With my football fever reaching fever pitch I investigated a bit to find some weird World Cup stats

The first World Cup was held in 1930 and is held every four years. (It wasn’t held in 1942 and 1946 because of World War II.) Brazil has won a record five World Cup titles, and Brazilian Ronaldo holds the individual record for most World Cup goals with 15. But there are some other facts that aren’t as well-known about the World Cup:

1)      The first goal

The first World Cup was held in Uruguay in 1930. Many believed American Bart McGee scored the first goal in the World Cup, against Belgium in the 40th minute. But a dispute erupted and FIFA determined the first goal was scored by Frenchman Lucien Laurent in the 19th minute against Mexico on July 13, 1930.

2)      The first Red Card

The red and yellow card system was not introduced until the 1970 World Cup. The first player to receive a red card was Chile’s Carlos Caszely in 1974 in a match against West Germany in the 67th minute.

3)      Youngest Player

The youngest player to play in a World Cup match was Northern Ireland’s Norman Whiteside against Yugoslavia in 1982. He was 17 years, 41 days old.

4)      Largest Attendance

The highest attendance for one match was in the 1950 final. The official attendance was 199,854 for the match between Brazil and Uruguay in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

5)      Most Consecutive First-Round Eliminations

Scotland holds the record with eight: 1954, 1958, 1974, 1978, 1982, 1986, 1990 and 1998

6)      Most cards in a match

 20 Cards – 16 yellow and 4 red cards in the 2006  “Round of 16” match between Portugal and the Netherlands

Source: ehow.com