Amsterdam 1928 | UruguayFootyHistory

Amsterdam 1928: Argentina and Uruguay’s rivalry reaches the global stage

In 1924, Uruguay had returned home as the world champions, and were soon invited to a two-leg friendly series in September by neighbours Argentina. The first match, in Uruguay (at the Paque Central Stadium) ended 1-1, a usually tight affair. A week later, the Uruguayans arrived to Argentina with a relaxed attitude, not knowing what was about to unfold.

1924: Argentina vs. Uruguay: Crowd violence set the stage for Amsterdam 1928

The first attempt at the rematch was actually postponed because of overcrowding and also because the fans were just too rowdy for the police to control. This particular match was played at the Estadio del Sportivo Barracas in Palermo, Buenos Aires. On that day, it only took a few minutes before fans began to invade the pitch. After it was postponed, the police in Buenos Aires decided to build a fence right around the touch lines in order to keep the supporters out.

Anecdotes: On October 2, 1924, enraged Argentinian fans mocked the fence by calling it the “Olympic Fence”. Also, the term “Vuelta Olimpica” (the term for "Lap of Honour" used in Spanish speaking nations) was officially coined on this day in response to the Uruguayan players doing a quick lap in front of fans as they were being separated by this Olympic Fence.

The fans were so rowdy to the players by the touchline, that at one point, Uruguay star Jose Andrade could not take a throw in for a significant portion of the match. In minute 12 came another historic moment: Argentina’s Cesareo Onzari took a corner that curved directly into the net. In mockery of this goal, Argentinians dubbed this an “Olympic Goal” (or “Gol Olimpico” in Spanish). Pedro Cea would tie it before Argentina eventually scored the winner to make it 2-1 at full-time. After the match, relations between the Uruguayan and Argentinian football associations became strained.

Amsterdam 1928 - The Tournament Begins

For Uruguay, this was the first major tournament where physical conditioning became a major tool above just skill in order win. At the start of the tournament, things were not looking good as the team arrived to Amsterdam tired and with several players who were forced to perform while injured.

Anecdote: At the 1927 South American Championship: Argentina had defeated Uruguay 3-2 in a dramatic title decider. Uruguay's star striker Hector Scarone had scored both goals to tie the game, but Argentina took the winner in the 85th minute. Because of this, they were entering Amsterdam 1928 as the current South American Champions, and it was this win that gave them the necessary confidence to register for the 1928 Olympic tournament.

Uruguay’s full squad had traveled again, and like last time, they chose to stay in a far off, more spacious residence: the Hotel Velserbeek in Velsen, 45 minutes from Amsterdam.

Uruguay was extremely prepared this time around. They had sent a food order 5 months ahead of time to their hotel in Velsen. The diet focussed on simple foods that would not upset their stomachs, including a typical Uruguayan breakfast of: milk, bread with butter, etc. Uruguay’s physical training was also rigorous. Their sessions at times maxed out at 80 minutes and the players ran an extra hour a day just in case they had to go a full 120 minutes.

Round of 16:
Uruguay vs. hosts the Netherlands

Uruguay faced the Netherlands for the first time after their controversial 1924 semifinal. The Dutch were one of the tournament’s favourites and the draw vs. Uruguay raised a lot of expectation, with over 40,000 attending. This time, Uruguay beat the Dutch 2-0 to advance to the next round. After the game, more bad news came for La Celeste as Pedro Petrone got sick, and star Jose Andrade was forced to play injured for the entirety of the tournament with a torn ligament.

Quarter Final:
Uruguay vs. Germany - an infamously violent match

Uruguay was getting ready to face off against a powerful German team in one of the most violent clashes in international football history. Uruguay's Jose Andrade and Hector Scarone were carried off of the pitch injured from violent tackles.

The famous ending: As the game was finishing and Uruguay knew they were going to win the game, they began to return the kicks, elbows and punches for every one that they received from the Germans throughout the match. A massive brawl broke out immediately after the final whistle was blown. Captain Jose Nasazzi, Uruguay’s usually calm and collected leader, ran on the pitch and punched the German Captain, Hoffman (who many believe was the most violent player on the pitch), knocking him out. Realizing that this act could bring major consequences, Nasazzi immediately fell to the floor to simulate that the German had punched him first. Instinctively, a Uruguayan doctor ran on the pitch to check on Nasazzi. “This is serious!”, he screamed. “Someone bring a stretcher! Bring an ambulance!” The ruse seemed to work as Nasazzi was only banned for 1 match by the Uruguayan association itself, while Hoffman was seriously punished by the German association.

Semi Final:

Uruguay vs. Italy - an infamously violent match

Uruguay were without captain Jose Nasazzi because of the suspension. This was a big blow because he was the heart and soul of the team. Andrade and Scarone returned to the team as Uruguay ended up winning 3-2. This match has quite a bit of importance for football historians as it is a rare example of a match between the 2 nations that would end up winning every world championship in the first half of the century.

Olympic and World championship final:

Uruguay vs. Argentina - Match #1

The final began horribly for Uruguay as captain Jose Nasazzi and star Hector Scarone both pulled a muscle. “El Manco” Castro also got injured as soon as the game began, but due to a lack of substitutes, he had to remain on the pitch for 120 minutes. He could not even walk, and Uruguay essentially played the entire 120 minutes with 10 men. The match ended 1-1 and a replay had to be played.

Olympic and World championship final:

Uruguay vs. Argentina - Match #2

The replay of the first match will go down in history as one of the biggest matches in the history of football. The atmosphere around Europe and South America was fervent. In Europe, over 200,000 tickets were demanded for this second final. In Uruguay and Argentina, thousands packed their capitals' plazas to get a "live feed” of this game from local news sources. This was 1924, so all fans had available was the telegraph since live radio broadcast across both continents was not possible at the time. The news stations would use a type of megaphone to notify the people of any major match incidents every few minutes. Dozens of stations like these were set up all over Buenos Aires and Montevideo.

Quick Anecdote: For this match, Uruguay made 5 changes. They sacrificed 5 skilled players for 5 players who were fit enough to take on the Argentinians. 1930 World Cup hero Hector Castro, who had played injured last game, a was taken off the list for the final.

“Atacan los Argentinos…Gol Uruguayo!”– Read the famous, yet contradictory, telegram that recounted Uruguay’s first goal in the decisive world championship final. Argentina had been dominating the game, but Uruguay had managed to catch them on the counter. It was known that Uruguay’s defence had held firm all game. Argentina managed to tie the match in the 28th minute and this is where things began to get tense. Many felt that the next goal would surely win it. This moment came in the 73rd minute.

The play: Uruguay was taking a corner kick. As the ball began to rise, Uruguay’s Borjas rose up as if to head it into the net. Instead, he led two Argentinian defenders out of position trying to mark him as he head the ball down to the person immediately beside him. “Tuya Hector!” (It’s your’s Hector!). The ball fell to star striker Hector Scarone’s feet near the edge of the box and he blasted the shot into the back of the net. That quote “Tuya Hector” has become myth in Uruguay. Roughly 15 minutes later, Uruguay had won their 2nd world title.

A week after the emotional celebrations, over 400 Uruguayans (politicians, actors, etc, who were vacationing in Europe) joined the Uruguayan team in a massive hotel feast in downtown Paris. FIFA President Jules Rimet and Mrs. Marie Pain (who had taken care of the sky blues in 1924) also joined in on the festivities.

The players arrived to Montevideo as heroes as it seemed like every single inhabitant in Montevideo was waiting for their back-to-back world champions.