FIFA World Cup hosts second of these, the 1938 FIFA World Cup, in France was controversial, as the South American countries had been led to understand that the World Cup would rotate between the two continents. Both Argentina and Uruguay thus boycotted the tournament. The first tournament following World War II, held in Brazil in 1950, had three teams withdraw for either financial problems or disagreements with the organization. To avoid any future boycotts or controversy, FIFA began a pattern of alternation between the Americas and Europe, which continued until the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Asia. The system evolved so that the host
1938 FIFA World Cup 1950. As a result, Italy were the reigning World Cup holders for a record 16 years, from 1934 to 1950. The Italian Vice-President of FIFA, Dr. Ottorino Barassi, hid the trophy in a shoe-box under his bed throughout the Second World War and thus saved it from falling into the hands of occupying troops. Ten cities were planned to host the tournament; of these, all hosted matches except Lyon, which did not due to Austria's withdrawal. For a list of all squads that appeared in the final tournament, see "1938 FIFA World Cup squads". With seven goals, Leônidas is the