World Cup Stories (2006)
Saisons & Épisode
Think of the World Cup and you automatically think of Brazil. We tell the story of how, inspired by the incredible talents of two of the greatest footballers of all time, Pele and Garrincha, Brazil put behind it one of the World Cup's greatest upsets to dominate the competition over the last 50 years.
We see how Argentina emerged from the suffering of military dictatorship and the Falklands War to find a new national self-confidence in the 1980s inspired by the genius of Diego Maradona.
We tell the story of how, from the 1950s to the 1970s, unlikely World Cup successes turned West Germany from the pariahs of European football to its most dominant superpower. And we see how the legacy of the 1954 team's "Miracle of Berne" has motivated German players to strive for World Cup success ever since, including a remarkable comeback in the 1974 final against perhaps the greatest team of the 1970s, the Dutch.
The last programme in the series tells the story of the rise and fall of Italian football and that nation's three World Cup successes. The story is one of success achieved against the odds and frequently in the face of despondency and cynicism among football fans at home.