THE GOLDEN TEAM (HUNGARY 1950s) The Cold War, dated from 1947 to 1991, was a sustained state of political and military tension between powers in the Western Bloc, dominated by the United States, and powers in the Eastern Bloc, dominated by the Soviet Union along with the Warsaw Pact. Hungary was part of the Soviet bloc: i.e. one of the communist states of Central and Eastern Europe aligned with the Soviet Union. A communist state is a state with a form of government characterized by single-party rule or dominant-party rule by a communist party (referred as Dictatorship of the Proletariat by its proponents) and a professed allegiance to a Leninist or Marxist–Leninist ideology as the guiding principle of the state.

HUNGARIAN REVOLUTION The Hungarian Revolution of 1956 was a spontaneous nationwide revolt against the Communist government of the People's Republic of Hungary and its Soviet-imposed policies, lasting from 23 October until 10 November The Soviet Union and its allies moved to crush the revolution. On 4 November, a large Soviet force invaded Budapest and other regions of the country. The Hungarian resistance continued until 10 November. Over 2,500 Hungarians and 700 Soviet troops were killed in the conflict, and 200,000 Hungarians fled as refugees. Mass arrests and denunciations continued for months thereafter. By January 1957, the new Soviet-installed government had suppressed all public opposition.

“If Hungary had won the World Cup there would have been no counter-revolution but a powerful thrust in the building of socialism in the country” [G. Sebes, coach of the Hungarian National team, 1956]

1952 Olympic gold medal, 1953 became Central European champion, 1954 it was the finalist in the 1954 World Cup being nominated by FIFA as the Best Team of the Tournament It is associated with a number of historically significant games of the 20th century, that includes the "Match of the Century" (England v Hungary 1953), the "Battle of Berne" (a 1954 World Cup quarterfinal v Brazil), a 1954 World Cup semi-final with Uruguay and the "Miracle of Berne" (the 1954 World Cup Final). THE MIGHTY MAGIARS

Between 1950 and 1956, the team recorded 42 victories, 7 draws and just one defeat, in the 1954 World Cup final against West Germany. The team was built around a core of six key players: Ferenc Puskás, Sándor Kocsis, Nándor Hidegkuti, Zoltán Czibor, József Bozsik and Gyula Grosics.

Ferenc Puskás Spanish League Top Scorer (Pichichi Trophy): , 1960–61, 1962–63, 1963–64 World Soccer Player of the Year: 1953 European Player of the Year: 1953 World Cup Golden Ball Winner: 1954

Sándor Kocsis goals/game average 84 goals85 internationals1945– 1956

MATCH OF THE CENTURY

MIRACLE OF BERNE

Beating Soviet Union and the Revolution started… 1956 Soviet Union 0 Hungary 1 On 23 September 1956, the Soviet Union played Hungary in a friendly game at the Lenin Central Stadium in Moscow, before a crowd of 102,000. The Soviet Union were unbeaten at home In addition, the Soviet team and players were regarded as ideals of socialist principles by senior communist authorities, who expected the Soviet Union to win comfortably, as befitting the senior member of the Eastern Bloc. However, a single goal from Zoltan Czibor ended the Soviet Union's unbeaten home record; the result did little to encourage good relations between the two countries, and was a minor contributing factor to a wave of patriotic fervour that resulted in the Hungarian Revolution of 1956.

TOTAL FOOTBALL The historical significance of the team lay in three areas: 1. the introduction of new tactics; 2. the concept of using a core set of well trained players used to playing as a team; 3. the idea that each player could play in any position if necessary.

Gusztáv Sebes His tactics – especially the concept of a deep lying centre forward – revolutionized a game where the majority of club and international sides had played the WM formation for the previous 20 years. The introduction and success of the Hungarian 3–2–3–2 formation led other managers and countries to experiment, with the 3–2–3–2 eventually evolving into the 4–2–4 formation.

WM

Sebes’ style

DEMISE The majority of the team played for Budapest Honvéd, who entered the 1956–57 European Cup and were drawn against Athletic Bilbao in the first round. Honvéd lost the away leg 3–2, but before the home leg could be played, the Hungarian Revolution erupted in Budapest. The players decided against going back to Hungary and arranged for the return with Athletic to be played at Heysel Stadium in Brussels, Belgium. Honvéd were eliminated 6–5 on aggregate, and the Hungarian players were left in limbo. They summoned their families from Budapest, and despite opposition from FIFA and the Hungarian football authorities, they organised a fundraising tour of Italy, Portugal, Spain, and Brazil. After returning to Europe, the players parted ways: Kocsis and Czibor moved to Spain to play for Barcelona. Puskás emigrated to Spain to play for Real Madrid. Hidegkuti returned to Hungary as a player and later became manager of MTK Budapest FC before emigrating to successfully manage clubs in Italy, Poland and Egypt. Bozsik also returned in Hungary, becoming the manager of several Hungarian teams.