The FIFA World Cup was held for the 12th time in Espana in 1982. Here are some interesting details regarding the competition:
The World Cup increased from 16 to 24 teams for the first time.
For the first time, teams from all six continental confederations competed in the World Cup.
It was the final World Cup to have two group stage rounds.
It was the first time a penalty shootout had occurred at a World Cup (West Germany defeated France 5-4 on penalties in the semi-finals).
The only team to proceed from the first round without having won a game was Italy (Italy and Cameroon both had 3 draws in the first group stage but Italy progressed to the second group stage on goals scored).
Algeria, Cameroon, Honduras, Kuwait, and New Zealand were among the five debutants.
In the group stage, Hungary recorded the biggest win in the history of the competition by defeating El Salvador 10-1.
Hungary’s László Kiss scored the quickest hat trick in World Cup history in that game after coming off the bench (seven minutes and 42 seconds). Moreover, he became the only replacement to score a hat-trick in a World Cup.
Italy equaled Brazil for the most World Cup titles (3) after defeating West Germany 3-1 in the final match.
Dino Zoff, the captain and goalie for Italy, turned 40 and became the oldest player to win the World Cup.
