July 2 – England Go Home | On This Football Day

July 2 – England Go Home

ENGLAND’S superiority complex meant that the Three Lions didn’t bother entering the World Cup until the fourth competition took place in 1950. After their shock loss to the USA in their second group game, they probably wish they hadn’t bothered.

Today in 1950 they played their final game of the tournament, knowing that only a big win against group leaders Spain would prevent them from taking the long boat back to Blighty from Brazil.

Spain had almost ‘done an England’ and succumbed to the USA in their opening game, trailing 1-0 until three goals in the final quarter of an hour spared their blushes. They followed this up with a conformable win over Chile and were in the driving seat for a place in the last four when they took on Walter Winterbottom’s England side at the Maracana.

With 74,000 fans in attendance Winterbottom brought back Stanley Matthews who had been controversially left out against the USA, but England struggled to find any rhythm as the first-half ended with the two sides goalless.

Only three minutes after the interval England’s hopes were dangling by a thread, as Spanish defender Zarra scored, leaving the Three Lions with a mountain to climb.

Despite containing some of the world’s greatest players in the shape of Matthews, Billy Wright, Stan Mortensen, Jackie Milburn and Tom Finney, England were not able to breach the Spanish defence.

England returned home after finishing second in their group, but weren’t convinced that they weren’t the best side in the world until they were humbled by Puskas and his Hungarian Mighty Magyars three years later.

See what else was going on today in footballing history here and join us tomorrow for some more of the same.