World Cup Soccer Trivia Quiz

Answer: Jules Rimet

Jules Rimet was a Frenchman who was President of soccer's governing body, FIFA, between 1921 and 1954. He was a leading figure in the establishment of a World Cup tournament, with the first one taking place in 1930. The original trophy was named in his honour, with Brazil taking permanent ownership of it in 1970 when they won it for a third time (1958, 1962 and 1970).

Answer: Uruguay

Uruguay were the hosts of the first World Cup, in 1930, with all the matches taking place in Montevideo. Uruguay beat local rivals Argentina 4-2 in the final, whilst Guillermo Stabile of Argentina was leading goalscorer with eight goals.

Answer: East Germany

East Germany only qualified for the World Cup finals once, and that was in 1974 when West Germany were hosts. As luck would have it, the two countries were drawn together in the same first round group, and met each other in the final pool game. It was the East Germans who triumphed in Hamburg, with Jurgen Sparwasser scoring the only goal of the match. Both teams qualified from the group, with West Germany having the last laugh by lifting the trophy in Munich, after a 2-1 win over The Netherlands (East Germany failed to progress past the second round).

Answer: Brazil & Hungary

Brazil and Hungary faced each other in a quarter-final tie in the Swiss capital on 27th June, 1954. A contentious penalty for Hungary in the 60th minute set off a series of unsavoury incidents, with three players sent off, two of them Brazilian. Hungary eventually won the match 4-2, but fighting between players continued in the dressing rooms after the game.

Answer: Franz Beckenbauer

Franz Beckenbauer, nicknamed "Der Kaiser", was a defender who captained West Germany to victory when the World Cup was held on home soil in 1974. In 1990, as head coach, he repeated the feat, with victory over Argentina in the final in Rome. Didier Deschamps would later match this feat with France, at the 1998 and 2018 tournaments.

Answer: Just Fontaine

Just Fontaine netted 13 goals for France at the 1958 World Cup. He scored a hat-trick in the 7-3 demolition of Paraguay in the opening group game, twice in the 2-3 defeat by Yugoslavia, and once in the 2-1 win over Scotland. In the knock-out stages, he scored twice in the 4-0 quarter-final win over Northern Ireland, once in the 2-5 semi-final loss to Brazil, and then four in the 6-3 victory over West Germany in the third place play-off.

Answer: Egypt

Egypt competed at the 1934 World Cup in Italy, but were eliminated in the first round after losing to Hungary 4-2. Abdulrahman Fawzi scored both of the Egyptian goal. Incredibly, it would be another 36 years before another African nation took part in the finals, when Morocco qualified for the 1970 tournament in Mexico.

Answer: Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal made his World Cup debut in 2006, scoring once, against Iran. In 2010, he again scored just once, against North Korea. In 2014, he managed just a single goal, against Ghana. In 2018, he had his best goals return, with a hat-trick against Spain and one goal against Morocco. In 2022, he scored once, against Ghana.

Answer: George Best

George Best represented Northern Ireland at international level, but they never qualified for a World Cup during his playing career. Stanley Matthews represented England at the 1950 and 1954 tournaments, Oleg Blokhin represented the USSR in both 1982 and 1986, and Denis Law represented Scotland in 1974.

Answer: First to take place in the northern hemisphere winter.

The 2022 World Cup was held in Qatar in November and December to combat the severe summer heat. Normally world cups are held in June/July, which is of course winter in the SOUTHERN hemisphere.

There were no indoor stadiums used in Qatar, although the Pontiac Silverdome was used for group games at USA 1994. The 2002 World Cup was the first to be held in Asia, co-hosted by Japan and South Korea. There were women referees involved in Qatar, but none of them was in charge of the final.