The Unofficial Football World Championships (UFWC) is an informal way of calculating the world's best international
association football
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
team, using a knock-out title system similar to that used in professional
boxing
Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...
. The UFWC was formalized and published by
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
journalist Paul Brown in 2003.
The title is currently held by
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
, who won it from
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
on 13 December 2022.
Background
The idea stemmed originally from some
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
fans and sections of the media jokingly asserting that as they beat
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
(who had won the
1966 World Cup) in a
British Home Championship
The British Home Championship
* sco, Hame Internaitional Kemp
* gd, Farpais lìg eadar-nàiseanta
* cy, Pencampwriaeth y Pedair Gwlad, name=lang (historically known as the British International Championship or simply the International Champio ...
match on 15 April 1967—England's first loss after their FIFA World Cup victory—they were the "Unofficial World Champions".
In 2003 freelance journalist Paul Brown defined the rules of the UFWC, traced its lineage and wrote an article in football magazine ''
FourFourTwo
''FourFourTwo'' is a football magazine published by Future. Issued monthly, it published its 300th edition in May 2019. It takes its name from the football formation of the same name, 4-4-2.
In 2008, it was announced that ''FourFourTwo'' had e ...
''.
In 2011 Brown authored a
book
A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physical arr ...
on the subject.
Brown also created the championship's website which tracks its progression.
The Unofficial Football World Championships is not sanctioned by
FIFA
FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...
, nor does it have any sort of official backing. The winner is awarded a virtual trophy—the
C.W. Alcock
Charles William Alcock (2 December 1842 – 26 February 1907) was an English sportsman, administrator, author and editor. He was a major instigator in the development of both international football and cricket, as well as being the creator of ...
Cup, named after him as he was a major instigator in the development of international football in his role as FA secretary.
Rules
*The first team to win an international football match were declared first ever ''Unofficial Football World Champions''.
**This was
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, who defeated
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
4–2 in 1873 in the second full international match, the
first in 1872 having been a 0–0 draw between the same two nations.
*The next full international (
international 'A' match) involving the title holder is considered a title match, with the winners taking the title.
**In the event of a title match being a draw, the current holders of the title remain champions.
*UFWC title matches are decided by their ultimate outcome, including extra time and penalties.
*Title matches are contested under the rules of the governing body by which they are sanctioned.
Tracking the Championship
While the Unofficial Football World Championship was invented in 2003, the rules are such that results are analysed retrospectively to determine the theoretical lineage of champions from the very first international matches. A comprehensive list of results of all championship games is maintained on the UFWC website.
Early international football
The first ever FIFA-recognised international match was a 0–0 draw between England and Scotland, on 30 November 1872 at
Hamilton Crescent
Hamilton Crescent is a cricket ground in the Partick area of Glasgow, Scotland, which is the home of the West of Scotland Cricket Club.
Hamilton Crescent hosted the first international football match, between Scotland and England, played on 30 ...
. The Unofficial World Championship thus remained vacant until the same two teams met again at the
Kennington Oval
The Oval, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club since it ...
on 8 March 1873. England won 4–2, and so are regarded as having become the inaugural Unofficial Football World Champions.
Early international football was almost entirely confined to the British Isles.
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
entered the UFWC 'competition' in 1876—holding it for the first time in 1907, and
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
(the team representing the Belfast-based
Irish Football Association
The Irish Football Association (IFA) is the governing body for association football in Northern Ireland. It organised the Ireland national football team from 1880 to 1950, which after 1954, became the Northern Ireland national football team.
...
, subsequently known as
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
) in 1882—first recording a UFWC victory in 1927. The UFWC title swapped between the
Home Nations
Home Nations is a collective term with one of two meanings depending on context. Politically it means the nations of the constituent countries of the United Kingdom (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales). In sport, if a sport is g ...
teams several times in this period, and was first competed by a non-British Isles team in 1909, when England defeated
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
in Budapest.
The fact that none of the Home Nations teams competed in the
1930
Events
January
* January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will be ...
,
1934
Events
January–February
* January 1 – The International Telecommunication Union, a specialist agency of the League of Nations, is established.
* January 15 – The 8.0 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake, Nepal–Bihar earthquake strik ...
or
1938
Events
January
* January 1
** The Constitution of Estonia#Third Constitution (de facto 1938–1940, de jure 1938–1992), new constitution of Estonia enters into force, which many consider to be the ending of the Era of Silence and the a ...
World Cups
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...
kept the title from travelling too far abroad, and the
First
First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1).
First or 1st may also refer to:
*World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement
Arts and media Music
* 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...
and
Second
The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds ...
World Wars hindered football's globalisation process further.
1930s–2000s
It was 1931 when the title was first passed outside the
British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...
, to
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
in their third attempt with a 5–0 victory over Scotland. They held the title until 7 December 1932 when they lost 4–3 to England at
Stamford Bridge Stamford Bridge may refer to:
* Stamford Bridge, East Riding of Yorkshire, a village in England
** Battle of Stamford Bridge, 25 September 1066
* Stamford Bridge (bridge), a bridge in the village of Stamford Bridge
* Stamford Bridge (stadium), in L ...
, and for all but the last few months of the decade it was held by those four teams. In the 1940s the title was held by continental teams, notably those representing the
Axis powers
The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...
and countries neutral during World War II, but was recaptured by England in time for the
1950 World Cup
The 1950 FIFA World Cup was the fourth edition of the FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football championship for senior men's national teams and held in Brazil from 24 June to 16 July 1950. The planned 1942 and 1946 World Cups were ...
. Here, in a shock result, they lost to the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
in one of the
biggest upsets ever; it was the first venture of the title onto the Americas, and stayed there because Chile immediately took it with their win in the last game of the group stage which wasn't enough to qualify for the later stages. This made 1950 both the first World Cup where the title was at stake and not captured by the winners. It remained in the Americas for all but one of the following 16 years.
![World Map FIFA2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/World_Map_FIFA2.svg)
This time included the four-day reign of
Netherlands Antilles
nl, In vrijheid verenigd"Unified by freedom"
, national_anthem =
, common_languages = Dutch English Papiamento
, demonym = Netherlands Antillean
, capital = Willemstad
, year_start = 1954
, year_end = 2010
, date_start = 15 December
, ...
, who beat
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
2–1 in a
CONCACAF Championship
The CONCACAF Championship was an association football tournament that took place between 1963 and 1989. The competition is sometimes referred to as CONCACAF Campeonato de Naciones.
The first Championship took place in 1963 and was CONCACAF's firs ...
match to become the smallest country ever to hold the title.
The UFWC returned to Europe in time for the
1966 FIFA World Cup
The 1966 FIFA World Cup was the eighth FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was played in England from 11 July to 30 July 1966. The England national football team defeated West Germany 4-2 in the ...
with the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
. They lost the championship in the semi-final to
West Germany
West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
, who lost the
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
to England. The following year, the England v Scotland match of 1967, which first gave rise to the idea of an unofficial world championship, really was a UFWC title match. With West Germany's victory over Netherlands in the 1974 World Cup Final, West Germany became the first team to hold the World Cup, European Championship and the UFWC at the same time.
The title stayed in Europe until 1978, when it was taken by
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
, the winners of the
1978 World Cup
The 1978 FIFA World Cup was the 11th edition of the FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial international football world championship tournament among the men's senior national teams. It was held in Argentina between 1 and 25 June.
The Cup was won by ...
. It remained in South America until the
1982 World Cup
The 1982 FIFA World Cup was the 12th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams, and was played in Spain between 13 June and 11 July 1982. The tournament was won by Italy, who defeated West Germany 3–1 i ...
where
Peru
, image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg
, image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg
, other_symbol = Great Seal of the State
, other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal
, national_motto = "Fi ...
lost to
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
. The UFWC remained in Europe for the next ten years, except for a one-year tenure by Argentina.
In 1992, the title returned to the United States and then was held for one match by
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
, before it worked its way through several South American nations, back through Europe and to its first Asian holders,
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
, who defeated
Colombia
Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
in the 1995
Carlsberg Cup Carlsberg may refer to:
Places
* Carlsberg (district), a district in Copenhagen, Denmark
** Carlsberg station, its train station
* Carlsberg, Germany, a municipality in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany
* Carlsberg Fjord, Greenland Other uses
* Carlsbe ...
semi-final. The Koreans lost the title to
FR Yugoslavia
Serbia and Montenegro ( sr, Cрбија и Црна Гора, translit=Srbija i Crna Gora) was a country in Southeast Europe located in the Balkans that existed from 1992 to 2006, following the breakup
A relationship breakup, breakup, or ...
in their next match, and the UFWC remained in Europe until March 1998 when
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
lost it to
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
in a friendly. Argentina then defeated Brazil in a friendly to carry the UFWC into the
1998 World Cup.
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
repeated Argentina's 1978 feat by taking the title as they won the World Cup on home turf, beating Brazil 3–0 in the
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
. England took the title for the last time to date at
UEFA Euro 2000
The 2000 UEFA European Football Championship, also known as Euro 2000, was the 11th UEFA European Championship, a football tournament held every four years and organised by UEFA, the sport's governing body in Europe.
The finals tournament was ...
.
France and Spain enjoyed spells as champions before the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
won the title in March 2002. As the Dutch had failed to qualify for the
2002 World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams organized by ...
, the UFWC was, unusually, not at stake at the official World Cup. The Netherlands retained the title until 10 September 2003, when they lost a
Euro 2004 qualifier 3–1 to the
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
.
2004–2010
The Czechs defended their title a few times, before losing it to the
Republic of Ireland
Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...
in a friendly via a last-minute winner by
Robbie Keane
Robert David Keane (born 8 July 1980) is an Irish professional Association football, football coach and former Football player, player who played as a Forward (association football)#Striker, striker. Keane served as Captain (association football ...
. The title then went to an
African
African or Africans may refer to:
* Anything from or pertaining to the continent of Africa:
** People who are native to Africa, descendants of natives of Africa, or individuals who trace their ancestry to indigenous inhabitants of Africa
*** Ethn ...
nation for the first time, as they lost it to
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
.
Angola
, national_anthem = " Angola Avante"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capital = Luanda
, religion =
, religion_year = 2020
, religion_ref =
, coordina ...
won and kept this title through late 2004 and early 2005. They were then beaten by
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...
(in a match that tripled as a World Cup qualifier and an African Nations qualifier),
who held the title for six months before Nigeria re-gained it in October 2005. Nigeria were beaten by
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
, who lost it to
Uruguay
Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...
within six months. Uruguay became the highest ranked team to hold the title since 2004, but their failure to qualify for the
World Cup finals meant that, for the second time in succession, the unofficial title was not available at the official championships.
The title was brought back to Europe by
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
on 15 November 2006, with both goals scored by
Levan Kobiashvili
Levan Kobiashvili ( ka, ლევან კობიაშვილი, born 10 July 1977) is a Georgian former professional footballer and the current president of the Georgian Football Federation and a member of Parliament of Georgia.
He pla ...
in a 2–0 victory. They lost the title to the highest ranked team in the UFWC of all time, Scotland, on 24 March 2007, nearly forty years since Scotland had last gained the title. Just four days later, Scotland conceded the title 2–0 to FIFA World Cup holders
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
, and the title passed through the hands of
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
twice,
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
,
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
and
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
before being claimed by the Netherlands, who eventually lost the title to
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
in the
2010 FIFA World Cup Final after a run that saw more successful defences than any other reign with 21.
2010–present
The European sojourn of the title was brought to an end when Argentina beat Spain 4–1 in a September 2010 friendly,
and after beating the Argentines in a friendly,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
brought the title to the
Asian Cup for the first time in 2011, and remained unbeaten throughout the tournament. Scheduled defences of the title were cancelled after the
2011 earthquake and tsunami, and they held the title for over a year before relinquishing it to
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...
,
ranked 124th in the world by FIFA, the lowest ranking of a UFWC champion since the rankings were introduced in 1993. North Korea continued to hold title through their successful campaign in the
2012 AFC Challenge Cup
The 2012 AFC Challenge Cup was the fourth edition of the tournament, an international football competition for Asian Football Confederation (AFC) member nations that are mainly categorized as "emerging countries" in the defunct Vision Asia progra ...
, where low-ranked nations
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
,
Tajikistan
Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
,
Palestine
__NOTOC__
Palestine may refer to:
* State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia
* Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia
* Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...
, and
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...
challenged, the last of whom almost pulled off a major upset. North Korea's reign was memorable for the fact that so many low-ranking teams challenged to become holders of the crown – as well as the aforementioned AFC Challenge Cup, low ranking nations competing in the
2013 EAFF East Asian Cup second preliminary round such as
Kuwait
Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...
,
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
,
Chinese Taipei
"Chinese Taipei" is the term used in various international organizations and tournaments for groups or delegations representing the Republic of China (ROC), a country commonly known as Taiwan.
Due to the One-China principle stipulated by th ...
,
Guam
Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
, and
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
all unsuccessfully attempted to take the title away from North Korea.
The title was finally taken from North Korea by Sweden in the
2013 King's Cup
The 2013 King's Cup was an international football competition, the 42nd edition of the tournament. It was a two-round knockout tournament, with all matches held at the 700th Anniversary Stadium in Chiang Mai, Thailand between 23 January and 26 ...
, a result not recorded as a full international by FIFA, but nevertheless considered valid by the UFWC website. In a friendly in February, Sweden were beaten by Argentina who took the title to South America. In October, Argentina lost a
FIFA World Cup qualifier to Uruguay.
Uruguay took the UFWC into
Group D of the
2014 FIFA World Cup
The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil from 12 June to 13 July 2014, after the country was awarded the hosting ri ...
.
During the group-stage an already-eliminated England challenged
Costa Rica
Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...
for the UFWC in their third group-stage game and the UFWC was mooted as a potential consolation prize in the British press, however the match was drawn and Costa Rica took the UFWC into the knockout phase.
The UFWC and World Cup were "unified", with Germany securing both in the final.
Shortly after the World Cup, the runners-up Argentina beat Germany in a friendly to claim the UFWC title. This reign ended one match later, when Brazil won the UFWC title after winning
2014 Superclásico de las Américas.
Brazil held onto the title to take it into the
2015 Copa América
The 2015 Copa América was the 44th edition of the Copa América, the main international football tournament for national teams in South America, and took place in Chile between 11 June and 4 July 2015. The competition was organized by CONMEBOL, ...
, where it ended up with tournament winners
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
. Chile lost the title to
Uruguay
Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...
who took it into the
Copa América Centenario
The Copa América Centenario ( pt, Copa América Centenário, french: Coupe Amerique Centennaire, en, Centennial Cup America; literally ''Centennial America Cup'') was an international men's association football tournament that was hosted by the ...
, but regained it before winning the tournament. The UFWC was exchanged between CONMEBOL sides during
2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
The 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification process was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA confederations to decide 31 of the 32 teams which would play in the 2018 FIFA World Cup, with Russia qualifying automatically as hosts. All 210 ...
, and remained in South America despite being contested by outside teams during Chile's successful
2017 China Cup
The 2017 Gree China Cup International Football Championship () was the inaugural edition of the China Cup, an international football tournament. It was held from 10 to 15 January 2017 in Nanning, Guangxi, China.
The tournament was hosted by t ...
campaign. Ultimately it was Peru took the Championship into the
2018 World Cup
The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded the hosting righ ...
where the title ended with tournament victors France.
For the next four years the title was traded between UEFA teams, with most matches being either
Euro 2020 qualifying,
UEFA Nations League
The UEFA Nations League is a biennial international football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the member associations of UEFA, the sport's European governing body.
The first tournament began in September 2018. The ...
and
World Cup 2022 qualifying games. In terms of number of consecutive title defences, the 2020–2021 streak by Italy, which included their victorious
UEFA Euro 2020
The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2020 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2020) or simply Euro 2020, was the 16th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe ...
campaign, was the joint longest in UFWC history (tied with the Netherlands in 2008–2010). The
2022 World Cup ended with victors
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
also holding the
2021 Copa América
The 2021 Copa América was the 47th edition of the Copa América, the international men's football championship organised by South America's football ruling body CONMEBOL. The tournament took place in Brazil from 13 June to 10 July 2021. The tour ...
and the UFWC.
All-time rankings
The UFWC website maintains an all-time ranking table of teams, sorting by number of championship matches won. Owing mostly to their successes in the early years of international football, where competition was almost entirely limited to the
British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...
, the top ranked team is
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
, followed by
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
.
UFWC at major championships
Due to the nature of group stages, a team may win or retain the UFWC without qualifying for the knock-out stages of a competition. If, on the other hand, the UFWC champion reaches the knock-out stage, then the title of that competition will be unified with the UFWC.
Global
World Cup
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...
No team has ever successfully defended the unofficial world championship title through a World Cup Finals. The
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
have come closest, remaining unbeaten in both the
1974
Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; f ...
and
2010
File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
competitions right up until the final, where they lost to
West Germany
West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
and
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
respectively. West Germany were also beaten finalists in
1986
The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles.
**Spain and Portugal ente ...
, but the title changed hands four times during the tournament.
By necessity, each time the UFWC holder makes it to the knockout stage of a FIFA World Cup, a reunion of the two titles occurs, since the knockout format ensures that the UFWC trophy will be handed on throughout the games into the final. There it will be won by the team which also wins the World Cup. It is, however, possible that the UFWC holder is eliminated in the group stage of the World Cup and leaves the tournament as reigning UFWC champion, in which case no reunion occurs; this happened to
Chile in 1950,
Mexico in 1962 and
Colombia in 1994.
Confederations Cup
The FIFA Confederations Cup was an international association football tournament for men's national teams, held every four years by FIFA. It was contested by the holders of each of the six continental championships (AFC, CAF, CONCACAF, CONMEBOL, ...
Continental
The championships of each of the continental championships are only listed when the UFWC was contested during the tournament. The continental championships of
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
and
Oceania
Oceania (, , ) is a region, geographical region that includes Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Spanning the Eastern Hemisphere, Eastern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres, Oceania is estimated to have a land area of ...
have not yet seen competition for this title.
European Championship
UEFA Nations League Finals
The UEFA Nations League is a biennial international football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the member associations of UEFA, the sport's European governing body.
The first tournament began in September 2018. The ...
Copa América
The Copa América ( en, America Cup) or CONMEBOL Copa América, known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship (''Campeonato Sudamericano de Fútbol'' in Spanish and ''Campeonato Sul-Americano de Futebol'' in Portuguese), is the t ...
CONCACAF Gold Cup
The CONCACAF Gold Cup ( es, Copa de Oro de la CONCACAF, french: Coupe D'or CONCACAF) is the main association football competition of the men's national football teams governed by CONCACAF, determining the continental champion of North Ameri ...
Asian Cup
Book
Freelance journalist Paul Brown, who wrote the original
FourFourTwo
''FourFourTwo'' is a football magazine published by Future. Issued monthly, it published its 300th edition in May 2019. It takes its name from the football formation of the same name, 4-4-2.
In 2008, it was announced that ''FourFourTwo'' had e ...
article on the UFWC and created the UFWC website,
wrote a book on the championship which was published by Superelastic in 2011.
Written in
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
, it has also been translated into
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
.
, four editions of the book have been published, with the latest UFWC developments added to each.
Similar concepts
The concept of such a title is not unique to the UFWC, similar concepts, with different rules and therefore different lineages, are discussed below.
UFWC Spin-offs
The online community at the UFWC website keeps track of UFWC-like linages confined to each FIFA confederation. A Women's Unofficial Football World Championships can be traced back either to the first FIFA-recognised women's international in 1971 (a 4–0 victory for
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
over
The Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
) or to earlier internationals that are not FIFA recognised.
Nasazzi's Baton and Netto's Baton
A similar virtual title,
Nasazzi's Baton, traces the "championship" from the first
World Cup
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...
winners
Uruguay
Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...
, after whose captain it is named. Nasazzi's Baton follows the same rules as the UFWC, except that it treats all matches according to their result after 90 minutes. Another virtual title,
Netto's Baton, follows the same rules but is traced from the first
UEFA European Championship
The UEFA European Football Championship, less formally the European Championship and informally the Euro, is the primary association football tournament organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). The competition is contes ...
winners
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
and is confined to
UEFA
Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...
member national teams.
Virtual World Championship
Another virtual title, the Virtual World Championship, operates along the same boxing-style lines but only counts matches in FIFA-recognised championships and their qualifying stages. This is to circumvent the criticism of the UFWC that because countries do not always play their strongest teams in non-competitive matches, the honour could be unwittingly lost by a sub-strength team. This title is traced from the 1908 Olympic Games, and treats all matches according to their result after 90 minutes. Olympic competitions since 1936 are not considered, as full international teams ceased to take part after that tournament.
Pound for Pound World Championship
Another similar competition, the Pound for Pound World Championship (PPWC),
was created by Scottish football magazine ''The Away End''. This title only recognises competitive games, although it recognises many unofficial tournaments which are considered to be friendlies by FIFA. As with the UFWC, extra time and penalties are taken into account in defining the winner of a match. It only counts games from as far back as the first FIFA World Cup in 1930, and states that no matter who holds the title of Pound for Pound World Champion they must relinquish the crown at the beginning of every World Cup finals. At the end of the tournament the World Cup winners are crowned the new Pound for Pound World Champions. Therefore, the tournament is "reset" every four years.
Notes
References
{{reflist, 30em
External links
Unofficial Football World ChampionshipsOn Twitter*
Bâton de Nasazzi (French Wikipedia page) o
Nasazzi's Baton(also in French)
The Away End – Pound for Pound World Championship
Association football rankings
History of association football