1958 FIFA World Cup 1958 FIFA World Cup The 1958 FIFA World Cup, the sixth staging of the World Cup, was hosted by Sweden from 8 to 29 June. The tournament was won by Brazil, who beat Sweden 5–2 in the final in the Stockholm suburb of Solna for their first title. The tournament is also notable for marking the debut on the world stage of a then 17-year-old Pelé. Argentina, Chile, Mexico, and Sweden expressed interest in hosting the tournament. Swedish delegates lobbied other countries at the FIFA Congress held in Rio de Janeiro around the opening of the 1950 World Cup finals.
1950 FIFA World Cup was not admitted to FIFA until 1952. The French-occupied Saarland had been accepted by FIFA two weeks before the World Cup. Italy, Austria, and other countries that had been involved in World War II as allies of Germany and Japan, were able to participate in qualification. Italy qualified automatically as defending champions of 1938. Finland, despite being a co-belligerent of Nazi Germany from 1941-1944, was allowed to qualify but withdrew before qualification was complete, and FIFA declared their matches as friendlies. The British nations were invited to take part, having rejoined FIFA four years earlier, after 17 years of self-imposed