England won the World Cup Trophy in 1966

Who was the Man of the Match?

The man of the match was Gordon Banks. It is believed that Gordon Banks saved 11 shots (but one of them was not counted because it came during the extra time). Banks had broken his nose during the game and he had to be taken to a hospital, but he continued playing and he was the hero of the day. The man of the match is always disputed, but there are two persons who were very close to winning the title. First, Nobby Stiles and Bobby Charlton, who played as a sweeper, sacrificed themselves for a crucial goal. The second one who was very close to being the man of the match was Bobby Moore who made an excellent game and kept the ball very clean.

Where did England train before the World Cup?

Two months before the final, the English team was in America where they practiced in Mexico City. They had to transfer from the airport to the hotel in a school bus. It was a very long drive and the temperatures were almost 48 degrees Celsius. At first, the English players were surprised, but then they said that this was their idea of training. They were very tired after the long trip and the long bus journey, but they figured that the real match would be much more difficult. In this way, they prepared mentally for the final match.

Three English players got injured before the final.

Three English players, who were very important for the final, got injured before the match. Alan Mullery got a broken foot, Bobby Charlton got a broken ankle and Jackie Charlton, who played as a right-back, got a broken nose. Mullery, who played as a right-winger, couldn’t play for more than two weeks. He had to rest for another week, but he didn’t want to miss the final match. He was very scared of the pain, but he thought that he had to play for the team. The doctors said that he could risk his life, but Mullery ignored them. He just wanted to play for the team.

The game went to extra time and Hurst scored a hat-trick.

The final match was played between England and Germany. It was a very hard game with many goals. In the end, the game went to extra time. In this period, Hurst scored a hat-trick and the victory was made sure. Hurst scored a goal and then he jumped on the goal post. The ball was inside the net and Hurst was outside. He jumped on top of the net and the referee gave him a yellow card. He was lucky as it was just a warning.

After winning the World Cup, England received a welcome home like no other.

The victory in the final match was celebrated with a huge party. The newspaper headlines were ‘A new name for the Swinging Sixties’ and ‘Eng-er-land! Eng-er-land!’. The team members were invited to a chat show. The TV cameras were following them everywhere, but the players were very relaxed about it. They thought that the cameras would leave them after a while, but they didn’t. They didn’t leave them for a year.

Which four English players were crucial for this victory?

- Gordon Banks - As we mentioned above, Banks was one of the heroes of the day. He saved many penalties, but one of them wasn’t counted because it was during extra time. He was very important for this victory and he was the goalkeeper of the team.

- Bobby Moore - Moore was the captain of the team. He made an excellent game and he kept the ball very clean. He put pressure on the ball and he was very decisive with his decisions. He didn’t make any mistakes and he was crucial for the victory.

- Alan Ball - Ball had a great game and he made many assists. He was very decisive with his passes and no one could see how he did it. He was very mysterious and he played a very good football. He was very important for this victory.

- Bobby Charlton - As we mentioned above, Charlton was very important for this victory. He sacrificed himself for the team and he made a very good assist. This assist was even compared to the assist Pele made against Brazil (1958).

Final Words

We’ve looked at some of the most interesting facts about that famous day in July 1966 when England won the World Cup Final. We’ve seen that it was a very hard game and that England had to suffer many injuries before it. We’ve also seen that many people watched the match and that the team was celebrated with a great welcome.