1980 World Champions' Gold Cup


The 1980–81 World Champions' Gold Cup, also known as Mundialito or FIFA 1980 Gold Cup, was an international football tournament organized by the Uruguayan Football Association and granted official status by FIFA and recognized before its inception by then FIFA President João Havelange. It was a championship of the previous FIFA World Cup champions to get a Champion of the Champions to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the FIFA World Cup. At the July 4, 1980 FIFA congress, the president publicly stated: "At FIFA we have welcomed the initiative of the Uruguayan Football Association, granting official status to the Gold Cup. FIFA actively participates in the organization and offers its experience." The tournament was held at the Centenario Stadium in Montevideo, Uruguay, where the World Cup began, from 30 December 1980 to 10 January 1981.
The tournament gathered the national teams of Uruguay, Italy, West Germany, Brazil, and Argentina, five of the six World Cup-winning nations at the time, with the addition of the Netherlands –1974 and 1978 World Cup runners-up– who had been invited to replace England, who declined the invitation due to scheduling conflicts. After the final, FIFA celebrated the success of the tournament via their official newsletter, officially declaring Uruguay as "champions of all world champions."

Format

The six teams were distributed in two groups of three: Group A was composed of the Netherlands, Italy, and Uruguay; Group B consisted of Argentina, Brazil, and West Germany. The winners of each group faced each other to decide the tournament winner.

Squads

Each team had a squad of 18 players.

Outcome

Uruguay and Brazil won their respective groups and played the final, with Uruguay defeating Brazil 2–1 with a late goal, the same result that had occurred 30 years earlier between the two teams in the deciding match of the 1950 World Cup. Uruguay's coach during the Mundialito, Roque Máspoli, had also been Uruguay's goalkeeper in the 1950 final-match. FIFA deemed the event a big success, and formally announced Uruguay as the first, "Champions of world champions." In Europe, Dutch manager Jan Zwartkruis resigned from his position as soon as he returned to the Netherlands, while Leopoldo Luque and Rainer Bonhof never represented their country again.

Group stage

Group A

----
----

Group B

----
----

Scorers

;3 goals
;1 goal
;Own goals