Hosts of the First Football World Cup in 1930.
Champions of the First World Cup beating Argentina 4-2(seemingly setting the pressidence of teams winning on home soil)
Champions again in Brazil 1950 (the 4th cup) which was the only cup to not have a final. <font size=small>(There was no official World Cup final match in 1950. The tournament winner was decided by a final round-robin group contested by four teams (Uruguay, Brazil, Sweden, and Spain). However, Uruguay's 2-1 victory over Brazil (a match known as Maracanazo) was the decisive match (and also coincidentally one of the last two matches of the tournament) which put them ahead on points and ensured that they finished top of the group as world champions. Therefore, this match is often considered the "final" of the 1950 World Cup)</font>

Hosts of the Second World Cup in 1932
Champions of the Second World Cup beating Czechoslovakia 2-1.
(still home soil = victory)
1932. It was the first World Cup for which teams would have to qualify in order to take part. 32 nations entered the competition, and after qualification, 16 teams participated in the finals tournament. Italy became the second World Cup champions, beating Czechoslovakia in the final, 2-1 after extra time.

Italy retained the Title again 4 years later in France beating hungary 4-2 in the final to become the first but not the last team to win twice. However only Brazil have matche Italy's feat of winning back to back titles.

Champions again in Spain 1982 this time defeating Germany 3-1

Hosted again for the 14th World Cup in 1990.
Italy won their group with a clean sweep but lost out 4-3 on penalties (1-1 at full time) to Argentina in the Semi Final (the other semi saw an identical score line between Germany and England). Italy then beat England 2-1 for the 3rd place while the title was won by West Germany, who beat Argentina 1-0 in a controversial final.

Champions for the 4th time in Germany 2006 Italy are the current title holders. Victory over France 5-3 on Penalties after a 1-1 scoreline at the end of extra time saw Italy become the outright 2nd most victorious nation.

The only team to defeat Italy in a world cup final is Brazil. 1970 in Mexico 4-1 and again at USA '94 3-2 on penalties after a 0-0 scoreline.

Hosts for the 3rd World Cup in 1938.
The decision for France to host caused outrage in South America where it was believed the host nation would alternate between the two continents. Italy retained the championship, beating Hungary 4-2 in the final.

Hosts again in 1998 he tournament was won by France, who beat Brazil 3-0 in the final. France became the 7th nation to win a World Cup, and the first host nation to win the tournament since Argentina did it in 1978. This was also France's first ever world cup final.

Finalists in Germany 2006 France lost out to Italy where the title was decided in a penalty shootout.

Hosts of the 5th World Cup in 1954.
As the year saw the 50th anniversary of FIFA, it was appropriate for football's premier competition to be played in the home of its governing body. The tournament was won by West Germany, who upset Hungary 3-2 in the final, giving them their first title.

Switzerland have never progressed further than the quearter finals.

Hosts of the 6th World Cup in 1958.
Won by Brazil who beat Sweden 5-2 in the final for their first title and becoming the 4th nation to lift the cup.

The 1958 World Cup marked the debut on the world stage of 17-year-old Pelé, who would grow to be considered by many the greatest footballer of all time.

This World Cup saw the entry and qualification of the Soviet Union for the first time, and the qualification of all the United Kingdom's Home Nations: England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, with Northern Ireland eliminating Italy for the first (and only) time in the competition's history

Hosts of the 7th World Cup in 1962.
As the World Cup returned to the continent of South America after 12 years (2 cups in Europe).

Won by Brazil beating Czechoslovakia 3-1 in the final to become the third nation with 2 titles and join Italy in retaining the cup.

The Hosts reached the Semi Finals where they defeated 4-2 by the eventual champions.

Hosts of the 8th World Cup in 1966.
England was chosen as hosts by FIFA in August 1960 to celebrate the centenary of the codification of football in England.

Champions in 1966. It was a year of highly controversial triumph for the host nation, as England won the final, beating West Germany 4-2 after extra time, giving them their first (and so far only) World Cup triumph. This saw England becoming the first host to win the tournament since Italy won it in 1934 and the 5th nation to be crowned champions.

England 1966 saw the introduction of the World Cup mascot with the appearance of World Cup Willie.

Host of the 9th World Cup in 1970.
The first World Cup hosted in North America, and the first held outside South America and Europe. In a match-up of teams that had won the World Cup twice, the final was won by Brazil, who beat Italy 4-1. This means Brazil were the first three-time world champions and were allowed to keep the Jules Rimet Trophy permanently.

The Brazilian team of 1970, featuring the likes of Pelé (who was in his fourth and final World Cup), Carlos Alberto, Clodoaldo, Gérson, Jairzinho, Rivelino, and Tostão, is usually regarded as the greatest attacking World Cup team ever. This tournament saw the return of free-flowing, attacking play after the physical battles of 1962 and 1966, and is still considered by many fans to be the finest World Cup in history.


Mexico also hosted the 13th World Cup in 1986.
Mexico was chosen as the replacement hosts after the Colombian authorities declared in November 1982 that they could not afford to host the World Cup under the terms that FIFA demanded.

Won by Argentina 3-2 over West Germany.
Argentina's passage to the final was controversial with the infamous <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hand_of_God_goal">"Hand of God" goal</a> against England in the quarter final.
In 2002 Maradonna's second goal in that QF match was voted as <a hef="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goal_of_the_Century">Goal of the Century</a>

<div align=center ><img src="http://www.nasmyth.co.uk/images/Hand of God.jpg" alt="Hand of God">

West Germany were the first (and still only) nation to win the title before hosting the competition.

Champions in Switzerland 1954 with a 3-2 win over Hungary in the final.

Hosts of the 10th World Cup in 1974
The tournament marked the first time that the current trophy, the FIFA World Cup Trophy, created by the Italian sculptor Silvio Gazzaniga, was awarded. The previous trophy, the Jules Rimet Trophy, was won for the third time by Brazil in 1970 and awarded permanently to the Brazilians. West Germany won the title beating Netherlands in the final, 2-1 leaving Brazil as the only winner to have never won while hosting.

Champions again in Italy 1990 defeating Argentina 1-0 in a rematch of the final from 4 years earlier. This saw West Germany join Italy and Brazil as 3 time winners and become the only team tp play in 3 consecutive finals.

1990 was also the last time the team were to play as West Germany. By USA 1994 the nation had been reunified and would now play as Germany.

Hosts again for the 18th World Cup in 2006
The tournament was won by Italy, their fourth world championship, defeating France 5–3 in a penalty shootout after extra time finished in a 1–1 draw. Germany defeated Portugal 3–1 to finish third.

Hosts of the 12th World Cup in 1982.
won by Italy, who beat West Germany 3-1 in the final. With its third World Cup title (after 1934 and 1938), Italy drew level with Brazil. This World Cup was marked by a series of great matches and is widely regarded as the second-best ever after the legendary 1970 tournament. This was also the first World Cup to feature 24 teams, an expansion from at most 16 in the previous tournaments.

Spain progressed only as far as the 2nd Round. The worst ever finish for a host nation a record since repeated by USA in 1994 and Japan in 2002.