Short answers, pulled from the story.
FIFA chose West Germany as the host nation on the 6th of July 1966 in London, England. This decision came with a quiet political undercurrent that would shape the tournament for years to come.
West Germany defeated the Netherlands 2-1 in the final held on the 7th of July 1974 at Olympiastadion Munich. Franz Beckenbauer captained the German side while Johan Cruyff starred for the Dutch team.
Grzegorz Lato of Poland led the tournament scoring seven goals overall. Ninety-seven total goals came from fifty-two players including two own goals and one player who scored for both sides.
The 1974 tournament introduced a second group stage instead of an immediate knockout bracket. Eight teams advanced from the initial round robin groups but did not enter a traditional elimination phase immediately.
Ninety-eight countries entered the qualifying tournament for the 1974 FIFA World Cup. The Soviet Union faced disqualification after refusing to travel for their playoff match against Chile following the 1973 coup d'état.