The biggest-ever football World Cup culminated last week with Spain defeating Argentina in the final to become the world champions for the second time in the history.
Here is a look at all the winners of the football World Cup since the inception of the tournament in 1930, the runners-up and the scoreline of the final.
1930
The first-ever World Cup final was played between hosts Uruguay and their South American rivals Argentina. Pablo Dorado, Pedro Cea, Santos Iriarte and Héctor Castro found the back of the net for Uruguay while Carlos Peucelle and Guillermo Stábile were the goal scorers for Argentina. Uruguay ended up beating Argentina 4-2 to become the winners of the first-ever World Cup.
1934
The second world cup final was played between Italy and Czechoslovakia. This was the first instance of the World Cup final getting extended into extra time. Czechoslovakia's Antonín Puč scored the goal in the 71st minute with Raimundo Orsi finding the equalizer 10 minutes later. The two teams could not be separated in the regulation time and the match was pushed into extra time. Five minutes into the extra time, Italy took the lead with a goal from Angelo Schiavio. The hosts held onto the lead for the remainder of the game as Italy won their first of the four World Cup titles.
1938
The third football World Cup was hosted by France. Defending champions Italy again qualified for the final where they took on Hungary. Italy struck first thanks to a goal from Gino Colaussi in the sixth minute. Two minutes later Pál Titkos helped Hungary equalise. Italy were back in the front again in the 16th minute this time through the goal from Silvio Piola.
Colaussi scored his second goal of the final in the 35th minute as Italy went 3-1 up by half-time. György Sárosi's 70th minute goal helped Hungary narrow the gap but Piola's 82nd minute goal sealed the fate of the final as Italy became the first-ever team to win back-to-back World Cups.
1950
The World Cup returned after a gap of 12 years. This time, it was hosted by Brazil. A new round-robin format was adopted for this tournament which saw the participation of 13 teams which were split into four groups. The top four teams of each group qualified for another league-stage round with the team finishing at the top being crowned as the champions.
Spain, Sweden, Brazil and Uruguay were the top four teams with the match between Brazil and Uruguay proving to be the title-decider. While Brazil needed just a draw to be crowned as the champions, Uruguay had to win the match to reclaim the World Cup. The Uruguayans pulled-off a shock win over the hosts to become the champions for the second time.
1954
The 1954 World Cup was played in Switzerland. The final was an all-European affair with West Germany taking on Hungary. The 1954 team of Hungary was the favourites to win the tournament as they qualified for the final on a 31-match unbeaten streak. The streak also included a 8-2 drubbing of West Germany in the group stage of the World Cup.
Hungary went 2-0 up in the first few minutes of the title-match but West Germany found their way back into the game. West Germany's Helmut Rahn scored the winner six minutes before full-time as Hungary were beaten for a second time in a World Cup final. West Germany were crowned as the new World Champions having won the final 3-2.
1958
It was Sweden's turn next to be the hosts for the World Cup. The final of this World Cup featured the hosts who were up against Brazil. The final turned out to be a one-sided affair as Seleção scored five with a young Pele netting a brace. Sweden could only score twice as Brazil won the final 5-2 to become the champions for the first time in the history.
1962
The 1962 World Cup was played in Chile. Defending champions Brazil were again in the final and this time they were against Czechoslovakia.
Czechoslovakia took the lead in the 15th minute but Brazil brought the game back to level two minutes later. The South Americans dominated the rest of the game as two more goals in the second half sealed the fate of the final in their favour. With a scoreline of 3-2, Brazil became the second team to win back-to-back World Cup titles. No team has since managed to repeat the feat of successfully defending its World Cup crown.
1966
England were the hosts of the 1966 World Cup. The Three Lions qualified for the final for the first time where they were against West Germany. England's Geoff Hurst etched his name into the record books as he became the first player to score a hat-trick in a World Cup final. His three goals and a goal by Martin Peters were enough for England to beat their European rivals and become the champions of the world for the first time ever. This World Cup remains England's only major international title till date.
1970
Mexico were the hosts of the 1970 World Cup. The final of the 1970 World Cup featured Brazil and Italy. In a lopsided final, Pele, Gérson, Jairzinho and Carlos Alberto, each scored once while Roberto Boninsegna was the only goal scorer for Italy. Brazil were the champions for the third time winning the final 4-1.
1974
West Germany were the hosts of the 1974 World Cup. That year's World Cup final was played between hosts West Germany and the Netherlands. The Dutch took the lead in just the second minute of the match thanks to a penalty scored by Johan Neeskens. However, West Germany bounced back as Paul_Breitner converted from the spot with Gerhad Muller scoring in the 43rd minute. Netherlands failed to find their way back into the game as West Germany won the World Cup on home soil.
1978
Argentina were the hosts of the 1978 World Cup. The hosts qualified for the final where they were up against the finalists from four years ago, the Netherlands. In a gripping game, two goals from Mario Kempes and one by Ricarod Bertoni helped La Albiceleste beat Netherlands 3-1. Dirk Nanninga scored the only game for the Dutch in the final.
1982
The 1982 World Cup was played in Spain. The final of the 1982 World Cup was played between Italy and West Germany. Goals from Paolo Rossi, Marco Tardelli and Alessandro Altobelli helped the Azzurris beat West Germany by a scoreline of 3-1.
1986
Mexico hosted the 1986 World Cup. The World Cup final of that year featured Argentina and West Germany. Jose Brown, Jorge Valdano and Jorge Burruchaga found the back of the net for Argentina while Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and Rudi Völler were the goal scorers for West Germany. Argentina won the final 3-2 to become the champions for the second time.
1990
The 1990 World Cup was played in Italy and this World Cup's final was a repeat of the final from four years ago. This time West Germany managed to exact revenge thanks to a solitary goal from Andreas Brehme. It was West Germany's third World Cup title.
1994
The World Cup was played in the USA for the first time in 1994. The final saw Italy lock horns with Brazil. Both sides failed to score after 120 minutes and the game was pushed into the penalty shoot-outs. Italy's Roberto Baggio missed the decisive kick as Brazil won the shootout 3-2.
1998
The World Cup moved to France in 1998. That year's final was played between the defending champions and the hosts. Two goals from Zinedine Zidane and one goal by Emmanuel Petit helped Les Blues defeat Brazil 3-0 and become the World Champions for the first time.
2002
The World Cup moved to Asia for the first time as Japan and South Korea co-hosted the tournament. Brazil returned to the final where they took on Germany. Ronaldo scored twice and Germany failed to open their account as Brazil won the final 2-0 to the World Champions for a record fifth time.
2006
Germany were the hosts of the 2006 World Cup. The final of this World Cup was played between France and Italy. Both sides scored once in 120 minutes and the final had to be settled via penalty shoot outs. All five Italians found the back of the net while David Trezeguet missed his kick from the spot as Italy won the final 5-3. The match is also best remembered for the red card shown to Zinedine Zidane after he headbutted Marco Materazzi. The game proved to be Zindane's final international match for Les Blue.
2010
The World Cup was played on African soil for the first time as South Africa played hosts for the 2010 edition of the tournament. The final pitted reigning European champions of time Spain against the Netherlands who were in their third World Cup final.
The two teams could not score in 90 minutes and the match was pushed into the extra time. A goal by Andres Iniesta in the 116th minute helped Spain beat their European rivals and become the champions for the first time.
2014
The World Cup was back in Brazil for its 2014 edition. The final of the 2014 World Cup saw Germany take on Argentina. The 2014 final followed the pattern of the final from four years ago. The two teams failed to score in regulation time and had to play for another 30 minutes. Germany's substitute Mario Gotze eventually found the winner in the 113th minute as Germany won the final 1-0.
2018
The 2018 World Cup was played in Russia. France returned to a World Cup final for the first time in 20 years where they took on tournament's surprise package Croatia. France outscored Croatia 4-2 with one goal coming from Kylian Mbappe as he became the first teenager since Pele to net a goal in the World cup final. The victory made France two-time World Cup winners.
2022
Qatar was the host of the 2022 World Cup. The final featured reigning champions France who were up against Argentina. The title-match proved to be one of the greatest matches played in World Cup history. Lionel Messi fired in two goals while Mbappe scripted more history by becoming only the second player, after England's Geoff Hurst, to get a hat-trick in the final. The two sides scored three goals each and could not be separated after 120 minutes.
The penalty shoot out saw Kingsley Coman. and Aurélien Tchouaméni misfire their shots as Argentina won 4-2.
2026
The 2026 World Cup was co-hosted by the USA, Canada and Mexico. Argentina returned to the final where they took on Spain.The two teams failed to score after 90 minutes and the game had to be pushed into extra time. In extra time, Spain's Ferran Torres scored the only goal of the match as La Roja became the champions for the second time.
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