Scott Murray: When Johan Cruyff sold Jan Olsson the mother of all dummies with the subtlest of swerves, his trick became the enduring symbol of Total Football

England’s goalkeeper Gordon Banks was laid low by food poisoning before their World Cup quarter-final in 1970

Random tales from the 1966 tournament that have absolutely nothing to do with Azerbaijani linesmen, Kenneth Wolstenholme or Pickles the Dog

For seven first-half minutes, Germany conjured football of a savagery unwitnessed against significant opposition in World Cup history

Simon Burnton: Paul Gascoigne’s bottom lip wobbled as he was ruled out of a World Cup final England would never reach, and Gazzamania was born

The Azzurri’s controversial second-round defeat in Daejeon was just the start of a barely believable series of events

Scott Murray: One of the greatest World Cup games has been largely overshadowed by the West German keeper’s dastardly act

Barry Glendenning: When Holland faced Germany it was always ‘problematic’, never more so than at Italia 90 where Rijkaard and Völler clashed and were both sent off

War-torn country’s players travelled to the 1982 tournament as heroes but were shunned on their return after some shockingly gung-ho tactics brought about a 10-1 defeat to Hungary

The right-back was unknown, uncapped and unemployed before scoring two monstrous goals – but his fairytale soon became a cautionary tale

In open rebellion against their manager, France’s 2010 squad self-destructed as Thierry Henry watched impassively

The Scottish-built boat shuttled Jules Rimet, European teams and Brazil to 1930 World Cup, which ended in a brutal first final

Jacob Steinberg: France celebrated a historic home victory while the rest of the world wondered what had happened to the previously imperious Ronaldo as he sleepwalked through the final

Hungary were unbeaten in four years. West Germany had no chance. Yet in the 1954 final the underdogs produced one of the great World Cup shocks

The captain’s 2002 exit was the subject of more hand-wringing and tomfoolery than almost any incident before or since in modern Irish life. Perfectionist or traitor? The jury’s still out

Italy should have seen off Haiti with ease in 1974 but the group game burst into life through the unheralded Emmanuel Sanon …

With six seconds of stoppage time played, Clive Thomas blew his whistle a moment before Zico scored to beat Sweden – a decision which reverberated around the world

John Ashdown: In 1934 a revolutionary Austrian side reached the World Cup semi-finals on the back of a storming run. History beckoned. And then turned its back

On 4 July 1998 the forward took three divine touches, scored the perfect goal and sent the Netherlands into the semi-finals

The 1986 quarter-final between England and Argentina is famous for one of football’s most iconic moments. But there was more to this goal – and match – than a single act of larceny