The history of FIFA World Cup World Cup trophyThere is nothing in football that can compare with the World Cup. Even though the UEFA Champions League may produce games of the same quality, it can't overreach the status earned from the long tradition and the fact that one team represent a whole country. No other sport event can compete in significance: the latest FIFA World Cup reached over three billion television viewers worldwide and one billion watched the final. Background Before the World Cup was inaugurated, the football tournament arranged as part of the Summer Olympics was given the most prestige. But in the 1920s, the game was facing a transition to professionalism that wasn't consistent with the Olympic spirit. Therefore, the government body, FIFA, made plans to organize a World Cup. The decision of arranging the first edition was officially declared on May 26, 1928. All World Cup tournaments The first official World Cup was played in Uruguay 1930, and since when the tournament has been held every fourth year (with exceptions for interruption due to the Second World War). There were, however, unofficial pre-FIFA World Cups already in the late 1800s, in a time when only few national teams existed. Another unofficial "world cup" arranged before 1930 was Sir Thomas Lipton Trophy held in 1909 and 1911. Besides that, the Summer Olympic football competitions would be a mark of which the best national teams were before 1930. The Olympic tournaments consisted, however, only of amateur teams – the World Cup became the "real deal". 1930: Urugay Official poster World Cup 1930The FIFA World Cup 1930 was played in Uruguay 3 July-30 July, with 13 nations. The 1930 World Cup 1934: Italy Official poster World Cup 1934The FIFA World Cup 1934 was played in Italy 27 May-10 June, with 16 nations. The 1934 World Cup 1938: France Official poster World Cup 1938The FIFA World Cup 1938 was played in France 4-19 June, with 16 nations. The 1938 World Cup 1950: Brazil Official poster World Cup 1950The FIFA World Cup 1950 was played in Brazil 24 June-16 July, with 15 nations. The 1950 World Cup 1954: Switzerland Official poster World Cup 1954The FIFA World Cup 1954 was played in Switzerland 16 June-4 July, with 16 nations. The 1954 World Cup 1958: Sweden Official poster World Cup 1958The FIFA World Cup 1958 was played in Sweden 8-29 June, with 16 nations. The 1958 World Cup 1962: Chile Official poster World Cup 1962The FIFA World Cup 1962 was played in Chile 30 May-17 June, with 16 nations. The 1962 World Cup 1966: England Official poster World Cup 1966The FIFA World Cup 1966 was played in England 11-30 July, with 16 nations. The 1966 World Cup 1970: Mexico Official poster World Cup 1970The FIFA World Cup 1970 was played in Mexico 31 May-21 June, with 16 nations. The 1970 World Cup 1974: West Germany Official poster World Cup 1974The FIFA World Cup 1974 was played in West Germany 13 June-7 July, with 16 nations. The 1974 World Cup 1978: Argentina Official poster World Cup 1978The FIFA World Cup 1978 was played in Argentina 1-25 June, with 16 nations. The 1978 World Cup 1982: Spain Official poster World Cup 1982The FIFA World Cup 1982 was played in Spain 13 June-11 July, with 24 nations. The 1982 World Cup 1986: Mexico Official poster World Cup 1986The FIFA World Cup 1986 was played in Mexico 31 May-29 June, with 24 nations. The 1986 World Cup 1990: Italy Official poster World Cup 1990The FIFA World Cup 1990 was played in Italy 8 June-8 July, with 24 nations. The 1990 World Cup 1994: United States Official poster World Cup 1994The FIFA World Cup 1994 was played in United States 17 June-17 July, with 24 nations. The 1994 World Cup 1998: France Official poster World Cup 1998The FIFA World Cup 1998 was played in France 10 June-12 July, with 32 nations. The 1998 World Cup 2002: Korea/Japan Official poster World Cup 2002The FIFA World Cup 2002 was played in Korea/Japan 31 May-30 June, with 32 nations. The 2002 World Cup 2006: Germany Official poster World Cup 2006The FIFA World Cup 2006 was played in Germany 9 June-9 July, with 32 nations. The 2006 World Cup 2010: South Africa Official poster World Cup 2010The FIFA World Cup 2010 was played in South Africa 11 June-11 July, with 32 nations. The 2010 World Cup 2014: Brazil Official poster World Cup 2014The FIFA World Cup 2014 was played in Brazil 12 June-13 July, with 32 nations. The 2014 World Cup 2018: Russia Official poster World Cup 2018The FIFA World Cup 2018 was played in Russia 14 June-15 July, with 32 nations. The 2018 World Cup Finals and results Year Home team vs away team results 1930 Uruguay Argentina 4-2 1934 Italy Czechoslovakia 2-1 1938 Hungary Italy 2-4 1950 Uruguay Brazil 2-1 1954 West Germany Hungary 3-2 1958 Brazil Sweden 5-2 1962 Brazil Czechoslovakia 3-1 1966 England West Germany 4-2 1968 Brazil Italy 4-1 1974 Netherlands West Germany1-2 1978 Netherlands Argentina 1-3 1982 Italy West Germany 3-1 1986 Argentina West Germany 3-2 1990 West Germany Argentina1-0 1994 Brazil Italy 3-2 1998 Brazil France 0-3 2002 Germany Brazil 0-2 2006 Italy France 6-4 2010 Netherlands Spain 0-1 2014 Germany Argentina 1-0 2018 France Croatia 4-2 2022 France Argentina ???