1982 FIFA World Cup

The 1982 FIFA World Cup was the 12th edition of the men's FIFA World Cup. The 1982 World Cup was hosted by Spain for the first time ever. The 1982 World Cup saw an expansion from 16 teams to 24 teams, similar to the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup.

The defending champions were Argentina. They were eliminated in the second round despite being drawn in the "group of death", as the group saw eventual winners Italy and three time winners Brazil.

This World Cup was known for "Hungary vs El Salvador" as Hungary would win ten goals to one. One of the greatest World Cup matches came in 1982: Italy eliminated Brazil in the second round and West Germany eliminated France on penalties.

Italy won their third title and their first since 1938, defeating West Germany in the final 3-1.

Host selection
Spain was selected as the host of the 1982 World Cup in 1966, just before the start of the 1966 FIFA World Cup. West Germany was awarded the 1974 tournament, and 1982 went to Spain as a choice.

Qualified teams
With the expansion of 16 to 24 teams in 1982, five teams qualified for the first time. Those five were Algeria, Honduras, New Zealand, Kuwait and Cameroon. All teams expect Kuwait qualified for the 2010 World Cup.