Forced to cancel the 1942 and 1946 editions due to World War II,
FIFA
struggled to find a host for 1950. Brazil were the only one to place a bid.
ALSO READ: FIFA World Cup 2018 - The False NINE: A true storyThe hosts were the favourites to lift the cup in front of their own crowd but destiny had other plans. “The Maracana Tragedy”, in which Brazil lost the final to Uruguay, sent a young nation into a state of national mourning. Uruguay defied all odds to stun the overconfident Brazilians.
ALSO READ: FIFA World Cup: Will Neymar find redemption for Brazil in Russia?The 1950 tournament did not have a ‘real’ final, Uruguay v Brazil was the last round-robin match between all group toppers.
The memories of 1950 World Cup have been bitter for the Brazilian fans. Nobody expected the visitors making an upset in the decider. Brazilian goalkeeper
Moacir Barbosa
, who became a scapegoat after allowing Juan Schiaffino and Ghiggia to score goals, had to carry the blame throughout his life and he was even considered as a jinx in his country for the remainder of his life.
The tournament also witnessed another major upset when the US shocked England 1-0 at the group stage. After going down 1-3 against Spain in their opening match, the US were given odds 500-1 but fielding a dishwasher, a hearse driver and a Haitian student, the US side created one of the biggest upsets in World Cup in Belo Horizonte.
India were given entry to take part in the 1950 World Cup on account of their decent show at the 1948 Olympics. But the then bosses of AIFF didn’t realize the importance of the World Cup and pulled the team out from the championship.