The 1986 FIFA World Cup was the 13th FIFA World Cup, and was the 2nd to be hosted in Mexico. This World Cup was also the only one where Canada qualified. This is the story behind it.
Qualification:
At the time, CONCACAF had only 2 spots for teams to qualify for the FIFA World Cup, however there would only be 1 spot, as Mexico was hosting the tournament. The 1985 CONCACAF Championship was used as the qualification for the 1986 World Cup. Canada qualified for the 1985 CONCACAF Championship after Jamaica withdrew from qualifying. In the CONCACAF Championship, they were drawn into Group 2 along with Guatemala and Haiti. They went unbeaten in Group 2, and qualified for the Final Round. They would remain unbeaten, as they secured World Cup qualification after a 2-1 win against Honduras at the King George V Park stadium in Newfoundland and Labrador
The Squad:
The 23 man squad had 11 players playing in the MISL (Major Indoor Soccer League), as the NASL had folded in early 1985. Only 5 of the players were playing in Europe (Terry Moore - Glentoran F.C., Ian Bridge - FC La Chaux-de-Fonds, Igor Vrablic - R.F.C. Seraing, Randy Samuel - PSV, and Colin Miller - Rangers F.C.), with the rest playing in Canada, except for Paul James, who was playing in Mexico for Monterrey. Their manager was Tony Waiters, who was only 49 at the time of the World Cup. As a player, Waiters was a goalkeeper, playing mostly for Blackpool during the 1960s, and with Burnley until 1972, when he retired. He also was capped 5 times for England in 1964. His only prior experience in management was 5 years with Plymouth Argyle in the Second and Thrid Division, and 2 years with Vancouver Whitecaps in the NASL, where he won the Soccer Bowl in 1979.
The Tournament:
Canada was put in Pot 2 of the draw, along with Algeria, Morocco, South Korea, and debutants Denmark and Iraq. The would be drawn into Group C, along with France, the Soviet Union, and Hungary.
Their opening game was on June 1st, where they played France at the Estadio Nou Camp (now the Estadio Leon) in Leon. Canada lost 1-0, with Jean Pierre-Papin scoring the only goal in the 79th minute. They would lose 2-0 to both the Soviet Union and Hungary, finishing bottom of the group. They would be considered the worst team at that World Cup, according to the FIFA retrospective ranking.
That is all I have to say about this. Have a great day!
The 1986 FIFA World Cup was originally awarded to Colombia, who later backed down when they realised that they didn't have the money to host the event. They were awarded to Mexico, who still had much of the infrastructure from the 1968 Olympics and the 1970 World Cup.
However, in 1985, less than a year before the World Cup, Mexico City was devastated by its most destructive earthquake ever. What was FIFA's reaction? Were they afraid that Mexico would back down from hosting the Cup? Did they have a back up plan in case they did?
[BBC Scotland | English | 01:29:57 | 720p] (https://vidia.tv/b2fqnefzdmcj.html)
I recently watched the documentary Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos (available via Netflix if you're interested). In it, I learned a couple things I did not know before about the World Cup. The 1986 World Cup was originally to be hosted by Colombia, but they resigned as hosts for economic reasons. When FIFA opened up a competition for new hosting bids, Steve Ross (CEO of Warner Communications and owner of the NASL's premier franchise, the New York Cosmos) campaigned hard to have the United States host the 1986 World Cup.
In the end, of course, FIFA awarded it to Mexico, but that left me wondering: what effect would a World Cup in the US in 1986 have had on the sport in the US? At the time, the NASL was sliding quickly into oblivion, but could a World Cup have staved off the demise of the first big-time professional soccer league in the US? The US hosting the 1994 World Cup certainly did a lot for the MLS (founded a few years later). Do you suppose hosting the World Cup could have kept the momentum of the NASL going such that soccer would have never had a lull in its popularity as a spectator sport?
#FT: United States 2-0 Mexico
United States scorers: Christian Pulisic (74'), Weston McKennie (85')
Venue: TQL Stadium
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United States
Zack Steffen, Walker Zimmerman, Miles Robinson, Antonee Robinson, DeAndre Yedlin, Tyler Adams, Weston McKennie, Yunus Musah (Kellyn Acosta), Ricardo Pepi (Jesús Ferreira), Brenden Aaronson (Christian Pulisic), Timothy Weah (Chris Richards).
Subs: Matt Turner, Cristian Roldan, Gianluca Busio, Sam Vines, Sebastian Lletget, Reggie Cannon, Mark McKenzie, Paul Arriola.
^____________________________
Mexico
Guillermo Ochoa, Johan Vásquez, Julio Domínguez, Jesús Gallardo, Luis Rodríguez, Edson Álvarez (Rogelio Funes Mori), Héctor Herrera, Luís Romo (Carlos Rodríguez), Raúl Jiménez, Hirving Lozano, Jesús Corona (Roberto Alvarado).
Subs: Osvaldo Rodríguez, Andrés Guardado, Henry Martín, Gilberto Sepúlveda, Jorge Sánchez, Rodolfo Cota, Alfredo Talavera, Héctor Moreno, Orbelín Pineda.
MATCH EVENTS | via ESPN
45'+1' Luis Romo (Mexico) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
59' Miles Robinson (USA) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
68' Zack Steffen (USA) is shown the yellow card.
68' Weston McKennie (USA) is shown the yellow card.
68' Luis Rodríguez (Mexico) is shown the yellow card.
69' Substitution, USA. Christian Pulisic replaces Brenden Aaronson.
74' Goal! USA 1, Mexico 0. Christian Pulisic (USA) header from very close range to the centre of the goal. Assisted by Timothy Weah with a cross.
74' Substitution, Mexico. Carlos Rodríguez replaces Luis Romo.
75' Substitution, Mexico. Roberto Alvarado replaces Jesús Corona.
82' Substitution, USA. Kellyn Acosta replaces Yunus Musah.
82' Substitution, USA. Jesús Ferreira replaces Ricardo Pepi.
83' Substitution, Mexico. Rogelio Funes Mori replaces Edson Álvarez.
85' **Goal! USA 2, Mexico 0. Weston McKennie (USA) right footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom
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