Tuesday, June 9, 2015

9 June 1938 - The Swiss Kick The Nazis Out Of France

On 9 June 1938, Switzerland defeated Germany 2-4 in a World Cup First Round replay before a crowd of 22,000 at the Parc des Princes in Paris. The match eliminated Germany from the tournament and remains their poorest showing in a World Cup.

The two sides had earlier played on 4 June, but the match ended as a 1-1 draw at the end of extra time. According to the rules then in place, a replay was required to produce a winner. Initially, it appeared that the Germans were on track to advance after taking a 2-0 lead with an 8th-minute goal from striker Willi Hahnemann and a 22nd-minute own-goal from Switzerland's Ernst Lörtscher (the first-ever World Cup own-goal). 

The Swiss, however, stormed back, with a pair of goals from strikers Eugen Walaschek (43') and Alfred Bickel (64'). Fellow striker André Abegglen, who had scored the Swiss' only goal in the earlier meeting, completed the comeback win with a late brace (75', 78'). For their reward, the Swiss advanced to face Hungary in the quarterfinals, losing 2-0.

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