![]() The four stars above Uruguay's football crest represent the four FIFA-recognized senior (non-amateur) world championships won in 1924, 1928, 1930 and 1950. |
The four stars above Uruguay's football crest represent the four FIFA-recognized senior (non-amateur) world titles won by the Uruguay national football team in 1924, 1928, 1930 and 1950. [1] The Olympic football tournaments of Paris 1924 and Amsterdam 1928 have been recognized by global football associations from the outset as open world championships, the only editions to be subsequently accepted as equivalent in value to the FIFA World Cup. [2] As of 30 May 2022, the Uruguayan Football Association (AUF) has announced that Uruguay have been permitted to continue wearing four stars on their football crest for the fifth consecutive FIFA World Cup tournament. [3] [4] In 2023, FIFA re-confirmed their stance by publishing an article that explained their history organizing and recognizing the 1924 and 1928 Olympic football tournaments as being World Cup equivalents. [5]
The 1924 and 1928 Olympic football tournaments had several distinctions that separate them from other editions organized before and after. Firstly, these championships were principally administered by FIFA, the French and Dutch football associations respectively, without obstructive involvement from the International Olympic Committee. [6] Secondly, these two Olympic football tournaments were the first ones in history that were open to all players, including professionals. [7] From the outset, FIFA, the football associations and media outlets from across the globe recognized the legitimacy of these Olympic football tournaments as being exceptional due to these "open" regulations. [8] [9] Also, before the outset of the tournament, FIFA President Jules Rimet and Henri Delaunay, one of the chief architects of the FIFA World Cup, stated that the winners of the 1924 Olympic football tournament would claim the “title of champion of the world”. [10]
In 1992, the Uruguay national football team successfully added four stars on their football crest for the first time with approval from FIFA. [11] [12] The request was put forward by Uruguayan football historian and journalist Atilio Garrido, who cited that in 1924, the AUF submitted their official reports to FIFA titled "Uruguay World Football Champion at the Olympics in Paris." [12] In addition to this, in 1928, the Uruguayan association did the same thing, except this time calling their documents: "Olimpiada de Amsterdam, Uruguay campeón del mundo" ("Amsterdam Olympiad, Uruguay World Champions.") These reports were formally submitted to FIFA in 1925 and 1929, and were approved with no objections. [12] In 1992, at the FIFA Congress in Zürich, Atilio Garrido successfully argued Uruguay's official standing as four-time senior (non-amateur) world champions recognized by FIFA as being: "inscribes itself in the continuity of what was officially registered by the directives of that time." [12]
FIFA has strict conditions for the adding of stars on a national team's football crest during the FIFA World Cup. Only teams that have won a World Cup (or a recognized equivalent) can display a five-pointed star on their badge. [13] [14] [15]
Adhering these official FIFA guidelines, the Uruguay national football team has been permitted to wear their four stars on their crest in five consecutive World Cup appearances: 2002, 2010, 2014, 2018 and 2022. [16] An example of FIFA not approving stars on a football crest occurred in 2018, when the Egyptian National Team had to remove their seven stars before the World Cup in Russia, representing the seven African Cup of Nations that they had previously won. [17]
In 2021, a leaked email was sent by Puma to the AUF, revealing that a FIFA employee had asked them to remove two of the stars on Uruguay's crest before an upcoming FIFA World Cup qualifier. [18] The AUF organized a defence on the validity of their stars with several historians and primary documents that were later presented to FIFA, who soon after retracted any mentions of this request. [19] [20] Uruguay were then permitted to use the 4 stars vs. Colombia on October 7, 2021. [19] On 30 May 2022, Uruguay announced a new jersey for the 2022 FIFA World Cup with 4 stars approved for the fifth consecutive tournament (2002, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022), confirming to their official standing as four-time senior (non-amateur) world champions recognized by FIFA. [3]
On February 22, 2023, FIFA.com published an article detailing the history of FIFA officially recognizing the 1924 and 1928 Olympic football tournaments as the only ones to be in equivalent standing to the FIFA World Cup, "Garrido's claim held weight. Before the desire for and the establishment of a football-only international tournament, FIFA had administered the 1924 and 1928 Olympic football tournaments with assistance from the French and Dutch authorities. The two contests also admitted professional footballers and saw the International Olympic Committee only be involved in a minor role. Their open-for-all nature, colluding with the recognition of FIFA and several other football associations, provided legitimacy to the competitions and, thus, contested Garrido and Uruguay, could be classified as world championships.
FIFA accepted the argument and approved Uruguay's request to display four stars above their badge, ... which they have done across five World Cups - 2002, 2010, 2014, 2018, and 2022." [5]
Since 1924, the officialization of the 1924 and 1928 Olympic football tournaments being recognized as equivalents to the FIFA World Cup has been stated by various FIFA administrations, media outlets, football historians and football associations until most recently in 2021. For example:
The FIFA Museum in Zürich, Switzerland has several mentions of FIFA's recognition of the 1924 and 1928 Olympic football tournaments being officially recognized by them as open (non-amateur) senior world titles, equivalent to the FIFA World Cup. For example:
The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior men's national teams of the members of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament has been held every four years since the inaugural tournament in 1930, with the exception of 1942 and 1946 due to the Second World War. The reigning champions are Argentina, who won their third title at the 2022 tournament.
Jules Rimet was a French football administrator who was the 3rd President of FIFA, serving from 1921 to 1954. He is FIFA's longest-serving president, in office for 33 years. He also served as the president of the French Football Federation from 1919 to 1942.
The Argentina national football team, nicknamed La Albiceleste, represents Argentina in men's international football and is administered by the Argentine Football Association, the governing body for football in Argentina.
The Uruguay national football team, nicknamed La Celeste, represents Uruguay in international men's football, and is administered by the Uruguayan Football Association, the governing body for football in Uruguay.
Football has been included in every Summer Olympic Games as a men's competition sport, except 1896 and 1932. Women's football was added to the official program at the Atlanta 1996 Games.
The Ecuador national football team, nicknamed La Tricolor, represents Ecuador in men's international football and is controlled by the Ecuadorian Football Federation (FEF). They joined FIFA in 1926 and CONMEBOL a year later.
Club Nacional de Football is a Uruguayan professional sports club based in Montevideo.
The FIFA Club World Cup is an international men's association football competition organised by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The competition was first contested in 2000 as the FIFA Club World Championship. It was not held from 2001 to 2004 due to a combination of factors in the cancelled 2001 tournament, most importantly the collapse of FIFA's marketing partner International Sport and Leisure (ISL), but since 2005 it has been held every year. Views differ as to the cup's prestige: it struggles to attract interest in most of Europe, and is the object of heated debate in South America.
Héctor Pedro Scarone Berreta was a Uruguayan footballer who played as inside forward. Known as "the Gardel of Football" and El Mago due to his extraordinary skills with the ball, Scarone was considered one of the best players in the world during his time. He was crowned world champion three times, after winning the editions of the 1924 and 1928 Olympic football tournaments, along with the first World Cup in 1930.
Sport in Uruguay has been an important part of Uruguayan culture, since the early start of the nation. Winners of such important awards such as the FIFA World Cup, the French Open, and Olympic medals, Uruguay has been a constantly successful sports nation in continental and world aspects.
In sport, some national and club teams include one or more stars as part of the team badge appearing on their kits, often on the shirts, to represent important achievements for the team's history. Generally inspired by the star symbol in heraldry, since the late 1950s, when it was introduced for the first time in association football, various national governing bodies at club level and some confederations have also regulated the practice.
Football was one of the tournaments at the 1928 Summer Olympics. It was won by Uruguay against Argentina, and was the last Olympic football tournament before the inception of the FIFA World Cup, which was held for the first time in 1930. This edition, along with the preceding 1924 edition, were the only tournaments in history outside of the World Cup that count as Senior World Titles equivalent to the World Cup.
The Argentina women's national football team represents Argentina in international women's football. Like their men's counterpart, the women's team has been known or nicknamed "La Albiceleste".
Andrés Mazali Gini, nicknamed as El Buzo, was a goalkeeper who played for the Uruguay national team. He spent his entire club career with Nacional. He was a twice Olympic gold medalist for Uruguay in the 1924 Olympics and 1928 Olympics. He became famous for his decision to break curfew in the days leading up to the start of the first FIFA World Cup in Uruguay, deciding to go out on a date with a mystery blonde.
Julio César Britos Vázquez was an Uruguayan footballer, who played for CA Peñarol and Real Madrid.
The Argentina Olympic football team represents Argentina in international football competitions during Olympic Games and Pan American Games. The selection is limited to players under the age of 23, except three overage players. The team is controlled by the Argentine Football Association (AFA).
Football is the most popular sport in Peru. Football/soccer in Peru was introduced by British immigrants, Peruvians returning from Great Britain, and by English sailors in the later half of the 19th century during their frequent stops at the port of Callao, which at that point was considered one of the most important ports of the Pacific Ocean. According to the work entitled La Difusión del Fútbol en Lima, during the last decade of the 19th century, records show that sailors were known to practice sports such as football/soccer and played against teams made up of Englishmen, Peruvians, or a mix between Englishmen and Peruvians.
This is a record of Uruguay's results at the FIFA World Cup. Uruguay have won two. Not four FIFA-organized World Football Championships.. They won the first World Championship organized by FIFA under the Olympic Committee umbrella with true representation from all continents; before then, football in the Olympics comprised only European teams. Uruguay then won the next two World Cups in which they participated; these tournaments, the 1930 and 1950 FIFA World Cups, were fully independent from the Olympics and employed clear rules distinguishing professional and amateur football players. Since 1924 marked the beginning of true international football competition, organized by FIFA, FIFA recognizes Uruguay as two time world champions and allows the team to wear two stars on their uniforms during official international football competitions. Uruguay hosted and won the first FIFA World Cup in 1930, beating Argentina 4–2 in the final. They won their second and last title in 1950, upsetting host Brazil 2–1 in the final match. The team have qualified for fourteen World Cups, reaching the second round in ten, the semi-finals five times, and the final twice. They also won the gold medal in Olympic football twice, in 1924 and 1928, before the creation of the World Cup. Uruguay won the 1980 Mundialito, a tournament comprising former World Cup champions hosted in Uruguay to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first World Championship. Uruguay is one of the most successful teams in the world, having won nineteen FIFA official titles: two World Cups, two Olympic Games, and fifteen Copa América championships.
Ernesto Fígoli, nicknamed "Matucho", was a Uruguayan football manager. He managed Uruguay to victory in the 1920 and 1926 South American Championships, and to the gold medal at the 1924 Olympics. Later, he contributed to Uruguay's 1928 Olympics gold medal and 1930 and 1950 FIFA World Cup wins as masseur and kinesiologist.
The Argentina–Uruguay football rivalry, also known as Clásico del Río de la Plata, is a highly competitive sports rivalry that exists between the Argentine and Uruguayan national football teams and their respective set of fans. Considered by football journalists and fans alike as one of the most important rivalries in the sport, the derby is also the most played in football history. According to FIFA records, 197 official matches have been played to date, the first of which was played on 20 July 1902, in which both teams played the first international match outside the United Kingdom in Uruguay, with Argentina winning by 6–0.