With the kick-off of the 2015 Copa América in Chile finally on the horizon, Outside90’s South American football guru Daniel Gartner takes a look back at the most storied team from the tournament’s most successful nation.
July 24, 2011, saw Óscar Tabárez’s Uruguay crowned Copa América champions for a record 15th time, comfortably brushing aside surprise finalists Paraguay 3-0 at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires. After finishing an impressive third in the previous year’s World Cup in South Africa, Los Charrúas had firmly reestablished themselves as an international powerhouse once again. The class of 2011, featuring the likes of Luis Suárez, Diego Godín and Diego Forlán comfortably ranks among Uruguay’s greatest ever sides.
The tiny South American nation bordering Argentina and Brazil remains the smallest country ever to win a World Cup, and it is quite remarkable how such a tiny nation has been able to consistently produce world class footballers on a regular basis. Nearly a century ago, however, it was by far and away the greatest footballing nation on the planet, during a time when Uruguay only had a population of 1.7 million residents.
Before Hungary’s incredible Mighty Magyars of the 1950’s, and well before Brazil’s breathtakingly brilliant 1970 side, Uruguay’s swashbuckling national team were sweeping all before them in the 1920’s with a scintillating brand of football. Uruguay had already won four South American championships in 1916, 1917, 1920 and 1923 by the time the 1924 Olympic Games held in Paris had came around, and it was at the 1924 Games where Uruguay would truly cement their status as a footballing powerhouse. Before FIFA’s creation of the World Cup came to fruition in 1930, the Olympic Games were widely regarded as the most prestigious event in international football. The Uruguayans obliterated the best international teams the world had to offer at the Paris games, dismantling the hosts 5-1 and Yugoslavia 7-0 on their way to Olympic gold, where they were far too strong for an impressive Netherlands side in the final, comfortably defeating the Dutch 3-0.
At a time when attack was widely regarded as the best form of defence, Uruguay fielded a 2-3-5 formation full of attacking flair, where arguably their brightest stars during 1924-30 were impressive inside right Héctor Scarone and wing-half José Leandro Andrade. Both Andrade and Scarone spent the majority of their careers plying their trade with Uruguayan giants Nacional, while Scarone, nicknamed El Mago (The Wizard), also represented Spanish giants Barcelona for a season in 1926-27. Scarone’s impressive record of 31 goals in 52 internationals saw him remain Uruguay’s leading goalscorer for nearly 80 years, before his long-standing record was finally broken in 2011 by Diego Forlán. Andrade on the other hand, nicknamed Maravilla Negra (The Black Marvel), was the first black player to play Olympic football, and was widely regarded as one of the finest players in the world during his prime along with many of his international teammates. Scarone and Andrade’s Nacional teammate of the time, inside-left Pedro Cea, was also one of the driving forces behind Los Charrúas’ surge to the summit of international football.
The Uruguayans tasted success again in 1926, when they lifted another South American championship in Chile, fending off bitter rivals Argentina. The following year’s tournament saw them record what is still to this day their biggest victory in international football, an astonishing 9-0 destruction of competition whipping-boys Bolivia in Lima, Peru. The Uruguayan’s were ultimately pipped to the 1927 South American championship by Argentina, but still entered the 1928 Olympic Games in Amsterdam as the team to beat. Primo Giannoti would not remain in the Uruguayan hotseat for very long, but still managed to guide Los Charrúas to a second consecutive Olympic gold. The team swept aside the Netherlands, Germany and Italy on their way to the final where they would face Argentina once again, who had annihilated a hapless United States side 11-2 in their opening game. Héctor Scarone would ultimately net the decisive goal against the in-form Argentinians, as Los Charrúas were triumphant once again.
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Later the same year, Alberto Suppici would take over from Giannoti as Uruguayan manager, and Suppici’s appointment brought with it continued success on the international stage. However, his side were unable to prevent host nation Argentina from bulldozing their way to the 1929 South American Championship, where Suppici’s men would go on to finish third. The following year would see the inaugural FIFA World Cup take place, and because of their status as the strongest footballing nation on the planet, it seemed appropriate that Uruguay were chosen as the hosts of 1930 tournament by FIFA. Only thirteen teams participated in the inaugural World Cup finals, and Uruguay were fortunate enough to be placed into an easy Group 3, featuring fellow South Americans Peru and European nation Romania. Suppici’s men narrowly edged Peru 1-0 thanks to a solitary strike from Nacional forward Héctor Castro, before easing past Romania 4-0 to set up a semi-final date with Group 2 winners the Yugoslavia.
Yugoslavia had beaten Brazil to finish top of their group, and even scored the opening goal against the Uruguayans after only four minutes. What followed, however, was one of the most scintillating displays of attacking football Uruguay had ever produced, as they completely destroyed the Yugoslavians 6-1, helped in no small part by a brilliant hat-trick from Pedro Cea. It seemed only fitting that Uruguay’s opponents in the World Cup final to be held in Montevideo’s iconic Estadio Centenario on July 30 would be none other than reigning South American champions and bitter rivals Argentina. The Argentinians had crushed the United States 6-1 in their semi-final clash, and had netted 10 times in their three group stage matches. Despite their home advantage, Alberto Suppici’s Uruguay were faced with a serious challenge to keep free-scoring Argentina at bay.
Outside-right Pablo Dorado would have the honour of scoring the first ever goal in a World Cup final, firing through the legs of Argentinian goalkeeper Juan Botasso to put Uruguay ahead after just 12 minutes, sending the 60,000-strong home crowd into raptures. However, the hosts jubilation was short-lived, as Carlos Peucelle and tournament top-scorer Guillermo Stábile netted twice for Argentina in the space of 17 minutes to send the South American champions into half-time with a 2-1 lead. Argentina continued to look threatening after the restart, and were unlucky not to go further ahead after Francisco Varallo’s shot crashed against the upright. The miss would prove costly, as semi-final hero Cea equalised for the Uruguayans after 57 minutes, before Victoriano Iriarte fired the hosts into the lead with a blistering long-range strike only 11 minutes later. Although Argentina refused to lie down, Castro eventually killed the game off with an 89th minute header that saw Alberto Suppici’s men deservedly crowned world champions on home soil.
Uruguay had cemented their place in the history books, and the success would not stop there. The 1930 world champions would clinch two more South American championships in 1935 and 1942 respectively, before famously defeating Brazil 2-1 at the Maracanã in the 1950 final to lift their second World Cup. However, it was and is their all-conquering team of 1924-30 that clinched two Olympic Golds and backed it up with the first ever World Cup that will remain the country’s greatest ever side, and one of the greatest sides in footballing history.
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Great report.