Ranking Spain’s top 3 World Cup campaigns

La Roja have grown into a European powerhouse on the back of an impressive history at World Cup.

Spain made history by reaching the World Cup semi-finals for the first time in 2010.

La Roja’s ‘Golden Generation’ completed their task by winning the World Cup in Johannesburg. But they were not the only Spain team that went into the tournament with the ambition of winning it.

Let’s review Spain’s best-ever campaigns in the World Cup.

1- 1934 World Cup: Politics, fights and a replayed game

Spain came into the World Cup’s second addition while the country was going through the 1934 revolution.

Italy hosted the tournament as the first European nation to do so. Benito Mussolini was keen to use the World Cup as a tool for political advantage, although most historians believe there were no attempts to fix games.

Spain found a fantastic start to the tournament, eliminating Brazil with a 3-1 win. Legendary goalkeeper Ricardo Zamora was key to La Roja’s win, while Jose Iraragorri scored twice against the South American giants.

Spain then faced Italy in the quarter-finals in a highly controversial game. The match was marred by on-field fights, delays and controversies.

A 1-1 draw after the extra time convinced FIFA to schedule a replay game for the first time in the tournament’s history.

Several key players, including Zamora, missed the second game with injuries they picked up in the first battle. Italy’s Mario Pizziolo never played for the national team after his leg was broken that night.

Italy claimed a 1-0 victory in the replay match, ending Spain’s dreams of reaching the semi-finals. The Azzurri eventually won the tournament with a 2-1 win over Czechoslovakia in the final.

2- World Cup 2002: Quarter-final nightmares continue

A young generation of Spanish players travelled to the 2002 World Cup with hopes of redeeming the disappointing results of the past tournament.

The likes of Xavi Hernandez, Iker Casillas, and Carles Puyol found their place in Spain’s lineup alongside established stars such as Fernando Hierro, Raul, and Luis Enrique.

Spain topped the tournament’s Group B with three victories over Paraguay, South Africa, and Slovenia. La Roja scored three goals in each game, showcasing their brilliant attacking form.

Jose Camacho’s side faced the Republic of Ireland in the round of 16. A hard-fought game saw Spain beat their opponents in the penalties to qualify for the quarter-finals.

Next up, La Roja locked horns with South Korea, who had stunned Italy with a 2-1 win in the previous round.

The quarter-final clash turned out to be one of the most controversial games in the tournament’s history in terms of refereeing.

Spain scored twice, but both goals were disallowed by Egyptian referee Gamal Ahmed Al-Ghandour. Following a goalless draw, the game went to extra time, where Spain continued their attacks to find the winner.

They finally did so through a header from Fernando Morientes. But this time, the assistant referee ruled out the goal by claiming the crossed ball had gone out of the pitch.

The hosts then won the game by beating Spain in the penalties. Joaquin missed his spot-kick as Spain ended another World Cup campaign with a frustrating quarter-final defeat.

1- 2010 World Cup: Breaking all the spells

Spain came into the 2010 World Cup as one of the main favourites due to their wonderful squad.

The rivalry between Real Madrid and Barcelona had seen them reclaim their places as European giants while introducing a ‘Golden Generation’ to Spain’s national team.

The midfield trio of Andres Iniesta, Xavi and Sergio Busquets brought their already-established connection in Barcelona to La Roja, while Iker Casillas, Xabi Alonso, and Sergio Ramos came from Real Madrid.

Despite their incredible attacking quality, however, Spain struggled to score in the World Cup.

A shocking defeat against Switzerland started the tournament for La Roja. But they managed to qualify for the knock-out stage by beating Honduras and Chile.

A narrow win over Portugal in the last-16 round saw David Villa score the winner for Spain. Vicente del Bosque’s side then claimed another 1-0 win against Paraguay to reach the World Cup semi-finals for the first time.

Germany had reached this stage for the second World Cup in a row, hoping to forget their bitter defeat against Italy in the 2006 tournament.

Spain’s brilliant defensive stability, however, prevented Jogi Low’s side from creating enough opportunities.

La Roja didn’t create many chances themselves, either. But an unstoppable header from Puyol was enough to send them to the final with their third consecutive 1-0 victory.

Netherlands and Spain faced off to determine the tournament’s winner on July 11. Having lost two World Cup finals, the Oranje hoped to claim their first title.

But huge misses from their attackers enabled Spain to fight back and win the game in the extra time. Following an assist from Cesc Fabregas, Iniesta won the World Cup for Spain with a fantastic shot in the 116th minute.