The annexation of the country by the Third Reich, on the eve of World War II, compromised a large generation of players
With Iran’s possible withdrawal from competing in the 2026 World Cup, I go back to 1938 to tell a football story that is also marked by war. That year’s World Cup was played from June 4th to 19th, in France. Europe was already experiencing fears of a new armed conflict on the planet, which would begin on September 1st.
The Austrian team was already guaranteed in the competition when Hitler annexed the country to the Third Reich, on March 12, a process that became known as Anschluss. The Austrian team was one of the great sensations of the 1930s on the European continent. Called the Wunderteam (miracle team or wonder team), the group reached the semi-finals of the 1934 World Cup, when they were eliminated by Italy. Coached by Hugo Meisl, the team had great players such as Matthias Sindelar, nicknamed “paper man” because of his great skill on the field.
When Austria was annexed, Hitler forced the main Austrian players to participate in the 1938 World Cup wearing the German shirt. However, Sindelar, who was Jewish, refused to defend the Germanic colors. In January 1939, at the age of 35, the player was found dead at home, with suicide being one of the hypotheses.
But the “Fuhrer’s” strategy of winning the World Cup at any cost did not yield results. The World Cup started on June 4th with just one game. At the Parc des Princes, in Paris, Germany and Switzerland were tied. Not even two half-hour extensions were enough to change the score. On day nine, the two teams returned to the field, in the same location. The Swiss surprised their opponents with a 4-2 victory, and secured a place in the quarter-finals. At half-time, when the Germans were leading 2-1, Hitler received a telegram from the coaching staff informing him of the game’s score and was euphoric. The German dictator saw winning the World Cup as a way to propagate the Nazi regime, but he had to accept defeat and elimination.
