The first penalty in the history of the World Cup. Who is the author?

HIBAPRESS-RABAT-FIFA

FIFA has just highlighted a World Cup record. Today, a look back at the first penalty in history awarded in the final, in 1974.

“As we came out of the tunnel, I said to him: ‘Johan, we’re going to see each other often.’ »

When he uttered these words before the 1974 FIFA World Cup™ final (FRG-Holland), FRG captain Berti Vogts must have had a smile on his face, but deep down he was very serious.

West Germany’s game plan was indeed to deprive the Netherlands of possession, neutralize their total football, and bring the cogs of these “mechanical Oranje” to a halt. To do this, the German coach Helmut Schön had entrusted the man nicknamed The Terrier (Berti Vogts) with the task of marking the famous number 14 (Cruyff) on his pants.

Before West Germany had even touched the ball once, however, they were already behind. We were not yet talking about tiki-taka, but the Dutch philosophy was clearly a precursor given the Oranje’s desire to monopolize the ball as much as possible.

After kicking off, Rinus Michels’ men made 16 passes until the ball landed at the feet of Johan Cruyff, who then turned into a hare and made Vogts his greyhound. . While West Germany’s number 2 struggled to keep up, his teammate Uli Hoeness set out to try to help him.

However, Cruyff’s graceful errors were too quick and Hoeness made a mistake. Jack Taylor, who had swapped his habit of butcher for that of referee, then awarded the Netherlands the first penalty in the history of a World Cup final. It still remains today the fastest penalty awarded at this stage of the tournament.