Ah, the Men’s World Cup. The ultimate battleground for national football teams, where they fight for the title of the world’s best. This historic event has been taking place since 1930, with Uruguay hosting and winning the inaugural championship. Flash forward to November 20, 2022, the football World Cup kicked off in Qatar. Now, this marked the ninth time the Polish national team has stepped onto the World Cup stage.
So, let’s get down to business. How has the Polish team performed over the years? Which World Cup saw them at their best and worst? And who holds the record for Poland’s top World Cup goal scorer?
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1938 in France – The Magic of Wilimowski’s Four Goals Against Brazil
To get started, we need to wind back the clock. It was 1930, and the first-ever World Cup finals were being held in Uruguay. By 1938, under the leadership of Józef Kałuża, the Polish team made their World Cup debut in France. This tournament brought together fifteen teams (Austria was a no-show due to the Anschluss), and it followed a cup system right from the get-go.
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Now, picture this. In the 1/8 finals, Poland is up against Brazil. The game goes into extra time, and despite a brilliant fight, Poland suffers a close 6:5 defeat. But here’s where it gets exciting. Ernest Wilimowski, a striker from Ruch Chorzów, played an absolute blinder. He found the back of the net four times at the Stade de la Meinau in Strasbourg and won a penalty kick, which was expertly put away by Fryderyk Scherfke.
I can tell you this, the Polish team didn’t manage to take the lead even once during the match. But they were not far from achieving a draw. At 6:5 for Brazil, Gerard Wodarz mised a free kick, followed by Erwin Nyc’s strike hitting the crossbar. It was a heart-stopping moment, and it’s fair to say, they gave Brazil a good run for their money.
1974 in West Germany – Górski’s Eagles Soar
Now, fast forward to 1974, in West Germany. Fresh from a gold medal victory at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, the Polish national team led by Kazimierz Górski had high hopes for their return to the World Cup after over three decades. And boy, did they start strong! The team breezed through the first group stage, taking down Argentina 3:2, crushing Haiti 7:0, and narrowly beating Italy 2:1.
In the second group stage, Górski’s Eagles began with 1-0 victories over Sweden and 2-1 against Yugoslavia. But alas, they fell to a 0-1 defeat against Germany in a match known as the „water match” in Frankfurt, where Gerd Müller netted the only goal. The dream of reaching the final burst like a soap bubble. Yet, there was a silver lining. The Poles clinched a 1:0 win against Brazil in the third-place match, where the winning goal was scored by the championship’s top scorer – Gregory Summer.
1978 in Argentina – The Unmet Hopes of the Whites and Reds
Around this time, there was a buzz that Poland had the world’s top football team. Coach Jacek Gmoch led a star-studded team to the World Cup in Argentina, including big names like Zbigniew Boniek, Kazimierz Deyna, Grzegorz Lato, Włodzimierz Lubański, and Jan Tomaszewski. Starting the first group stage with a 0-0 draw against West Germany, the team followed up with 1-0 and 3-1 victories against Tunisia and Mexico respectively, advancing to the second group stage.
Sadly, the next stage was a huge disappointment. The team suffered 0:2 and 1:3 defeats against Argentina and Brazil, respectively, and only managed a 1:0 win against Peru. This performance relegated them to a fifth-place finish in the overall tournament standings.
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1982 in Spain – A Return to the World Cup Podium
In 1982, Antoni Piechniczek had the tough task of restoring the Polish national team’s glory amidst political unrest in their home country. For six months, the team didn’t play an official match. Nevertheless, they charged into the World Cup in Spain, finishing at the top of the table in both group stages.
In the first stage, they managed a 0-0 draw with Italy and Cameroon and demolished Peru with a 5-1 win. The second stage saw them defeating Belgium 3-0, thanks to Zbigniew Boniek’s hat-trick, and another 0-0 draw against the USSR.
Unfortunately, in the semi-finals, they faced Italy once again, but this time without Boniek, who was suspended. They suffered a 0:2 loss, with Paolo Rossi scoring both goals. However, in the third-place match, our team pulled off a 3:2 win against France. The goals for Poland were netted by Andrzej Szarmach, Stefan Majewski, and Janusz Kupcewicz, while René Girard and Alain Couriol scored for the French team.
1986 in Mexico – The Last Polish Dance of the 20th Century
Fast forward to 1986 in Mexico, where we saw Antoni Piechniczek’s final stint as coach. Given the team’s previous third-place finish at the World Cup and the youth team’s strong performance, expectations were high. But, sadly, the generational shift only yielded one goal, scored by Włodzimierz Smolarek in a 1-0 win over Portugal during the group stage.
Beyond that, the Eagles managed a 0-0 draw with Morocco but suffered a 0-3 loss to England, courtesy of Gary Lineker’s hat-trick. This performance left them third in the group, moving them into the last 16, where they were outclassed by Brazil, losing 4:0.
2002 in South Korea and Japan – Pauleta, Poland’s Nemesis
Returning to the World Cup stage after a 16-year absence, Polish fans had high expectations. But sadly, Jerzy Engel’s team were out of the tournament after just two group stage matches. They started with a 0-2 loss to South Korea and followed up with a 4-0 drubbing by Portugal, with Pauleta netting a hat-trick.
There was some consolation, though, as Poland defeated the United States 3:1, with goals from Emmanuel Olisadebe, Paweł Kryszałowicz, and Marcin Żewłakow. The sole goal for the US came from Landon Donovan.
2006 in Germany – History Repeats Itself
As the 2006 World Cup in Germany approached, there were concerns that history might repeat itself, especially after Paweł Janas announced his team selection, which didn’t include Jerzy Dudek, Tomasz Frankowski, and Tomasz Kłos. These worries turned out to be well-founded.
After suffering 0:2 and 0:1 losses to Ecuador and Germany respectively, the Polish team found themselves playing their third match for pride alone. They managed to pull off a 2-1 victory against Costa Rica, with both goals scored by Bartosz Bosacki and a reply from Rónald Gómez.
2018 in Russia – Nawałka’s Team Comes Up Short
Riding high after making it to the quarter-finals of Euro 2016, the team led by Adam Nawałka and star player Robert Lewandowski were aiming for more than just a group stage exit at the 2018 World Cup in Rusia. However, their story ended much like their previous two outings.
They began with a 1:2 defeat to Senegal and followed it with a 0:3 loss to Colombia. As a small consolation, they secured a 1:0 win against Japan, with Jan Bednarek scoring the match’s only goal.
Qatar 2022 – A Historic Success with Defensive Tactics
There’s no denying that the Polish national team achieved a historic success at the World Cup in Qatar. Advancing from the group stage after a 36-year hiatus was a moment of significant jubilation. However, the defensive and somewhat reserved tactics employed throughout the World Cup by coach Czesław Michniewicz didn’t instill much optimism among the fans.
The first match of the World Cup against Mexico perfectly exemplified these pragmatic tactics. Both teams, wary of taking risks, made the game rather unattractive and failed to captivate the audience. The players on both sides frequently resorted to long passes, resulting in many inaccurate plays and random actions on the field. This clash between Poland and Mexico was deemed the worst of all by British journalists, and the opening game of the White-and-Reds ended up ranking last, at 64th place.
However, the subsequent matches showed considerable improvement. „The Athletic” ranked the match against Arabia 24th. The face-off against France followed closely, ranked 27th, while the decisive group match against Argentina settled in a respectable 35th place. Despite the initial criticism, the Polish team’s performance demonstrated a progression and adaptability that marked their journey in the World Cup.
By the Numbers – Poland at the World Cup
To give you a sense of Poland’s performance at the World Cup, here’s a list of intriguing stats that will give you a feel for the team’s history:
- Grzegorz Lato stands alone as the only Polish player to have been the top scorer at a World Cup final, achieving this feat in 1974.
- Ernest Wilimowski managed to net 4 goals against Brazil in 1938, marking the most prolific performance by a Polish player in World Cup history.
- Three Polish players have managed to score a hat-trick at the World Cup. Besides Ernest Wilimowski, Andrzej Szarmach (against Haiti in 1974) and Zbigniew Boniek (against Belgium in 1982) also achieved this feat.
- Despite having played in 3 World Cup matches, star player Robert Lewandowski has yet to score a goal.
- With 21 matches under his belt, Władysław Żmuda holds the record for the most World Cup appearances for Poland. Impressively, he participated in four World Cups (1974, 1978, 1982, 1986).
- Radosław Sobolewski is the only Polish player to receive a red card at the World Cup, which happened in a match against Germany in 2006.
- Poland’s biggest World Cup victory was a 7:0 win over Haiti in 1974.
- Their worst defeat came with a 0:4 loss, which happened twice – against Brazil in 1986 and Portugal in 2002.
- The Polish team scored their highest number of goals (16) in the 1974 World Cup.
- Conversely, they scored their lowest number of goals (1) at the 1986 World Cup.
- The Poles only won their first match at the World Cup once – a 3:2 victory over Argentina in 1974.
Looking Forward – The Next World Cup and Beyond
The world now eagerly awaits the next World Cup, which will be hosted in 2026 by Canada, USA, and Mexico.
The last World Cup, which took place in 2022, was hosted by Qatar from November 20 to December 18. The tournament was held across eight stadiums in five cities: Doha, Al-Wakra, Ar-Rajjan, Lusail, and Al-Khor. The draw for the group stage was conducted on April 1, 2022.
Has Poland Ever Won the World Cup?
In the history of official football World Cup tournaments, organized since 1930, Poland has never clinched the top position. So, what was the best result achieved by the Polish team in these championships?
The Polish national team’s highest achievement came during the World Cups in 1974 and 1982, when the Polish footballers secured the 3rd place . In 1974, the teams of West Germany and the Netherlands surpassed Poland. In 1982, Poland attained third place, only bested by Italy and the West German team, which took the first and second places, respectively.
Years of Participation – Poland’s World Cup Journey
The Polish national team has participated in the World Cup nine times – in 1938, 1974, 1978, 1982, 1986, 2002, 2006, 2018, and most recently in 2022. The team’s greatest success came in 1974 and 1982 when they managed to clinch the third place. Contrary to current practice, Polish players received silver medals for this accomplishment as per the prevailing rules of those times. Notably, in the 1974 World Cup, Grzegorz Lato emerged as the Top Scorer with seven goals.
The Polish team continues to aspire for the ultimate football glory and their performance over the years indicates that they remain a formidable force in world football. The countdown to the 2026 World Cup has begun, and the world waits to see how this storied team will fare.
References:
- https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reprezentacja_Polski_na_mistrzostwach_%C5%9Bwiata_w_pi%C5%82ce_no%C5%BCnej
