England 1982: The forgotten team in the greatest World Cup summer
20.03.26, 15:30 Updated 22.03.26, 23:07 10 Minute Read
Gary Jordan
When you think back to historical World Cup tournament moments that involve England, it would be easy to think of the 1966 Final, and the “they think it’s all over” soundbite that accompanies Geoff Hurst’s walloping of his hat-trick goal to seal the only time our national side has lifted the trophy (albeit the then‑named Jules Rimet version).
Your mind may also wander to Gordon Banks diving low to his right to keep out a towering Pelé header four years later in their soon-to-be-failed defence of the title. Black and white grainy footage that later turned into colour, with 1970, of course, being the first to be broadcast in full colour coverage.
Other thoughts will inevitably turn to Maradona and his Hand of God, and how minutes later he scored a goal which is considered the best in Finals history, still to this day.
Italy in 1990 was the backdrop to what is considered the birth of “modern football”. It just seemed so different; the Italian League was at its peak, and once again England played a pivotal role in the World Cup there, with the emergence of Paul Gascoigne and a penalty shootout loss that would be the tagline to many future heartbreaks for England teams in the subsequent two decades.
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