Silver Road and Golden Stripes, Yet Another Football TL

[Wings]

Winners: West Germany - 3rd title
Top Scorer: Gerd Muller (FRG) - 5 goals

1974-75 Participants:
Europe: West Germany (20), Netherlands (3), Poland (5), England (20), Yugoslavia (17), Italy (19), Spain (19), Czechoslovakia (17), East Germany (9), Scotland (18), Belgium (6), Soviet Union (16), Romania (5), Portugal (9)
South America: Brazil (20), Argentina (20)

Final Location: Estadio Azteca, Mexico City
Bracket Order
Brazil v Czechoslovakia
West Germany v Romania
Spain v Soviet Union
Poland v Portugal
Italy v Argentina
England v Scotland
Netherlands v East Germany
Yugoslavia v Belgium

Locations of Finals up to 1980:
1976 - Belgrade
1977 - Montreal
1978 - Buenos Aires
1979 - Tokyo
1980 - Naples

 

[Wings]

1/16
Wales v Denmark 1-0 / 0-2
Morocco v Iran 3-0 / 1-0
France v Nigeria 4-0 / 1-0
Mexico v Tunisia 1-1 / 0-0
Israel v Guinea 2-1 / 1-0
Switzerland v Greece 3-1 / 0-2
Northern Ireland v Ghana 0-1 / 0-2
Paraguay v Zambia 2-1 / 2-1
Zaire v Costa Rica 0-2 / 3-3
Romania v Peru 4-2 / 0-1
Bulgaria v Egypt 1-1 / 2-1 aet 5-3 pen
Sweden v China 4-0 / 2-0
Chile v Cameroon 2-0 / 1-2
Uruguay v Ireland 0-0 / 0-3
Australia v Turkey 2-2 / 0-1
Soviet Union v North Korea 2-0 / 1-1

1/8
Denmark v Morocco 2-1 / 2-1
France v Tunisia 2-1 / 2-2
Israel v Greece 3-1 / 0-0
Ghana v Paraguay 2-0 / 0-4
Costa Rica v Romania 1-2 / 0-3
Bulgaria v Sweden 1-1 / 0-1
Chile v Ireland 3-0 / 1-1
Turkey v Soviet Union 1-1 / 0-1

1/4
Denmark v France 1-1 / 0-2
Israel v Paraguay 1-2 / 0-1
Romania v Sweden 1-1 / 1-3 aet
Chile v Soviet Union 0-2 / 0-0

1/2
France v Paraguay 2-0 / 2-0
Sweden v Soviet Union 1-0 / 0-2

Final
France v Soviet Union 1-0 / 1-1
Winners: France - 3rd title

1974-75 Participants:
Europe: Hungary (1), Sweden (2), Austria (3), Bulgaria (4), Northern Ireland (4), France (4), Wales (4), Israel (4), Ireland (3), Turkey (3), Switzerland (4), Greece (3), Denmark (4)
South America: Peru (4), Uruguay (4), Paraguay (4), Chile (4), Colombia (1)
North America: Mexico (4)
Africa: Morocco (4), Egypt (4), Guinea (4), Zaire (4), Ghana (3), Nigeria (4), Tunisia (4), Mali (1), Cameroon (4)
Asia: Iran (3), North Korea (4), South Korea (2)
Oceania: Australia (4)

Bracket Order:
Morocco v Ghana
Israel v North Korea
Guinea v Cameroon
Hungary v South Korea
Uruguay v Switzerland
Sweden v Mali
Australia v Paraguay
Northern Ireland v Tunisia
Ireland v Chile
Bulgaria v Turkey
France v Denmark
Wales v Nigeria
Mexico v Iran
Egypt v Colombia
Peru v Zaire
Austria v Greece

 

[Gust]

France v Denmark

And thus the tradition continues.

 

[Wings]

And thus the tradition continues.

Poor Denmark. Good (or bad?) news is France isn't going to make four in a row this time around.

 

[Wings]

The 1974-75 edition of the Nations League would start with a bang, as both finalists from last year, Brazil and West Germany, would fall in the Round of 16. Germany would only hold a draw at home before being defeated in Bucharest, while Czechoslovakia would humiliate the Selecao by winning in Porto Alegre then in Prague. The upsets ended with Spain finally falling to the Soviet Union, an adversary they had beaten time and time again before now. All other favorites won their matchups however, with Poland smashing Portugal twice, and England narrowly passing over Scotland, who still managed to win at Hampden Park, exiting with honor. The Dutch would have no problems defeating East Germany, while Yugoslavia would also handily defeat Belgium. Finally, Italy broke the curse of the First Round by defeating Argentina 4-2 in Rome before drawing in Buenos Aires, reaching the Quarter-Finals for the first time in seven years.

Lato in action against Portugal

Dutch players dominate East Germany in Maastricht.

 

[Kurt_Steiner]

With a bit of luck, the Spanish defeat at the hands of the USSR may speed the death of Franco...

 

[Wings]

With a bit of luck, the Spanish defeat at the hands of the USSR may speed the death of Franco...

Made me chuckle, well played.

 

[Wings]

The duel of the giantslayers between Czechoslovakia and Romania would prove to be very close. Both teams being on the same level, Czechoslovakia would be able to pass to the Semi-Finals on away goals. Their neighbours Poland would fare better against the Soviets, despite an early defeat in Leningrad, as Lato's hat-trick would bring them to the Semis. In the lower bracket, Italy would completely rip through England in Milan, annihilating the Three Lions so much, that the Squadra Azzura would line up their reserve squad in London a week later. Finally, the Dutch, last favorites of the tournament would fall as well, after drawing in Rotterdam, they would fall to a stunning Yugoslavia in Belgrade.

The Squadra Azzura in action against England in San Siro.

 

[Wings]

Both semi-finals of this edition would prove to be very close and not without any turn-arounds. The Czechs started off very well against Poland, knocking down the Poles in Prague with a resounding 2-0 victory, but would be completely overrun in Warsaw, where Szarmach, Lato and Deyna would each show the full extent of their talent and would each score, securing a spot in the final for the Poles. The Italians would start off the same way as they face Yugoslavia, winning in Torino, but then relaxing too much and seeing Yugoslavia score three in a row in Zagreb. Thankfully for them, they did not go down like Czechoslovakia and managed to pull off a 78 minute goal to secure a spot in the Final.

Czech players celebrate as Poland concede their second goal in the first leg clash between the two nations

 

[Coulsdon Eagle]

Both semi-finals of this edition would prove to be very close and not without any turn-arounds. The Czechs started off very well against Poland, knocking down the Poles in Prague with a resounding 2-0 victory, but would be completely overrun in Warsaw, where Szarmach, Lato and Deyna would each show the full extent of their talent and would each score, securing a spot in the final for the Poles. The Italians would start off the same way as they face Yugoslavia, winning in Torino, but then relaxing too much and seeing Yugoslavia score three in a row in Zagreb. Thankfully for them, they did not go down like Czechoslovakia and managed to pull off a 78 minute goal to secure a spot in the Final.

View attachment 550318

View attachment 550319
Czech players celebrate as Poland concede their second goal in the first leg clash between the two nations

As yes - those well known Czech insurers Norwich Union!

Trying to figure out the OTL game. Was it England v Hungary World Cup Qualifier in '81?

 

[Wings]

England v Czechoslovakia in '74 actually. Felt the jerseys matched up well enough, and ironically it's England scoring here.

 

[Coulsdon Eagle]

England v Czechoslovakia in '74 actually. Felt the jerseys matched up well enough, and ironically it's England scoring here.

Ah - I missed that game as I was in hospital for an operation, so didn't see the goals. Papers hailed Colin Bell but his career was to be set back by injuries. 3-0 but the Czechs ended up qualifying instead of England. First (?) game under Don Revie and a new kit sullying the white shirt with red & blue.

 

[Wings]

Poland and Italy met for the final of the 1975 edition of the Nations League on a hot day in Mexico City. The atmosphere was electric as Mexico had won the FIFA Cup a few days prior and the memories were still fresh. Furthermore, the sun was blazing and the match had to be postponed from mid afternoon to early evening when the temperatures would be more bearable for the players. Poland and Italy entered the field at around 7 PM local time, and started immediately wrestling for control of the ball. Poland got most of it, with their trio Lato-Szarmach-Deyna working miracles, but this time the Italian defense stood strong, enforcing the Cattenacio tactic to the T. By the end of the first half, neither team managed to score. The same could be said for the second half, as Italy relinquished control of the field to Poland, who could not pass the wall of bodies created by the Squadra Azzura. The closest they came was Lato hitting the post at the 78th minute, but Italy continued holding on until the final whistle. This would have to be decided in overtime. Once more, the Italians blocked any attempts by the Poles at attacking, but the Squadra became more and more tired. Finally, the Italian lock broke as Lato found Szarmach alone on the wings, who then proceeded to send the ball flying in the Italian top left corner. This startled the Italians who proceeded to mount their first real attacks of the game, but this allowed the Poles to exploit counter-attacks perfectly, as Deyna scored soon after half-time. This would be the last goal of the game as Poland would lift the trophy in Mexico City, their first international title.

Spoiler

Dino Zoff saves an attempt by Lato at the end of the first half

Italy fight desperately as Poland cruise towards their first title

Polish players celebrate as the final whistle is blown

 

[Wings]

Winners: Poland - 1st title
Top Scorer: Grzegorz Lato (POL) - 5 goals

1975-76 Participants:
Europe: West Germany (21), Netherlands (4), Czechoslovakia (18), East Germany (10), Italy (20), England (21), Poland (6), Scotland (19), Spain (20), Hungary (20), USSR (17), Belgium (7), Yugoslavia (18)
South America: Brazil (21), Argentina (21)

Final Location: Red Star Stadium, Belgrade
Bracket Order:
Italy v Belgium
East Germany v Yugoslavia
Czechoslovakia v Romania
England v Spain
Netherlands v Scotland
Brazil v Argentina
Poland v Hungary
West Germany v Soviet Union

 

[Wings]

Morocco v Ghana 1-2 / 1-1
Israel v North Korea 3-0 / 0-0
Guinea v Cameroon 2-2 / 3-1
Hungary v South Korea 3-0 / 4-0
Uruguay v Switzerland 1-2 / 2-2
Sweden v Mali 2-0 / 2-0
Australia v Paraguay 1-1 / 5-5
Northern Ireland v Tunisia 2-2 / 2-3
Ireland v Chile 1-0 / 0-2 aet
Bulgaria v Turkey 5-0 / 1-1
France v Denmark 3-2 / 3-0
Wales v Nigeria 3-1 / 2-2
Mexico v Iran 2-1 / 1-0
Egypt v Colombia 2-2 / 0-3
Peru v Zaire 2-1 / 4-1
Austria v Greece 3-1 / 2-4

Ghana v Israel 1-1 / 1-3
Guinea v Hungary 0-3 / 1-3
Switzerland v Sweden 2-3 / 0-1
Australia v Tunisia 0-1 / 0-2
Chile v Bulgaria 1-0 / 0-2
France v Wales 3-0 / 0-2
Mexico v Colombia 3-1 / 1-1
Peru v Austria 5-1 / 0-2

Israel v Hungary 0-3 / 0-1
Sweden v Tunisia 2-1 / 3-1
Bulgaria v France 1-3 / 0-2
Mexico v Peru 1-0 / 3-0

Hungary v Sweden 1-1 / 1-5
France v Mexico 1-1 / 1-3

Sweden v Mexico 0-2 / 2-3
Winners: Mexico - 1st title

1975-76 Participants:
Europe: Portugal (1), Austria (4), Sweden (3), France (5), Bulgaria (5), Northern Ireland (5), Israel (5), Wales (5), Ireland (4), Turkey (4), Denmark (5), Greece (4), Switzerland (5)
South America: Peru (5), Paraguay (5), Uruguay (5), Chile (5), Colombia (2)
North America: Mexico (5)
Africa: Guinea (5), Morocco (5), Nigeria (5), Ghana (4), Tunisia (5), Egypt (5), Mali (2), Zaire (5)
Asia: Iran (4), South Korea (3), Kuwait (1), North Korea (5)
Oceania: Australia (5)

Bracket Order:
France v Kuwait
Paraguay v Egypt
Bulgaria v Zaire
Morocco v North Korea
Guinea v Turkey
Mexico v Chile
Peru v Colombia
Nigeria v Mali
Northern Ireland v Tunisia
Iran v Ghana
Portugal v Australia
Wales v Uruguay
Ireland v Greece
Austria v Denmark
Sweden v South Korea
Israel v Switzerland

 

[Wings]

World Cup (started 1930): Golden Star, always above crest
Nations League (started 1955) : Silver Star, above crest if no WC win, under crest if one or more WC wins
FIFA Cup (started 1971): Bronze Star, always inside crest.
FIFA Conference Cup (starts 2021): White star, always inside crest.

 

[Coulsdon Eagle]

Nice to see that Poland side win a trophy.

 

[scretchy]

Hm kinda wondering if there wouldnt be a big blowup sometime between the pro leagues and fifa and even Players.

WC every 4 years
Continental champion every 4 years
every year Nations Leage/Fifa Cup

That sounds like a lot of extra Games.

 

[Gust]

FIFA Conference Cup (starts 2021): White star, always inside crest.

Is this the equivalent of Confederations Cup or is it just a third tier for the worst teams?

 

[Wings]

Is this the equivalent of Confederations Cup or is it just a third tier for the worst teams?

Third tier for the worst teams just like the new UEFA project in OTL.

Hm kinda wondering if there wouldnt be a big blowup sometime between the pro leagues and fifa and even Players.

WC every 4 years
Continental champion every 4 years
every year Nations Leage/Fifa Cup

That sounds like a lot of extra Games.

Actually not that much, they just replace friendlies, so in the end you end up with 3-4 extra games for the best teams only per year.