The trio headlined two editions that began with Stanley Rous losing FIFA presidency to Joao Havelange
Franz Beckenbauer and West German team manager Helmut Schoen with the 1974 World Cup trophy. Getty
“Your rival is running very strongly, he’s everywhere, there doesn’t seem to be much aggression or lobbying on your side,” the reporter Morley Myers told Stanley Rous. “How do you feel about this,” Myers then asked the FIFA president.
“I let my record speak for itself,” Rous replied on June 10, 1974, one day before 122 member associations elected the president of football’s apex body.
We know what happened next. Rous, then 79, lost 68-52 to Joao Havelange 20 years younger after two rounds of voting. A former referee was pensioned off by a polyglot and a businessman. And football changed. Or rather, the world of sport changed. Read more
Netherlands' Johan Neeskens scored off a penalty, won by Johan Cruyff, in the 1974 World Cup final against West Germany. Getty
Johan Cruyff controls the ball with his left foot, drags it with his right and turns towards his goal. Freeze the next frame and you would think he is teeing a pass with his right foot. Jan Olsson thinks so too and tilts left.
But Cruyff uses the instep of his right foot to push the ball back, turns and scooters to audible gasps from a Dortmund stadium that couldn’t believe what it had seen in the 23rd minute of the Holland-Sweden game.
It ended 0-0 but that moment encapsulated everything enchanting about Holland and their driving force in the 1974 finals. Read more
A death threat from a dictator, a failed dope test, and a celebrated coach getting his due. A look at some memorable anecdotes from the era. Read more
Rinus Michels. Getty
