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World Football: '1970 wasn’t football... it was like Cirque du Soleil'

Sport

“1970 wasn’t football, it was a lesson on how it should be played – it was like Cirque du Soleil in Mexico”

19/06/2020 GMT

'1970 wasn’t football... it was like Cirque du Soleil'

BBC World Service - World Football, '1970 wasn’t football... it was like Cirque du Soleil'

On its 50th anniversary, we look back on the historic 1970 World Cup in Mexico.

On the 50th anniversary of the 1970 World Cup, we look back on Brazil's 4-1 victory over Italy at Mexico City's Azteca stadium to seal the trophy for the third time in 12 years.

Sunday will be the 50th anniversary of the World Cup final of 1970 when Brazil beat Italy 4-1 in Mexico City's Azteca stadium to win their third World Cup in 12 years. But this wasn't any old World Cup-winning team. It's a team that's become encircled by an almost mystical aura, and carries the seemingly eternal tag of the greatest team in the history of football. We'll hear memories from Pele and the late Carlos Alberto, and find out how that team influenced a man who, many years later, would coach a Brazil team to another World title. To discuss why Brazil 1970 is so revered, Mani Djazmi, Pat Nevin and Alicia Ferguson are joined by two experts - Ricardo Setyon, who’s been to nine World Cups, often working with the Brazil teams; and Andrew Downie, who’s a veteran foreign correspondent including nearly 30 years in Latin America, much of them in Brazil, and is the author of a soon-to-be-published book about the 1970 World Cup called ‘The Greatest Show On Earth’. Pat also goes behind the scenes at the Etihad Stadium to tell us what it’s really like to commentate on a Premier League game behind closed doors during the coronavirus pandemic.

Picture: Pele celebrates Brazil's victory in the 1970 World Cup final. (Getty Images)

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