in Mexico also brought a major innovation in the rules. For the first time, substitutions were allowed, where each team could send two fresh players into the game.

Yellow and red cards were also introduced, although no player was sent off during this World Cup. And FIFA also introduced a fair play award. In addition, the tournament in Mexico was the first to be televised in colour.

And that is not the only interesting thing about this championship. It was the first World Cup to be held outside South America and Europe. In terms of qualifiers, Morocco was the first African representative at the World Cup since the Second World War.

In sporting terms, the 1970 World Cup in Mexico can indeed be considered a successful tournament, although it offered a further dose of bizarreness and oddities. Whether it was the arrest of England captain Bobby Moore, another Pelé milestone or the riots in the qualifiers themselves.

We look specifically at this tournament in Mexico in our World Cup special attached above, in which you’ll learn many more interesting facts that are hard to track down in the annals of history.

1. episode: 1930 World Cup in Uruguay

2. episode: World Cup 1934 in Italy

3. episode:: WSC 1938 in France

4. episode:: World Cup 1950 in Brazil

5. episode:: 1954 World Cup in Switzerland

6. episode:: WSC 1958 in Sweden

7. episode:: WSC 1962 in Chile

8. episode:: World Cup 1966 in England

10. episode:: WSC 1974 in Germany

Sources: FIFA, ESPN