Editing 1930 FIFA World Cup (section)

==Participants==
[[FIFA]], the governing body of world [[association football|football]], had been discussing the creation of a competition for national teams for several years prior to 1930. The organisation had managed the football segment of the [[Summer Olympics]] on behalf of the [[International Olympic Committee]] (IOC) since the early 20th century and the success of the competition at the [[Football at the 1924 Summer Olympics|1924]] and [[Football at the 1928 Summer Olympics|1928 Olympic Games]] led to the formation of the [[FIFA World Cup]]. At the 17th FIFA congress, held in [[Amsterdam]] in May 1928, the competition was proposed by president [[Jules Rimet]] and accepted by the organisation's board, with vice-president [[Henri Delaunay]] proclaiming "international football can no longer be held within the confines of the Olympics".<ref name="Glanville15">Glanville, p. 15</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.history.co.uk/article/jules-rimet-and-the-birth-of-the-world-cup |title=Jules Rimet and the Birth of the World Cup |work=Sky History |accessdate=13 January 2023}}</ref>

[[File:1930 FIFA World Cup.png|thumb|Participating countries, tinted by order of finish|400px|alt=World map highlighting competing nations, colour-coded by finishing position with the top four marked separately (Uruguay 1, Argentina 2, United States 3, Yugoslavia 4). Most of the Americas are shaded, with small representation in Europe. Other continents are entirely unshaded.]]
The first World Cup was the only one without [[FIFA World Cup qualification|qualification]]. Every country affiliated with FIFA was invited to compete and given a deadline of 28 February 1930 to accept. The competition was originally planned as a 16-team knockout tournament with a potential second division if enough teams entered;<ref>FIFA, p. 13</ref> however, the number of teams failed to reach 16, so there were no qualifications. Plenty of interest was shown by nations in the Americas; [[Argentina national football team|Argentina]], [[Brazil national football team|Brazil]], [[Bolivia national football team|Bolivia]], [[Chile national football team|Chile]], [[Mexico national football team|Mexico]], [[Paraguay national football team|Paraguay]], [[Peru national football team|Peru]] and the [[United States men's national soccer team|United States]] all entered. A total of seven South American teams participated, more than in any subsequent World Cup Finals. However, because of the long, costly trip by ship across the [[Atlantic Ocean]] and the length of absence required for players,<ref name="FIFAhistory"/> very few European teams were inclined to take part due to an ongoing [[Great Depression|economic crisis]].<ref name="WC origin">{{Cite web |url=https://www.fifa.com/mm/document/fifafacts/mcwc/ip-201_02e_fwc-origin_8816.pdf |title=FIFA World Cup Origin |website=FIFA |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100615195236/http://www.fifa.com/mm/document/fifafacts/mcwc/ip-201_02e_fwc-origin_8816.pdf |archive-date=15 June 2010 |url-status=dead |access-date=1 October 2020}}</ref> Some refused to countenance travel to South America in any circumstances,<ref>{{cite book |last=Hunt |first=Chris |title=World Cup Stories: The history of the FIFA World Cup |publisher=Interact |page=10 |year=2006 |location=Ware |isbn=0-9549819-2-8 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/historyoffifawor0000hunt }}</ref> and no European entries were received before the February deadline. In an attempt to gain some European participation, the [[Uruguayan Football Association]] sent a letter of invitation to [[The Football Association]], even though the British [[Home Nations]] ([[England national football team|England]], [[Ireland national football team (1882–1950)|Northern Ireland]], [[Scotland national football team|Scotland]] and [[Wales national football team|Wales]]) had resigned from FIFA at the time. This was rejected by the FA Committee on 18 November 1929.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fourfourtwo.premiumtv.co.uk/page/BigRead/0,,11442~1034860,00.html |title=Uruguay 1930 |work=FourFourTwo magazine |accessdate=20 June 2009 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070819173027/http://www.fourfourtwo.premiumtv.co.uk/page/BigRead/0%2C%2C11442~1034860%2C00.html |archivedate=19 August 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Out of the two Asian countries affiliated to FIFA at the time, [[Japan national football team|Japan]] and [[Thailand national football team|Siam]] (modern-day [[Thailand]]), neither elected to enter the competition,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://thesefootballtimes.co/2014/09/04/the-story-of-the-1930-world-cup/ |title=The Story of the 1930 World Cup |last=Benjamin|first=Brian|date=4 September 2014 |accessdate=16 January 2023}}</ref> while [[Egypt national football team|Egypt]], the lone African team to enter, was delayed due to a storm in the [[Mediterranean Sea|Mediterranean]], and missed the ship travelling to Uruguay.<ref>{{cite web |first=James |last=Langton |title='Dead' player gatecrashing own wake capped off the first and weirdest World Cup |url=https://www.thenationalnews.com/fifa-world-cup-2022/2022/12/02/dead-player-gatecrashing-own-wake-capped-off-the-first-and-weirdest-world-cup |work=The National News |date=2 December 2022 |access-date=2 December 2022 }}</ref>

Two months before the start of the tournament, no team from Europe had officially entered.<ref name="FIFA1930">{{cite web |url=http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/p/pwc/1930.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060426212450/http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/p/pwc/1930.html |archivedate=26 April 2006 |title=FIFA World Cup&nbsp;– Classic Moments from FIFA World Cup History |work=FIFA |accessdate=14 June 2009 }}</ref> FIFA president Rimet intervened and four European teams eventually made the trip by sea: [[Belgium national football team|Belgium]], [[France national football team|France]], [[Romania national football team|Romania]] and [[Yugoslavia national football team|Yugoslavia]]. The Romanians, managed by [[Constantin Rădulescu (footballer, born 1896)|Constantin Rădulescu]] and coached by their captain [[Rudolf Wetzer]] and Octav Luchide, entered the competition following the intervention of the newly crowned [[Carol II of Romania|King Carol&nbsp;II]]. He selected the squad personally and negotiated with employers to ensure that the players would still have jobs upon their return.<ref>Seddon (2005), pp. 8–9</ref> The French entered at the personal intervention of Rimet, but neither France's star defender [[Manuel Anatol]] nor the team's regular coach [[Gaston Barreau]] could be persuaded to make the trip.<ref name="goldblatt_248">Goldblatt (2008), p. 248</ref> The Belgians participated at the instigation of German-Belgian FIFA vice-president [[Rodolphe Seeldrayers]].<ref name="g249">Goldblatt (2008), p. 249</ref>

{{Quote box
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| quote = We were 15 days on the ship ''Conte Verde'' getting out there. We embarked from Villefranche-sur-Mer in the company of the Belgians and the Yugoslavians. We did our basic exercises down below and our training on deck. The coach never spoke about tactics at all&nbsp;...
| source = [[Lucien Laurent]]<ref name="fifa-franchecomte">{{cite web|url=https://www.fifa.com/aboutfifa/developing/refereeing/news/newsid=71490.html |title=A historical link with the Franche-Comté |work=FIFA |date=17 June 1998 |accessdate=14 June 2009 |last=Vautrot |first=Michel |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080608134846/http://www.fifa.com/aboutfifa/developing/refereeing/news/newsid%3D71490.html |archivedate=8 June 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
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The Romanians boarded the [[SS Conte Verde|SS ''Conte Verde'']] at [[Genoa]], Italy; the French and Yugoslavs were picked up at [[Villefranche-sur-Mer]], France, on 21 June 1930;<ref name="fifa1930">{{cite web|url=https://www.fifa.com/worldcup/archive/edition=1/overview.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090202113439/http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/archive/edition%3D1/overview.html |archivedate=2 February 2009 |title=1930 FIFA World Cup Uruguay |work=FIFA |accessdate=15 June 2009 |url-status=dead }}</ref> and the Belgians embarked at [[Barcelona]], Spain.<ref name="Marca">{{cite news |url=http://archivo.marca.com/mundial2006/historia/1930.html |title=Uruguay, allí nació la historia |work=Marca.com Archive |publisher=Marca.com |language=Spanish |accessdate=14 June 2009 |last=Lara |first=Miguel A |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090527140940/http://archivo.marca.com/mundial2006/historia/1930.html |archivedate=27 May 2009 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The ''Conte Verde'' carried Rimet, the trophy and the three designated European referees: Belgians [[John Langenus]] and [[Henri Christophe (referee)|Henri Christophe]], along with [[Thomas Balvay]], a Parisian who may have been English. The [[Brazil national football team|Brazilian]] team were picked up when the boat docked in [[Rio de Janeiro]] on 29 June before arriving in Uruguay on 4 July.<ref name=FIFA1930/> The official ball used for the tournament was the T-Model.<ref name="f17">FIFA, p. 17</ref>

===List of invited teams===
{{Further|1930 FIFA World Cup squads}}
The following 16 teams planned to compete at the final tournament. However, 13 teams participated due to withdrawals of [[Egypt national football team|Egypt]], [[Japan national football team|Japan]] and [[Thailand national football team|Siam]].

{{col begin}}
{{col-4}}
'''[[Asia]] (0)'''
* <s>{{fb|JPN|1870}}</s> (withdrew)
* <s>{{fb|SIA}}</s> (withdrew)
'''[[Africa]] (0)'''
* <s>{{fb|EGY|1922}}</s> (missed ship)
{{col-4}}
'''[[North America]] (2)'''
*{{fb|MEX|1916}}
*{{fb|USA|1912}}
'''[[South America]] (7)'''
*{{fb|ARG|1861}}
*{{fb|BOL|civil}}
*{{fb|BRA|1889}}
*{{fb|CHI}}
*{{fb|PAR|1842}}
*{{fb|PER}}
*{{fb|URU}} (hosts)
{{col-4}}
'''[[Europe]] (4)'''
*{{fb|BEL}}
*{{fb|FRA}}
*{{fb|ROU}}
*{{fb|Kingdom of Yugoslavia|}}
{{col-4}}
{{col end}}