The 1970 Football World Cup was held in Mexico, from May 31 to June 21. It was won by Brazil, who beat Italy 4-1 in the final. The Brazilian team, led by Pelé (who won his third and final World Cup), Jairzinho, Rivelino and Tostão, is often regarded as the greatest team ever, and the 1970 tournament is still considered by many fans to be the finest World Cup in history.

The format of the competition stayed the same as 1966: 16 teams qualified, divided into four groups of four. Top two teams in each group advanced to the quarter-finals.

Since this was the third win for the Brazilian team (they had already won 1958 and 1962), they were awarded the Jules Rimet trophy permanently. Brazilian coach Mario Zagallo was the first footballer to become World champion as a player (1958, 1962) and a coach.

Brazilian right winger Jairzinho scored at least one goal in each of the six games that Brazil played in the World Cup (in the first game, against Czechoslovakia, he scored two), a feat which has never been repeated. However, the striker of the tournament was West Germany's Gerd Müller, with an impressive 10 goals in the competition. Müller incredibly scored a hat-trick in two consecutive games, against Bulgaria and Peru in the Group Stage. He did not score in Germany's last game (the 3rd place match) against Uruguay however.

The most memorable match of the tournament, and by many regarded as one of the greatest matches in World Cup history, was the Italian 4-3 win after extra time over West Germany in the semi-final. Italy led by 1-0 until the 90th minute when Karl-Heinz Schnellinger, then a player at Italy's AC Milan, scored the equaliser during injury time. Then, during extra time, the lead changed from a German 2-1 to an Italian 3-2, when Gerd Müller equalized again before Gianni Rivera scored the winning goal in the 111th minute. It is worth noting that Franz Beckenbauer refused to stop playing after a very serious foul during extra time: Germany was not allowed to replace him and thus Beckenbauer kept playing with a sling and a broken clavicle. The match is known as the Jahrhundertspiel in Germany, and there is even a marker at the Aztec stadium in Mexico City for it. The qualification tournament for this World Cup was the cause of the brief Football War between Honduras and El Salvador.

First Round

Group 1

Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
USSR	5	3	2	1	0	6	1	5
Mexico	5	3	2	1	0	5	0	5
Belgium	2	3	1	0	2	4	5	-1
El Salvador	0	3	0	0	3	0	9	-9

May 31, Estadio Azteca, Mexico City - Mexico 0 - 0 USSR

June 3, Estadio Azteca, Mexico City - Belgium 3 - 0 El Salvador (Van Moer 8' and 54', Lambert 79')

June 6, Estadio Azteca, Mexico City - USSR 4 - 1 Belgium (Bisgaard 14' and 63', Artojan 57', Khmelnitski 75'; Lambert 86')

June 7, Estadio Azteca, Mexico City - Mexico 4 - 0 El Salvador

June 10, Estadio Azteca, Mexico City - USSR 2 - 0 El Salvador

June 11, Estadio Azteca, Mexico City - Mexico 1 - 0 Belgium (Pena 15')

Group 2

Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
Italy	4	3	1	2	0	1	0	1
Uruguay	3	3	1	1	1	2	1	1
Sweden	3	3	1	1	1	2	2	0
Israel	2	3	0	2	1	1	3	-2

June 2, Estadio Cuauhtémoc, Puebla - Uruguay 2 - 0 Israel

June 3, Estadio Luis Dosal, Toluca - Italy 1 - 0 Sweden

June 6, Estadio Cuauhtémoc, Puebla - Uruguay 0 - 0 Italy

June 7, Estadio Luis Dosal, Toluca - Israel 1 - 1 Sweden

June 10, Estadio Cuauhtémoc, Puebla - Sweden 1 - 0 Uruguay

June 11, Estadio Luis Dosal, Toluca - Italy 0 - 0 Israel

Group 3

Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
Brazil	6	3	3	0	0	8	3	5
England	4	3	2	0	1	2	1	1
Romania	2	3	1	0	2	4	5	-1
Czechoslovakia	0	3	0	0	3	2	7	-5

June 2, Estadio Jalisco, Guadalajara - England 1 - 0 Romania

June 3, Estadio Jalisco, Guadalajara - Brazil 4 - 1 Czechoslovakia

June 6, Estadio Jalisco, Guadalajara - Romania 2 - 1 Czechoslovakia

June 7, Estadio Jalisco, Guadalajara - Brazil 1 - 0 England

June 10, Estadio Jalisco, Guadalajara - Brazil 3 - 2 Romania

June 11, Estadio Jalisco, Guadalajara - England 1 - 0 Czechoslovakia

Group 4

Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
West Germany	6	3	3	0	0	10	4	6
Peru	4	3	2	0	1	7	5	2
Bulgaria	1	3	0	1	2	5	9	-4
Morocco	1	3	0	1	2	2	6	-4

June 2, Estadio Nou Camp, León - Peru 3 - 2 Bulgaria

June 3, Estadio Nou Camp, León - West Germany 2 - 1 Morocco

June 6, Estadio Nou Camp, León - Peru 3 - 0 Morocco

June 7, Estadio Nou Camp, León - West Germany 5 - 2 Bulgaria

June 10, Estadio Nou Camp, León - West Germany 3 - 1 Peru

June 11, Estadio Nou Camp, León - Morocco 1 - 1 Bulgaria

Quarterfinals

June 14, Estadio Nou Camp, León - West Germany 3 - 2 (AET) England Referee: Norberto Angel Coerezza (ARG) Attendance: 23357 Goals: Mullery 31 (ENG) Peters 49 (ENG) Beckenbauer 68 (FRG) Seeler (FRG) 76 Muller 108 (FRG)

June 14, Estadio Jalisco, Guadalajara - Brazil 4 - 2 Peru Referee: Vital Loraux (BEL) Attendance: 54233 Goals: Rivelino (BRA) 11 Tostao (BRA) 15 Gallardo (PER) 28 Tostao (BRA) 58 Cubillas (PER) 70 Jairzinho (BRA) 75

June 14, Estadio Luis Dosal, Toluca - Italy 4 - 1 Mexico Referee: Ruedi Schüerrer (SUI) Attendance: 26851 Goals: Gonzalez (MEX) 13 Peña (ITA) own goal 25 Riva (ITA) 63 Rivera (ITA) 70 Riva (ITA) 76

June 14, Estadio Azteca, Mexico City - Uruguay 1 - 0 (AET) USSR

Semifinals

June 17, Estadio Jalisco, Guadalajara - Brazil 3 - 1 Uruguay

June 17, Estadio Azteca, Mexico City - Italy 4 - 3 (AET) West Germany

Third Place Match

June 20, Estadio Azteca, Mexico City - West Germany 1 - 0 Uruguay

Final

June 21, Estadio Azteca, Mexico City - Brazil 4 - 1 Italy

Attendance: 107,412

Referee: Rudolf Glöckner (East Germany)

Goals: Pelé (BRA) 18', Boninsegna (ITA) 37', Gerson (BRA) 66', Jairzinho (BRA) 71', Carlos Alberto (BRA) 86'.