00:05Winning two World Cups in a row is so tough that only two nations have ever
00:09done it, and none for many decades. But in that time there have been three
00:17instances where a country has won two out of three, and as the saying goes, that
00:23ain't bad. Brazil did it in 1962 and 1970, having missed out in 66. Argentina did it
00:32in 1978 and 1986. And then Brazil did it again, winning in 1994, missing in 98 before
00:42winning again in 2002. On each occasion, the eight-year gap has meant the two winning teams
00:49have borne little similarity. The only member of Brazil's 1962 squad to still be around
00:56for the 1970 tournament was Pelé, but he didn't play in the 62 final because of injury.
01:04The only Argentinian to play in both the 1978 and 1986 tournaments was Daniel Passarella,
01:11but he didn't play in the 1986 final.
01:16And only two players, Ronaldo and Cafu, were in both of Brazil's 1994 and 2002 squads.
01:24Although Ronaldo didn't play a single game in the USA.
01:29That leaves Cafu the only person to have played in winning World Cup finals eight years apart.
01:35And he's also the only person to have ever played in three World Cup finals in a row,
01:40part of Brazil's losing 1998 World Cup final team.
01:46More than that, he's Brazil's most capped player and was captain in 2002,
01:51the first to hold up the trophy.
01:58I felt at the time we took this photo, it was such an incredible happiness I felt at the time
02:03we raised that
02:04World Cup. The whole world looking at you and saying, you are good, you are winners, you were the champions.
02:11That moment crowned all the hard work done here in this room during all this time.
02:16Everyone has dreams while young.
02:19And when you raise the World Cup trophy, you see your dreams came true.
02:26That moment represents a dream coming true, the feeling of having the job done on behalf of your nation.
02:36Back in 1994, Cafu was used mainly as a substitute, but played most of the final against Italy,
02:43coming on at the 21 minute mark after Jorginho was injured.
02:48The 94 World Cup was played in the United States and was generally a high scoring and attractive tournament.
02:56The irony being that for the first time ever, the final was 0-0 at the end of extra time,
03:02and the first to be decided on penalties.
03:06Brazil were unquestionably the best team in the tournament.
03:10Forwards Romário and Bebeto are often judged a step below Brazil's greatest match winners,
03:16like Pelé, Garincha, Ronaldo and Neymar.
03:23But they performed admirably.
03:26The Selesau topped their group, with Romário scoring in all three matches,
03:31while Bebeto was the scorer in their win over USA in the round of 16.
03:37And they combined for three goals in the quarter-final,
03:41before Romário sent them into the final with an 80th-minute goal against Sweden in the semi.
03:48Italy, on the other hand, were fortunate to even make it out of the group stage,
03:53losing their first match to the Republic of Ireland,
03:56beating Norway with a single goal to Dino Baggio, and only drawing with Mexico.
04:03For the only time in World Cup history, the four teams in the group finished with the same points.
04:09Italy sneaking through as one of the best third-place teams.
04:14They only just made it through their round of 16 match against Nigeria too,
04:19trailing until the 88th minute when Roberto Baggio drew them level before his 102nd-minute penalty gave them the win.
04:29But they found their rhythm in the quarter and semi-finals with sound victories,
04:34thanks to a goal each from Dino and Roberto Baggio against Spain and two to Roberto against Bulgaria.
04:44For Italy, the pain of losing the penalty shootout in the final was exacerbated by the fact that their
04:49captain Franco Beresi missed the first penalty, and their best shooter Roberto Baggio missed the last.
04:59But for Cafu and his Brazilian teammates, it was pure joy.
05:05You play for your country, your nation, while millions are watching.
05:10Millions of people are watching what you do in a World Cup.
05:13For those who have never been to a FIFA World Cup, those who are going for the first time,
05:18for those who have already been there and could not become champions,
05:22I can say that becoming a world champion is the best thing on the planet.
05:26There is no greater thrill than to raise the trophy and say,
05:29I am a world champion. In 1998, Brazil would make the final again.
05:36But the sensational mystery ailment which afflicted the world's best player Ronaldo
05:41would cost them the chance of beating France.
05:44But nothing could stop Ronaldo, Captain Cafu and the rest of the Brazilians in 2002.
05:51By any measure, the 2002 Brazilian team was superior to the 1994 victors.
05:59The three R's, Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Ronaldinho, all won the Ballon d'Or and formed one of the great
06:07attacking trios of all time. While one of the greatest left backs in history, Roberto Carlos,
06:14created beautiful balance with the breakneck pace of Cafu on the right.
06:21Ronaldo was in no doubt the 2002 team was the best of the four World Cup squads he was in.
06:28But his respect for Pelé stopped him short of declaring it the best ever.
06:35I dare to say the team of 2002 was better than all the others Brazil sent to a World Cup,
06:41except for the 1970 team.
Comments