world cup 1986 final

The 1986 FIFA World Cup, the 13th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in Mexico from 31 May to 29 June.

Colombia had been originally chosen to host the competition by FIFA but, largely due to economic reasons, was not able to host the competition and officially resigned in 1982. Mexico was selected as the new host in May 1983. The tournament was the second to feature a 24-team format, although unlike the previous edition in 1982, the second round of the tournament was played on a knock-out basis rather than groups. It was won by Argentina (second title after 1978), who beat West Germany 3–2 in the final at Mexico City's Estadio Azteca.

Qualification

FIFA World Cup qualification
Qualifying countries

Three teams qualified for the World Cup for the first time: Canada, Denmark and Iraq. Canada clinched its spot after winning the final match against Honduras 2–1 in St. John's, Newfoundland, with the Hondurans wearing tuques and gloves on the field due to the cold weather. Iraq played all matches on neutral ground due to the Iran-Iraq war.


Host selection
Main article: FIFA World Cup hosts

Colombia was originally chosen as hosts by FIFA in June 1974. However, the Colombian authorities declared in November 1982 that they could not afford to host the World Cup under the terms that FIFA demanded because of the difficult situation the country was passing through concerning the Colombian internal conflict. Mexico was selected on 20 May 1983 as the replacement hosts, beating the bids of Canada, and the United States (who eventually hosted the 1994 World Cup), and became the first nation to host two World Cups. This second World Cup in Mexico came only 16 years after the first one in 1970. A severe earthquake in September 1985, eight months before the tournament, cast doubt over Mexico's ability to organize the event; however, the stadia were not affected and it was decided to go ahead with the preparations.

As 1986 had been declared the International Year of Peace by the United Nations, the advertising boards of all the stadia displayed the FIFA and United Nations logos along with the legend "Football for Peace - Peace Year".

For the design of the logo an unofficial motto was adopted: "El Mundo Unido por Un Balón" (The world united by a ball).