Every World Cup winner - ranked
By Euan Burns
The World Cup is the pinnacle of football and is the highlight of so many players' careers. A select few ever get a chance to lift the trophy and there can be no prouder moment within the sport.
Uruguay made history in 1930 when they were the host nation of the inaugural tournament. That was the first of two occasions where the South American country has won the tournament and they are one of eight different countries to ever win the World Cup.
Brazil are the official favourites to win the 2022 World Cup in Qatar although a case can be made for multiple teams such as Argentina, Germany, France, England and Spain.
90min have taken a look back and ranked all of the past World Cup winners.
21. Uruguay - 1950
Unfortunately for Uruguay, it cannot be said that they beat the masses to win in 1950. They were put into a two-team group with Bolivia who they beat to reach the second group stage.
They drew with a poor Spain side and needed two late goals to beat Sweden. They did very well to beat Brazil in the final though at the Maracana.
20. Italy - 1938
Italy had done well to beat France and Hungary to reach the final in 1938 but they then faced Brazil who seemed to assume they can win without playing a full-strength side.
They rested top goalscorer Leonidas and the Azzurri ended up winning with the lowest goal difference of any World Cup winner (later matched by Italy 1982 and Spain 2010).
19. Uruguay - 1930
It is wonderful to have won the first ever World Cup, but Uruguay were handed an easy group with Peru and Romania. They beat Yugoslavia 6-1 in the semi-final.
They then faced Argentina in a final where the crowd were so involved that the referee only agreed to officiate the game if he had a clear exit plan in place for the full-time whistle. He did not want Uruguay to lose.
18. Italy - 1934
The Italians did beat the USA 7-1 in the first round of the tournament in 1934, but apart from that, the Azzurri scraped their way to the final.
Replays, late wins and one-goal margins were the order of the day. It was also said that Benito Mussolini was picking the refs, so there's that too.
17. West Germany - 1954
West Germany's 1954 side are low on this list because they were beaten 8-3 by Hungary in the group stage, so surely they weren't one of the greatest ever winning sides?
It was predominantly due to an injury in the final for Ferenc Puskas that West Germany got their revenge on Hungary and won the final when they met again.
16. Argentina - 1978
This victory for Argentina was one of the early examples of sports washing and that is why they are low on the list. The only reason they're not lower is that the team was genuinely very good.
A military junta had taken over the government and reports of match-fixing were rife. The Argentina players were even treated poorly. Johan Cruyff refused to travel and the whole affair left a sour taste.
15. England - 1966
This was a really superb England side packed with talented stars such as Bobby Moore, Bobby Charlton, Gordon Banks and Ray Wilson.
When the winning goal in the final doesn't cross the line, though, it is difficult to really say that England's 1966 win can be way up the list.
14. West Germany - 1974
The tournament began with embarrassment for West Germany as they were beaten by East Germany in the group stage. They soon got their act together and won the remaining games and the tournament.
They are not widely celebrated though as people are fonder of the runners-up; Johan Cruyff's Netherlands side and their incredible style of play.
13. Brazil - 1994
The standard for Brazil sides is so ridiculously high that one of them had to be at the bottom. The 1994 side had the least flair of their five winning sides but the nation hadn't won the tournament for the last five editions.
They still outscored their opponents 11-3 which is deeply impressive and they had to beat some good teams along the way.
12. Brazil - 1962
The fact that Brazil lost Pele to injury and still went on to win the tournament says a lot about the collective quality of the team.
Garrincha and Vava were the stars of the 1962 squad in Pele's absence and they beat hosts Chile 4-2 in the semi-finals. The Selecao scored four more goals than any other team.
11. West Germany - 1990
West Germany's 1990 squad was extremely impressive with players like Jurgen Klinsmann, Lothar Matthaus and Rudi Voller among the stars.
Unfortunately, the final against Italy was a poor spectacle, won by a dodgy penalty that the Argentinians are not over to this day.
10. Italy - 2006
This is one for people who enjoy a certain type of football. It wasn't thrilling and the referees certainly didn't enjoy it, but Italy came out on top in 2006. They provided the famous 'gol di Grosso' moment in the semi-final to beat Germany.
Fabio Cannavaro and Gianluigi Buffon were imperious at the back and the team is still admired to this day for their defensive displays.
9. Italy - 1982
Astoundingly, Italy did not win a single game in the first group stage, but still managed to remain confident enough to go and win the tournament - that's what makes this triumph so special.
The key player was Paolo Rossi who scored six goals as they beat Argentina and Brazil in the second group stage and then Poland and West Germany en route to glory.
8. France - 1998
An incredibly multicultural French squad hosted the 1998 tournament during a heated period for the country and its relationship with Les Bleus.
Featuring stars such as Zinedine Zidane, Patrick Viera, Thierry Henry, Robert Pires, David Trezeguet and many more led France to glory on home soil. They conceded just two goals and beat Brazil 3-0 in the final in Paris.
7. Germany - 2014
Germany's 7-1 semi-final demolition of hosts Brazil was enough for them to feature this high up, in truth, but they were also much more than just the onee win.
The likes of Mesut Ozil, Mario Gotze, Sami Khedira, Miroslav Klose and Andre Schurrle were all on song in 2014 and they mechanically dispatched of all who stood in their way before beating Argentina in the final.
6. France - 2018
The 2018 France squad was star-studded and appeared to just stand taller than all they came across. Kylian Mbappe was relentless and Paul Pogba looked to be at his best.
They had to beat Argentina, Uruguay and Belgium to reach the final which is a very tough run, before then beating a deeply talented Croatia side 4-2 in the final in Moscow.
5. Spain - 2010
Spain's 2010 side is almost remembered with begrudging admiration. Their tika-taka brand of football proved to be highly effective and it was deeply impressive, but it couldn't be described as thrilling once you'd watched it a few times.
Nonetheless, they came out on top and walked their way to Spain's first ever World Cup win in supremely comfortable style.
4. Brazil - 2002
There are so many examples of wonderful Brazil squads at the World Cup, but the 2002 side featured so many household names that have stood the test of time.
Ronaldo, Rivaldo, and Ronaldinho got 15 goals between them and the team collectively scored 18 times, which says it all. They beat Germany 2-0 in the final.
3. Argentina - 1986
It would be remiss not to have Diego Maradona somewhere on the list and he was responsible for so much of the drama and skill at Mexico 86.
Other superb stars helped Argentina string together five straight wins to beat West Germany in the final 3-2. Maradona scored five times, whilst Jorge Valdano got four himself.
2. Brazil - 1958
This Brazil team will always be remembered because it is when Pele burst onto the scene as a fresh-faced 17-year-old. He scored six goals and two of those were in the final.
1958 would be Brazil's maiden World Cup triumph and an incredible one at that; they outscored their semi-final and final opponents by a 10-4 scoreline.
1. Brazil - 1970
There is a reason why this Brazil is still such a touchstone in football discourse. If a team is looking particularly bad, you'll hear someone say 'watch them turn into 1970s Brazil against us'.
Pele netted four goals, Jairzinho got seven, and they became the first team to win all of their games in the tournament.
