28 March 1897 - Born To Run (The German National Team)

On 28 March 1897, Josef "Sepp" Herberger was born in Mannheim, Germany. He went on to manage the German national team for almost thirty years, winning a World Cup in the process.

A striker, Herberger's playing career lasted from 1914 to 1930 and included spells with Waldhof Mannheim (1914-21), VfR Mannheim (1921-26), and Tennis Borussia Berlin (1926-30). During that time, he also made three appearances for the German national team.

But he made his greatest mark as a manager, starting with Tennis Borussia in 1930. Two years later, he joined the German national team as an assistant coach, then took the top job in 1936. Renowned as a tactical genius, his first crack at a World Cup ended poorly, as Germany were eliminated in the first round that year by Switzerland. And they were banned from the next tournament, in 1950, due to Germany's role in World War II.

But in 1954, as the manager of the West German team, he finally claimed football's ultimate prize, upsetting tournament favorites Hungary in the final. Hungary, who had beaten the Germans 8-3 in the group stage, took a 2-0 lead after only eight minutes, but Herberger's team rallied to claim a 3-2 victory that has since been dubbed "the Miracle of Bern."

He returned to the tournament as West Germany's manager in 1958, finishing fourth, and again in 1962, when they were eliminated by Yugoslavia in the quarterfinals. He retired in 1964 having won just over 64 percent of his games. He later died in 1977 at the age of 80.

7 March 1954 - There's Nothing Like A Little Motivation

On 7 March 1954, in their first-ever meeting, South Korea crushed Japan 1-5 in a World Cup qualifier in Tokyo.

It was a match that carried a lot of political tension. Though they were the only two members in their qualification group (after China withdrew), Korean president Syngman Rhee initially refused to sanction any game against Japan due to their actions against Korea in World War II. He eventually relented, but only in part. Instead of home and away matches as required by FIFA, he demanded that both matches be played in Japan so that no "past invader" would set foot on Korean soil. He also told the Korean players "Be prepared to throw yourselves in the ocean if you lose."

Thankfully for them, that was not required, though they may have been worried when Japan took a 16th-minute lead with a goal from Ken Naganuma. But Chung Nam-Sick equalized six minutes later and Korea never looked back, getting additional goals from Choi Kwang-Suk (34'), Sung Nak-Woon (65'), and Choi Jung-Min (82', 85').

They played again in Tokyo one week later. That match ended as a 2-2 draw, which was enough to send Korea to their first World Cup in Switzerland.

4 July 1954 - The Miracle Of Bern

On 4 July 1954, West Germany won their first World Cup trophy, beating Hungary 3-2. The German victory ended Hungary's then-record unbeaten run of 31 matches and avenged an 8-3 loss to the Hungarians in the tournament's group stage. The German press dubbed the dramatic comeback win "the Miracle of Bern."

Playing in a heavy downpour before a crowd of 64,000 at the Wankdorf Stadium in Bern, Switzerland, the Hungarians looked likely to extend their remarkable streak after going up 2-0 against Germany in the first eight minutes of the Final. Forward and captain Ferenc Puskás put them up 1-0 in the 6th minute with a driving shot from about 10 yards; two minutes later, his fellow forward Zóltan Czibor doubled the lead in similar fashion.

The Germans, however, quickly fought back. In the 10th minute, forward Max Morlock (pictured) slid feet-first to meet a low cross, knocking the ball past the Hungarian keeper, then striker Helmut Rahn scored an 18th-minute equalizer. After those furious high-scoring twelve minutes, the match settled down and the teams remained level at the break and through most of the second half.

But six minutes from full-time, Rahn netted again to give the Germans their first lead with a powerful shot from the top of the box in the 84th minute. Puskás appeared to draw Hungary level with a sliding shot in the 89th minute, but the referee ruled him offside and disallowed the goal.

20 June 1954 - Goals! Goals! Goals!

On 20 June 1954, the World Cup experienced an offensive explosion, with 25 goals in the day's four matches. At 6.25 goals per game, it remains the highest-averaging daily output in a World Cup.

It was the last scheduled match day in Groups 2 and 4, with the former providing most of the goals. Group 2's Hungary and West Germany played in the day's first match, with Hungary rolling to victory by a margin of 8-3. Hungarian forward Sándor Kocsis was the star of the day, scoring four. In the group's other match, Turkey crushed South Korea by an even greater margin, winning 7-0 with a hat-trick from forward Burhan Sargin.

In Group 4, England beat Switzerland 2-0, while Italy defeated Belgium 4-1.

The day's biggest winners, Hungary and West Germany, eventually met in the Final, where the West Germans won 3-2 to claim their first World Cup title.

16 June 1954 - A Sign Of Things To Come

On 16 June 1954, Brazil opened the World Cup with a 5-0 demolition of Mexico before a crowd of 13,000 at Geneva's Charmille Stadium. Four of the goals came in the first half.

The match paired the top two qualifying teams from the Americas, with both sides going undefeated to win their groups (Brazil over Paraguay, Chile, and Peru and Mexico over the United States and Haiti). While Mexico had never advanced beyond the first round, the Brazilians were looking to rebound after losing the previous Cup to Uruguay.

They did so in convincing fashion. Striker Oswaldo da Silva, better known as Baltazar, put the South Americans up 1-0 in the 23rd minute with a powerful shot from the top of the box. Central midfielder Didi then stretched the lead to 2-0 with a 30th-minute free-kick that beat the wall from 20 yards out. Pinga, Brazil's number 10, added a quick brace to close the half (34', 43'). The final goal was scored in the 69th minute by Julinho, who found the back of the net after a weaving run through the Mexican defense that would later come to be a Brazilian trademark.

Despite the impressive nature of the win, it was Brazil's only victory of the tournament. They drew 1-1 with Yugoslavia in their only other group stage match, then lost 4-2 to Hungary in the first knockout round. Four years later, however, Brazil would win their first World Cup trophy in Sweden.

17 March 1954 - Spain Gets Tossed Out Of The World Cup

On 17 March 1954, Spain and Turkey met in Rome for a World Cup qualifying play-off, having split their two previous matches with one win apiece. With a World Cup trip at stake, the teams battled to a 2-2 draw through extra time, so the winner was decided by a coin toss.

There were 13 qualifying groups for the 1954 World Cup, with four of them -- including Spain's and Turkey's Group 6 -- having only two teams. In those groups, the teams played each other twice, once home and once away, earning two points for a win and one point for a draw. The group winners qualified for the Cup, while the runners-up went home.

The two sides first met in Madrid on 6 January 1954, with the hosts cruising to an easy 4-1 victory. In the second match, played in Istanbul on 14 March, the Turkish defense performed better, holding the Spanish scoreless in Turkey's 1-0 win. Unfortunately for Spain, the rules at the time did not consider goal differential, so a replay was required to decide the outcome.

FIFA scheduled the replay for 17 March, choosing Rome as a neutral ground. Spain took the lead with an 18th-minute goal from forward José Luis Arteche, but Turkey got a 32nd-minute equalizer from forward Burhan Sargin (pictured), who had scored the crucial goal in Istanbul. Sargin's fellow forward Suat Mamat then scored in the 65th minute to give the Turks a late lead. There was still time for Spain to rally, however, and forward Adrián Escudero brought his side level in the 79th minute. They played to a stalemate for the rest of regulation, then through extra time.

With no penalty-kick provision in place at the time, the winner was decided by chance. Some reports say that the winner was chosen by drawing lots, but FIFA says "their fate was decided by the toss of a coin, with the Turks calling correctly." In any event, the result was the same: the Spanish, despite outscoring their opponents 6-4 over the course of three matches, were sent home and Turkey advanced to the World Cup, where they were eliminated in the group stage.