1950 World Cup is the 4th in a series of visual art portraits of the quadrennial world championship tournament for the game of soccer (association football). The 1950 World Cup in Brazil was unique in many ways. It was the first tournament held after World War II, and political and economic factors, such as postwar rebuilding and Cold War tensions, led to the absence of several teams, including Germany and Japan, and most Eastern European nations. Unlike previous World Cups, it featured a round-robin final stage rather than a knockout format. The massive Maracanã Stadium in Rio, built for the tournament, became the site of one of football’s biggest upsets, the Maracanazo, when Uruguay defeated Brazil in the final match to become world champions. The 1950 World Cup symbolized the world’s recovery from war, but also introduced unprecedented drama and heartbreak in the sport. The artwork tells in pictures, diagrams, and words, the story of this 4th iteration of the world cup, and pays tribute to the host nation and cities, to legendary players, the ball of the tournament, the historical context, and more.
