Football at the 1936 Summer Olympics

• 1. Introduction

  ›

  Football at the 1936 Summer Olympics produced a sight that no rulebook had anticipated. Italian players grabbed the German referee, Weingartner, by both arms. They covered his mouth to stop him from sending off their teammate Achille Piccini. The referee never ejected Piccini; Italy won the match. That moment of barely-suppressed chaos was one among many in a tournament shaped by forces far outside the game. By the time the final was played, an entire national team had been eliminated under fiercely disputed circumstances. A Latin American delegation had walked out of Germany altogether. Adolf Hitler, watching football for the first time in his life, had left the stadium early after his own country's defeat. Somewhere in the middle of it all, an Asian team had made football history on a major international stage for the very first time. Before a single match was played, France and the Netherlands had already sent their apologies and stayed home. Their reasons had very little to do with Hitler.

  111012

• 2. The Amateur Dispute

  ›

  Avery Brundage, president of the International Olympic Committee, had urged the United States to compete in Berlin despite widespread concerns about the Nazi regime. He pointed to promises of non-discrimination from the host government and argued that sport should remain separate from politics. The United States sent a team.

  FIFA's World Cup had been created only in 1930, and the organization was already protective of its standing. If an Olympic football tournament were to thrive alongside it, FIFA feared the World Cup would lose prestige. That concern, combined with a fundamental disagreement about player eligibility, had driven football out of the 1932 Games entirely. The IOC insisted on amateur-only competition. FIFA wanted professional players included. Without FIFA's cooperation, the 1932 Games went ahead without football.

  For 1936, the tournament returned on the IOC's terms. Only amateur players were permitted to compete. The field that entered included teams from four continents. Several of those nations had never before competed at a major international football stage. Among them, Peru would generate the tournament's most bitterly contested moment, and its aftermath would reach as far as the docks at Callao.

  45326

• 3. Japan in Berlin

  ›

  Sweden led Japan 2-0 at half-time in their first-round match. The deficit did not hold. Japan pulled back, equalized, and scored a third to win 3-2. The Swedish radio commentator, Sven Jerring, called out "Japanese, Japanese, Japanese, Japanese all over" during the final minutes. The Japanese defender Takeshi Kamo had left the pitch with an injury, but Japan held on.

  Taizo Kawamoto, Akira Matsunaga, and Tokutaro Ukon each scored in that comeback. Their efforts carried Japan to the quarter-finals, where they met Italy. Vittorio Pozzo chose to include Carlo Biagi in Italy's lineup, and Biagi scored. Japan were eliminated. Sven Jerring's call in Swedish, "Japaner, japaner, japaner, overallt japaner," preserved the moment in a form that would outlast any scoreline.

  81891

• 4. The Peru Walkout

  ›

  At the Hertha Platz in Berlin, Peru came from two goals behind during their quarter-final against Austria. They drew in regulation, then scored five times in extra time. Three of those goals were disallowed by the referee. Peru still won 4-2.

  Austria immediately demanded a replay. Their objection rested on three claims. Peruvian supporters had stormed the pitch during the match. The field did not meet the required specifications for a football game. Peruvian players had physically assaulted the Austrians. One Austrian account additionally mentioned a spectator who had entered the field carrying a revolver.

  On the 10th of August, the rematch was scheduled to be held behind closed doors. It was later rescheduled to the 11th. Peru's delegation had attempted to attend the assigned hearing but was delayed by a German parade. Their defense was never heard. The Olympic Committee and FIFA sided with Austria, and the match was awarded to Austria by default.

  Michael Dasso, a member of the Peruvian Olympic Committee, made the Peruvian position plain. "We've no faith in European athletics," he said. "We have come here and found a bunch of merchants." Peru's full delegation left Germany. Colombia's followed. Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, and Mexico declared their solidarity.

  In the port city of Callao, workers refused to load German ships. In Lima, crowds tore down an Olympic flag and threw stones at the German consulate. President Oscar Benavides Larrea gave a speech that included a reference to "the crafty Berlin decision." Whether the Nazi authorities played any role in the ruling has never been confirmed. That question has remained open ever since the events of August 1936.

  1112131410

• 5. Italy's Path to Gold

  ›

  At the Poststadion in Berlin, the quarter-final between Germany and Norway was watched from the stands by Goebbels, Goring, Hess, and Hitler. Hitler had planned to spend the afternoon at the rowing. Germany lost 2-0. Goebbels wrote that evening: "The Fuhrer is very excited, I also can barely contain myself. A real bath of nerves."

  Norway then faced Italy in the semi-finals, on August 10th, before a crowd of around 95,000 people. Alfonso Negro scored first for the Azzurri. Norway's Arne Brustad drew the match level. Then Annibale Frossi settled it, and Italy were through to the final. An Austrian report gave the attendance as 90,000, a discrepancy that remains in the record.

  Peco Bauwens refereed the gold medal final between Italy and Austria. Austria's side was managed by Jimmy Hogan. Both amateur defenses produced a goalless first half. Midway through the second, Frossi put Italy ahead. Karl Kainberger equalized for Austria about ten minutes before the final whistle. Contemporary Austrian newspapers credited Franz Fuchsberger with the goal instead, listing Kainberger as the assist provider. Frossi struck again as extra time began. Austria could not find an answer, and Italy won.

  Annibale Frossi, who wore spectacles on the pitch, finished the tournament as its leading scorer with seven goals. Three of Italy's gold medal winners, Alfredo Foni, Pietro Rava, and Ugo Locatelli, would win the FIFA World Cup in Paris in 1938. The 1936 gold medal was Italy's first Olympic Football win, in their first Olympic Football tournament. In the 1938 World Cup, Norway and Italy met again in the first round and drew.

  178181511