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World Team of the 20th Century
Team of the best football players
Team of the best football players
The World Team of the 20th Century or MasterCard 20th Century team (as it was sponsored by MasterCard) was chosen in 1998 to honour the best association football players of the 20th century. The team was consisted of an eleven-member side, with one goalkeeper, four defenders, three midfielders, and three forwards (4–3–3 formation).
History
The team was announced on 10 June 1998, in conjunction with the opening ceremonies of the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France. The team was selected in plurality voting undertaken by a panel of 250 international football journalists from amongst the members of eleven-member sides styled as the South American and European Teams of the 20th Century. Those two continental selections were announced a month earlier by the same panel, featuring players who represented national teams of the CONMEBOL and UEFA confederations and would be the pool for the World selection. That meant that no player from outside Europe or South America was eligible for selection for the World Team.
Selection teams for players from the nations of CONCACAF, the Confederation of African Football, and collectively the Asian and Oceania Football Confederations were also chosen by separate, smaller juries of journalists situated respectively in North and Central America, Africa, and Asia and Oceania. They were announced alongside the European and South American teams, but players selected to the former sides were not considered for selection to the world team.
The continental selection All the team selections were sponsored by MasterCard and announced on 15 May 1998.
Continental selections
FIFA also published the best XIs of the Century for CONCACAF, UEFA, Africa and the Asian and Oceania Football Confederations. MasterCard sponsored the team selections which were announced on 15 May 1998. The first two selections (UEFA, CONMEBOL) worked as the pool for choosing the World's Best Eleven.
Pool for the World Selection
| Continent | Goalkeeper | Defenders | Midfielders | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Europe | URS Lev Yashin | FRG Franz Beckenbauer | ||
| ENG Bobby Moore | ||||
| ITA Paolo Maldini | ||||
| ITA Franco Baresi | NED Johan Cruyff | |||
| FRA Michel Platini | ||||
| ENG Bobby Charlton | POR Eusebio | |||
| HUN Ferenc Puskas | ||||
| NED Marco Van Basten | ||||
| South America | ARG Ubaldo Fillol | ARG Daniel Passarella | ||
| BRA Nilton Santos | ||||
| CHI Elías Figueroa | ||||
| BRA Carlos Alberto Torres | ARG Alfredo Di Stéfano | |||
| BRA Roberto Rivellino | ||||
| BRA Didi | BRA Pelé | |||
| ARG Diego Maradona | ||||
| BRA Garrincha |
Rest of the world
| Continent | Goalkeeper | Defenders | Midfielders | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CONCACAF | MEX Antonio Carbajal | USA Marcelo Balboa | ||
| HON Gilberto Yearwood | ||||
| CAN Bruce Wilson | ||||
| MEX Gustavo Peña | MEX Ramon Ramirez | |||
| El Salvador Mágico González | ||||
| USA Tab Ramos | PAN Julio Dely Valdés | |||
| MEX Hugo Sánchez | ||||
| CRI Hernan Medford | ||||
| Africa | CMR Thomas N'Kono | EGY Ali Shehata | ||
| EGY Ibrahim Youssef | ||||
| CMR Emmanuel Kunde | ||||
| DR Congo Mwepu Ilunga | NGA Segun Odegbami | |||
| CMR Theophile Abega | ||||
| GHA Abedi Pele | Ivory Coast Laurent Pokou | |||
| CMR Roger Milla | ||||
| ALG Rabah Madjer | ||||
| Asia/Oceania | Malaysia Chow Chee Keong | KOR Kim Ho-kon | ||
| JPN Masami Ihara | ||||
| Malaysia Soh Chin Ann | Taiwan Cheung Chi Doy | |||
| IRN Karim Bagheri | ||||
| KOR Kim Joo-sung | KSA Majed Abdullah | |||
| JPN Kunishige Kamamoto | ||||
| IRN Khodadad Azizi | ||||
| KOR Cha Bum-kun |
World selection
The formation chosen was 4–3–3.
| Position | Player | National side(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| represented by year | Professional club(s) | ||
| represented by year | Rank on the | ||
| FIFA Magazine and Grand Jury | |||
| enumeration of the top | |||
| FIFA players of the 20th century | Continental, FIFA World Cup, | ||
| IFFHS, and FIFA awards | |||
| Goalkeeper | Lev Yashin | URS Soviet Union | |
| (1954–1970) | FC Dynamo Moscow (1949–1971) | Unranked | European Footballer of the Year (1963), UEFA Jubilee Award (Russia) |
| World Cup All-Star Team (1958) | |||
| FIFA World Cup All-Time Team | |||
| , FIFA Order of Merit (1988) | |||
| Defender (fullback) | Carlos Alberto Torres | BRA Brazil | |
| (1964–1977) | Fluminense (1963–1966, 1974–1977) | ||
| Santos FC (1966–1974) | |||
| Flamengo (1977) | |||
| Botafogo (1971) | |||
| New York Cosmos (1977–1980, 1982) | |||
| California Surf (1981) | Unranked | FIFA 100 | |
| World Cup All-Star Team (1970) | |||
| Defender (centre-back) | Franz Beckenbauer | GER West Germany | |
| (1965–1977) | Bayern Munich (1965–1977) | ||
| New York Cosmos (1977–1980, 1983) | |||
| Hamburger SV (1980–1982) | 4 | European Footballer of the Year (1972, 1976) | |
| FIFA World Cup Best Young Player Award (1966), FIFA World Cup Bronze Boot (1966), FIFA World Cup Silver Ball (1974) | |||
| FIFA World Cup All-Star Team (1966, 1970, 1974) | |||
| FIFA World Cup All-Time Team, FIFA World Cup Dream Team | |||
| IFFHS Best European Player 1956–1990 | |||
| FIFA 100, FIFA Order of Merit (1984, 2004) | |||
| Defender (centre-back) | Bobby Moore | ENG England | |
| (1962–1973) | West Ham United (1958–1974) | ||
| Fulham (1974–1977) | |||
| San Antonio Thunder (1977) | |||
| Seattle Sounders (1978) | 14 | UEFA Jubilee Award (England) | |
| World Cup All-Star Team (1966), FIFA World Cup All-Time Team | |||
| , FIFA Order of Merit (1996) | |||
| Defender (fullback) | Nílton Santos | BRA Brazil | |
| (1949–1963) | Botafogo (1949–1965) | Unranked | World Cup All-Star Team (1958) |
| FIFA 100 | |||
| Midfielder | Johan Cruyff | NED Netherlands | |
| (1966–1978) | Ajax Amsterdam (1964–1973, 1981–1983) | ||
| FC Barcelona (1973–1978) | |||
| Los Angeles Aztecs (1979) | |||
| Washington Diplomats (1980–1981) | |||
| Levante UD (1981) | |||
| Feyenoord (1983–1984) | 5 | European Footballer of the Year (1971, 1973, 1974), UEFA Jubilee Award (Netherlands) | |
| World Cup All-Star Team (1974) | |||
| FIFA 100, FIFA Order of Merit (2010) | |||
| Midfielder | Alfredo Di Stéfano | ARG Argentina | |
| (1947) | |||
| COL Colombia | |||
| (1949) | |||
| ESP Spain (1957–1962) | River Plate (1943–1945, 1947–1949) | ||
| Huracán (1946–1947) | |||
| Millonarios (1949–1953) | |||
| Real Madrid (1953–1964) | |||
| RCD Espanyol (1964–1966) | 2 | European Footballer of the Year (1957, 1959), UEFA Jubilee Award (Spain) | |
| FIFA 100, FIFA Order of Merit (1994) | |||
| Midfielder | Michel Platini | FRA France | |
| (1976–1987) | AS Nancy (1972–1979) | ||
| AS Saint-Étienne (1979–1982) | |||
| Juventus (1982–1987) | 7 | European Footballer of the Year (1983, 1984, 1985), Onze d'Or (1983, 1984, 1985) | |
| World Cup All-Star Team (1982, 1986) | |||
| World Soccer Player of the Year (1984, 1985) | |||
| FIFA 100 | |||
| Forward | Garrincha | BRA Brazil | |
| (1955–1966) | Botafogo (1953–1965) | ||
| Corinthians (1966) | |||
| Atlético Junior (1968) | |||
| Flamengo (1968–1969) | |||
| Olaria (1972) | 7 | World Cup Golden Shoe Award (1962), World Cup All-Star Team (1958, 1962) | |
| Forward | Diego Maradona | ARG Argentina | |
| (1977–1994) | Argentinos Juniors (1976–1981) | ||
| Boca Juniors (1981–1982, 1995–1997) | |||
| FC Barcelona (1982–1984) | |||
| SSC Napoli (1984–1991) | |||
| Sevilla FC (1992–1993) | |||
| Newell's Old Boys (1993) | 3 | Onze d'Or (1986, 1987), FIFA Player of the Century, South American Footballer of the Year (1979, 1980) | |
| World Cup Golden Ball Award (1986), World Cup Bronze Ball Award (1990), FIFA World Cup Silver Shoe (1986), World Cup All-Star Team (1986, 1990) | |||
| FIFA World Cup Dream Team | |||
| World Soccer Player of the Year (1986) | |||
| Honorary Ballon d'Or (1995) | |||
| Forward | Pelé | BRA Brazil | |
| (1956–1971) | Santos FC (1956–1974) | ||
| New York Cosmos (1975–1977) | 1 | South American Footballer of the Year (1973), World Cup Golden Ball Award (Best Player) (1970), World Cup Silver Ball (1958), World Cup Best Young Player (1958), World Cup All-Star Team (1958, 1970), FIFA World Cup All-Time Team, FIFA Player of the Century, IFFHS Player of the Century, Player of the Century by France Football's Ballon d'Or Winners, FIFA Ballon d'Or Prix d'Honneur (2013), FIFA 100, FIFA Order of Merit (1984, 2004) |
References
Sources
- Brown, Gerry, and Morrison, Michael (eds.; 2003). ESPN Information Please Sports Almanac. New York City: ESPN Books and Hyperion (joint). .
References
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20170806023318/http://www.soccertimes.com/international/1998/may15.htm Ramos, Balboa named to MasterCard CONCACAF 20th Century team (15/05/1998) – soccertimes.com]
- The constitution of the [[FIFA World Cup awards#All-Star Team. all-star team]] for each [[FIFA World Cup]] contested prior to 1998 was determined by a panel of [[sportswriter. journalist]]s concomitant to the selection of the all-star team for the [[1998 FIFA World Cup. latter year's World Cup]]; all-star teams were selected contemporaneously only in 1998 and thereafter.
- To be considered for selection to the [[FIFA 100]], a player must have been living upon the team's selection in February 2004 and announcement on 4 March 2004; [[Lev Yashin]], [[Bobby Moore]], and [[Garrincha]], consequently, were ineligible for selection.
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