Salvador

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Lore & Background

El Salvador qualified for the 1970 FIFA World Cup, the first FIFA World Cup the country qualified for. During qualification, El Salvador played Honduras over three matches in June 1969, with El Salvador advancing to the next round of CONCACAF qualification. The matches between El Salvador and Honduras increased political tensions between both countries, resulting the outbreak of the Football War in July 1969 causing over 2,000 deaths. After defeating Haiti over three matches, El Salvador qualified. El Salvador lost all three matches it played against Belgium, Mexico, and the Soviet Union and failed to score a goal. El Salvador next qualified for the 1982 FIFA World Cup as runners-up of the 1981 CONCACAF Championship. As occurred in 1970, El Salvador lost all three of its matches against Hungary, Belgium, and Argentina. The match against Hungary resulted in the largest defeat in FIFA World Cup history when El Salvador lost by a score of 10–1. El Salvador's lone goal in the match, scored by Luis Ramírez Zapata in the 64th minute, remains the only goal scored by El Salvador at the FIFA World Cup. Since 1970, El Salvador has participated in every FIFA World Cup qualification but has failed to qualify for another FIFA World Cup since 1982.

In Their Own Story

For the 1970 FIFA World Cup, El Salvador was drawn into Group 1 along with Belgium, Mexico (the tournament's host), and the Soviet Union. El Salvador's squad consisted of 22 players. Chilean Hernán Carrasco was the manager and Salvador Mariona was the captain. El Salvador lost their first match against Belgium on 3 June 1982 by a score of 3–0; Wilfried Van Moer and Raoul Lambert scored Belgium's goals. In its second match against Mexico on 7 June 1970, El Salvador lost by a score of 4–0; Javier Valdivia (scored twice), Javier Fragoso, and Juan Ignacio Basaguren scored Mexico's goals. In El Salvador's final match, it lost to the Soviet Union by a score of 2–0 on 10 June 1970; both goals for the Soviet Union were scored by Anatoliy Byshovets. El Salvador lost every match, failed to score a goal, and failed to advance to the knockout stage. For the 1982 FIFA World Cup, El Salvador was drawn into Group 3 along with Argentina, Belgium, and Hungary. El Salvador's squad consisted of 20 players, rather than the 22 allowed as Salvadoran officials decided to bring some "cronies" in their place. The players were outraged once they found out and attempted to raise money to help Gilberto Quinteros and Miguel González (the two players left behind) come to Spain, but their effort failed as they were not able to raise enough money. Mauricio Rodríguez, who played for El Salvador at the 1970 FIFA World Cup, was the manager and Norberto Huezo was the captain. According to a survey conducted by a Salvadoran radio station before El Salvador's first match against Hungary, 60 percent of respondents believed that El Salvador would win its first match. On 15 June 1982, Hungary defeated El Salvador by a score of 10–1, inflicting the heaviest defeat in El Salvador's history as well as the heaviest defeat in FIFA World Cup history. Hungary's 10 goals, which remains the record for the most goals scored by a team in a single match at the FIFA World Cup, were scored by Tibor Nyilasi (scored twice), Gábor Pölöskei, László Fazekas (scored twice), József Tóth, László Kiss (who scored a hat-trick), and Lázár Szentes. Meanwhile, Luis Ramírez Zapata scored El Salvador's lone goal in the 64th minute. His goal remains the only goal ever scored by El Salvador at the FIFA World Cup. According to Ramírez, his teammates told him to not celebrate the goal he scored as they were "afraid that it would make Hungary angry" and result in El Salvador conceding more goals. After the match, three players—Huezo, Francisco Jovel, and Ramón Fagoaga—announced that they would determine the team's tactics for its next two matches instead of Rodríguez. In El Salvador's second match, the team lost by a score of 1–0 to Belgium. Ludo Coeck scored the match's lone goal in the 19th minute. Prior to the match, Belgian manager Guy Thys described El Salvador's loss to Hungary as "the most shameful" to ever occur at the FIFA World Cup. El Salvador lost their final match to Argentina by a score of 2–0; Daniel Passarella and Daniel Bertoni scored Argentina's goals. El Salvador lost all three matches, scored only one goal, and failed to advance to the knockout stage.

Did You Know?

• El Salvador's 10–1 loss to Hungary in 1982 is the largest defeat in FIFA World Cup history.
• Luis Ramírez Zapata scored El Salvador's only goal at the FIFA World Cup, in the 64th minute against Hungary in 1982.
• The Football War between El Salvador and Honduras in July 1969, triggered by their World Cup qualifying matches, caused over 2,000 deaths.
• El Salvador's squad for the 1982 World Cup had only 20 players instead of the allowed 22 because officials brought 'cronies' instead.
• After the 10–1 loss to Hungary, three Salvadoran players took over tactical decisions from the manager for the remaining matches.