The Story of Argentina in The World Cup Part 1

The Argentine national team participated in all FIFA World Cup finals except for the years 1938, 1950, 1954, and 1970. Thus, the number of its participation in the tournament is 17.

Argentina won the FIFA World Cup twice in 1978, and 1986 and was ranked second in 1930, 1990, and 2014. It reached the quarterfinals in 1966, 1978, 2006, and 2010.

World Cup 1978

The 1978 World Cup was held in Argentina, after a fierce competition with Mexico for hosting, but Mexico withdrew before the end of the race, Choosing Argentina as the host of the World Cup was not a satisfactory option for many, due to the military coup and the conflicts that the country witnessed at the time.

In this tournament, the first sponsorship of the World Cup appeared, as it was sponsored by Coca-Cola. Also, the International Football Association approved for the first time the penalty shootout system if the original and extra time ended with a tie, but it was not used in that tournament, as all matches ended before the end of the original or extra time.

Argentina was placed in Group A, along with Italy, France, and Hungary.

Argentina opened its matches at the Monumental Stadium against Hungary, and Argentina won 2-1, Argentina's goals were scored by Lepoldo Lacco, Daniel Bertone.

At the same stadium, Argentina faced France, winning 2-1.

Argentina's Daniel Passarella scored from a penalty kick in the 45th minute before Michel Platini scored the equalizer for the French in the 60th minute, and in the 73rd minute, Leopoldo Lacco scored the winning goal for his country.

Argentina ended their first-round matches with a loss to Italy.

At the Monumental stadium, in front of more than 70,000 spectators, Argentina suffered their only loss in this tournament, with the goal of Italian striker Roberto Betenga.

In the second round, according to the tournament system at that time, the 8 qualified teams were divided into two groups

The first included the Netherlands, Italy, West Germany, and Austria, and the Netherlands topped the group and qualified for the final

As for the second group, Argentina came along with Brazil, Peru, and Poland.

The matches in the two groups were played on a home and away basis, so Argentina topped the group with two wins and a draw and qualified to face the Netherlands in the final match.

In the final match and at the Monumental Stadium, in the presence of more than 70,000 spectators. Argentina faced the Netherlands in a match in which the winner will be crowned with its first World Cup title in its history.

Argentine striker Mario Kempes opened the scoring for his country in the 38th minute, amid the crazy joy of Argentina's supporters who filled the stadium.

Late in the game, specifically in the 82nd minute, Striker Dick Nanninga scored the equalizer for the Netherlands national team.

The two teams had to go to extra time, which Mario Kempes started scoring for Argentina in the 105th minute, scoring his 6th personal goal in the tournament, before Daniel Bertone settled the match, scoring the third goal in the 116th minute.