Italy wins world ‘championship’: the urge of the Duce
11 June 1934
Forty thousand spectators, including Signor Mussolini, saw Italy win the world football “championship” this afternoon by defeating Czecho-Slovakia 2-1 in the final at the Fascist stadium. The game was a contrast between the cool, well-coordinated play of the Czechs-Slovakians and the more dashing and individualistic performance of the Italians. The Italians won because they were faster than their opponents.
There was no score in the first half, but the Czechs missed several opportunities owing to bad shooting. Puč, the outside-left, was especially wild in his kicking. The Czech goal also had many narrow escapes, Plánička making several wonderful saves. It was halfway through the second half that the first goal was scored, but to the astonishment and dismay of the Italians it was Puč who found the net. The loss of a goal under the eyes of Mussolini stirred the Italians to frenzy, and in 10 minutes they had equalised, and at full-time the score was still 1-1.
An extra half-hour was played, and so great was the excitement that it was feared at one time that one of the stands would collapse under the stamping of the feet. At one corner of the field, too, a cordon of police was formed to keen back the spectators. The Italians scored their second goal early in the extra half-hour, Schiavio kicking the ball with such force that the goalkeeper seemed to be knocked over by it.
At the finish of the game the two teams paraded with their flags and were joined by the German team, which was third in the championship. Signor Mussolini received the captains and presented the cups. The Italians received the gold championship cup, which is so big that it took four men to carry it and its pedestal on to the field. The Duce’s cup was presented to the Czecho-Slovakian team, and the Germans received the Italian Federation’s cup.
Games and players
29 May 1934
As Ireland was eliminated in zone qualifying matches from the World Association Football Cup competition which began in Italy on Sunday and will end in Rome on 10 June, the British Commonwealth has no direct interest. England, Scotland, and Wales were wise in abstaining. It would have been too much to expect our players to maintain top form into the summer or to ask them after the strain of eight months of the most exacting League competitions in the world to conserve the qualities which success in this competition will demand. We would have had little to gain. Despite a few disturbing reverses on the continent, our football prestige remains high. On the other hand, failure in this test might have had unwelcome effects. Italy was complimented on a bold stroke when she consented to be host for this tournament, for acceptance of the duties involved also financial guarantees. The cost of assembling the teams, some of them from the American continent, was enormous.
Italy as host
The rich Italian Football Federation accepted the risk of loss, feeling that in any case a deficit would be repaid by the fillip which the competition will give the game in Italy and that it would also be an additional opportunity for the country to show her qualities as a host and as an attraction to the holidaymaker. Special trains are being run into Italy from many continental countries, and the tourist trade will benefit considerably. Italy was also influenced in accepting the duties of host by the progress she has made in the game. This improvement she showed when her national team drew with England in Rome. In addition to these factors one may perhaps credit Signor Mussolini with following some of the Caesars in using sport as a distraction for the people. The social influence of sport, and particularly of football, on this century is, perhaps, insufficiently estimated.