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podcast transcript
In 1986, the world’s largest sporting event took place in Mexico, creating one of the most memorable tournaments in football history.
It features political tensions, high altitudes, dramatic chaos, and Diego Maradona’s rise from superstar to legend.
There was an earthquake, there were economic problems, and there was God’s hand.
Learn more about the 1986 World Cup in this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily.
The history of the 1986 World Cup actually begins in 1974, when the FIFA organizing committee met in Stockholm to decide on a host country. FIFA policy at the time was to alternate hemispheres for each World Cup.
This has not been strictly followed in the modern era as FIFA expanded the tournament to South Africa, Japan, South Korea, Russia and Qatar.
In 1974, Colombia was the only country to bid, and being selected to host the 1986 World Cup was a great honor for the country.
The United States was moving away from its unique, mandatory power-sharing arrangement that alternated the presidency between the two major political parties to resolve decades of political conflict. 1974 was also the first liberal democratic election in Colombian history.
Adding to the good news, a dramatic surge in global coffee prices has sparked tremendous growth in Colombia’s economy.
However, Colombia has never actually hosted a tournament.
There is a significant gap over the years between when a country wins a bid and when the bid is actually made, which causes difficulties for the host country and creates huge expectations from FIFA.
FIFA has provided countries with a very specific list of infrastructure requirements to host the World Cup. For example, the then host country needed a stadium large enough to accommodate 16 teams through the group and knockout stages and a huge stadium to host the World Cup finals.
The terms of the 1974 bid allowed Colombia to minimize initial costs because it already had five capacity stadiums that needed only minor upgrades. So there was no need to build a large new stadium. The five stadiums provided enough capacity to accommodate 38 games comprising 16 teams.
Colombia also met minimum expectations for air, rail and public transportation between the five gaming sites. Colombia met the lighting and broadcasting requirements of the match, although they were barely able to do so.
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Then, ahead of the 1978 World Cup, everything changed when FIFA expanded the tournament field from 16 to 24 teams. The addition of eight teams expanded the schedule to 52 games, effectively nullifying the 1974 agreement.
The new demands placed on Colombia by FIFA are enormous. The extra matches meant Colombia had to make significant improvements to its basic stadium infrastructure, with FIFA expecting Colombia to provide 12 stadiums meeting international standards. The governing body also added strict new regulations on transportation, accommodation, and broadcasting.
The unfortunate reality is that Colombia has not been able to build its stadium infrastructure sufficiently to meet FIFA’s new expectations.
From 1974 to 1982, Colombia’s political leadership did little more than form bureaucratic committees, and workers failed to undertake a single stadium expansion. By 1982, Colombia finally acknowledged the obvious. Colombia could not host the World Cup.
FIFA immediately went into scramble mode. In keeping with the alternating hemisphere rule, the federation quickly found a new host after Colombia withdrew.
The United States, Canada and Mexico have all submitted emergency bids. Mexico ultimately won the rights when FIFA restricted matches from being held in stadiums not controlled by the country’s soccer association. This rule limited the appeal of American stadiums built for American football.
Because Mexico had already hosted the 1970 World Cup and the 1968 Summer Olympics, key infrastructure requirements were easily met. When it won the right to host the 1986 World Cup, it became the first country to host the tournament twice.
Preparations for the World Cup reached their peak on September 19, 1985, when a massive earthquake measuring 8.0 on the Richter scale struck Mexico City, killing an estimated 10,000 people.
With only eight months left until the opening game, the future of the event has become uncertain, with international critics calling for Mexico to withdraw as host country. There were also voices in the soccer world that said FIFA should completely cancel or postpone the World Cup.
Media around the world raised serious doubts about Mexico’s ability to host the event following the catastrophe. Skeptics have suggested that FIFA quickly move the tournament to countries such as the United States, West Germany and France that have the necessary infrastructure to accommodate an event of this scale within an emergency eight-month deadline.
The earthquake caused billions of dollars in damage across Mexico City, but when the dust settled, key stadium infrastructure appeared virtually undamaged. FIFA and Mexico recognized the unprecedented opportunity and quickly rebranded the tournament as a global celebration of Mexico’s resilience.
When competition began in June, FIFA imposed a cruel test on players and fans by insisting on playing key matches at 12pm local time to reach Europe’s prime-time TV audience.
1986 was one of the hottest summers in Mexico’s history and the players struggled on the pitch. The team often played in scorching heat at altitudes exceeding 2,000 meters, creating incredibly dangerous conditions for the players.
As we got closer to the Mexico City Metroplex, the suffocating midday smog became more severe. Both players and fans complained about the stifling conditions. But despite the oppressive climate, the tournament delivered some iconic moments etched into sporting history.
Fans around the world witnessed the global debut of Mexican wave ‘La Ola’. This wave, which started in college football in North America and spread to Mexico, became an international sensation.
Fans also learned a new football term: “Group of Death”, a term used to describe a difficult group in the opening stages of a tournament. Commentators have used the phrase to describe the brutal group of nations that FIFA has placed in Group E.
West Germany, an established football powerhouse, publicly expressed its displeasure with FIFA’s decision to place them in such a difficult group. Their frustration stemmed from being lined up alongside two-time world champions Uruguay. A trained Scottish team; And a good Danish team. The name stuck, and commentators and fans continue to use the nickname “The Death Group” to this day.
Uruguay sparked the first major controversy of the tournament. Known for their aggressive style of play, they received a red card just 52 seconds into the match against Scotland. José Batista recorded the fastest red card in World Cup history for a violent tackle on Scotland’s Gordon Strachan.
Referees rarely use red cards this early, and it was completely unheard of to see a referee flash a red card before the stadium announcer had even finished reading the line-up.
The now 10-man Uruguay team retreated into a defensive shell, making the match an ugly and disappointing one. They held Scotland to a 0-0 draw, eliminating a Scottish team that entered the tournament with high hopes.
But Uruguay’s physical approach was already matched early in the opening round when the world witnessed the emergence of the legendary “Danish Dynamite”. The Danish side completely embarrassed Uruguay with their fast and relentless attacking style, winning 6-1 in Uruguay’s worst defeat of the World Cup.
Denmark had never before qualified for a World Cup because the Danish Football Federation adopted a strict form of amateurism that strictly banned foreign professional players from the national team until 1978. When the pros finally returned to the Danish national team, the team became a powerhouse.
However, when most people think of the 1986 World Cup, the person who comes to mind is Argentina’s Diego Maradona. While his overall play will decide the tournament, passionate fans immediately point to the legendary quarter-final match against England on June 22.
This match was a very personal one for Argentina. Just four years ago, Argentina and Britain fought a 74-day war over the Falkland Islands, also known as the Malvinas Islands. This resulted in over 900 deaths and a British victory.
Despite insisting before the game that the war had little significance for his personal motivations, Maradona later admitted the truth in his autobiography:
“It was like beating a country, not a football team. We said before the game that football had nothing to do with the Malvinas war, but we knew that many Argentine children had died there and that they had swatted us like little birds. This was our revenge… and to restore part of the Malvinas. We all said beforehand that we should not mix the two, but that was a lie. A lie! We thought about nothing else. Just another game!”
Britain had to face its own demons. They have underperformed on the world stage ever since winning the World Cup in 1966. They wanted to re-establish their place among football’s elite. England had a very talented squad led by scoring sensation Gary Lineker.
Lineker left Mexico with the Golden Boot as the tournament’s top scorer, but few remember his individual honors as Maradona completely stole the show.
In the 51st minute of the first half, Maradona chased the deflected ball into the penalty box and challenged England goalkeeper Peter Shilton. Maradona was 6 inches shorter than the goalkeeper, but with amazing timing, he jumped into the air and attempted a header.
The next moment became one of the most famous moments in sports history. Maradona struck the ball past the goalkeeper with his left fist, and despite the Englishman’s fierce protests, the referee awarded the goal.
As Maradona later explained, the ball went inside. “…a little from Maradona’s head, a little from the hand of God.”
Just four minutes later, Maradona scored what is considered the greatest goal in World Cup history. He received the ball in Argentina’s own half, turned away from two England players, dribbled over half the field, past Peter Beardsley, Peter Reid, Terry Butcher, Terry Fenwick and finally goalkeeper Shilton before slotting the ball into the net. Unlike the first goal, the second goal was really great.
It was later voted “Goal of the Century” in a FIFA poll.
Maradona is not done yet. This was entirely his tournament.
Facing a highly talented West German side in the final, Maradona led Argentina to a thrilling 3-2 victory. German coach and legend Franz Beckenbauer refused to let Maradona beat them on his own, so West Germany focused a huge amount of their defensive energy on completely neutralizing him.
This strategy worked, but it failed. The Germans covered Maradona relentlessly, but he simply took advantage of the gaps created by the extra defenders to pull his teammates up.
After West Germany came back late to level the score at 2-2, Maradona delivered the game’s defining moment in the 84th minute with a brilliant pass through a crowd of defenders to a sprinting Jorge Burruchaga, who went on to win 3-2.
While Gary Lineker won the Golden Boot for scoring the most goals, Maradona commanded the heart of every defense he faced, leaving no doubt that he was the best footballer in the world.
What started as Colombia’s attempt to host an event that would put them on the world stage ended up with Mexico stepping in at the last minute to host the tournament. Earthquakes, scorching heat and smog did not stop what many consider to be one of the greatest World Cups in history.
