One of the greatest upsets in sports history occurred on June 29, 1950. In 1950, the World Cup was hosted by Brazil. The squad from England was the favorite. Oddly, it was their World Cup debut, having sat out the first three tournaments in a pay dispute with FIFA. However, the team had a 23-4-3 record post-war. On the other hand, the U.S. team had 500-1 odds for winning. It came in on a seven-game losing streak, including 4-0 to Italy and 10-0 to Portugal in its last two games. In the seven games it had been outscored 45-2. While the Brits had some of the best players in the world, including the legendary Shane Matthews, the Americans were a motley crew of semi-pros. Most held down jobs like high school teacher (Walter Bahr), hearse driver (goalie Frank Borghi), or dishwasher (forward Joe Gaetgens). In fact, Haitian-born Gaetgens was discovered washing dishes and added right before the team left. The team had trained only once before leaving for Brazil. Coach Bill Jeffrey described his team as “sheep ready for slaughter”. They lost their first game 3-1 to Spain as England beat Chile 2-0. The British were so confident, their coach rested Matthews for the game versus the Yanks. The match started as scripted as the Englishmen had six clean shots in the first few minutes, but two hit the post and Borghi made an amazing save on another. The Americans were clearly outmatched and barely crossed midfield. Then the unthinkable happened. In the 37th minute, Bahr sent a very hopeful long ball that the British goalie moved up to routinely catch. Gaetgens launched himself through the air and headed the ball past him, into the net. The stadium was stunned. Everyone, including the Americans, expected the British to rectify things in the second half and they did put enormous pressure on the American defense, but Borghi was unbeatable. He played the game of his life and the score held up. The Americans went on to lose their next game, but returned home to their jobs with their heads held high.
https://www.fifa.com/worldcup/news/the-miracle-belo-horizonte-1165849
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