Mussolini loves the World Cup

There is an old joke about the Italian army where they are selling their rifles. They are reported to advertise:

"Italian rifle, mint condition, never fired, only dropped once".


Of course this is most mischievous as it suggests that the Italians are not as brave as some of the foe that they have faced. Stereotypes can be dangerous, especially when one starts to bring them into the field of conflict.

For those of you that have been following the World Cup though, there have however been some uncanny stereotypes.

The Swiss never really got invovled. The French succumbed early despite plenty of bravado and hystrionics. The Italians were all fired up until they actually had to play some tough opposition at which point they capitulated, and the English were left to face the Germans alone. In hindsight, they could probably have done with some American help. Of course the analogy fails when the Dutch end up fighting the Uruguayans for no particular reason and the Spanish overwhelm the Germans with their own blitzkrieg.

Italian Fascist dictator, Benito Mussolini, attended most of the matches during the 1934 FIFA World Cup. However during this World Cup he hasn't because Italy went out early and also he's dead.

During 1934 Bennito used the World Cup as a tool for propaganda. One example of this was evident through Mussolini’s arrogance, where he named one of the World Cup stadiums in Turin after himself. The "I'll always be in Hitlers shadow stadium" still stands today.


While certain teams criticised Mussolini’s Italy about their aggressive tactics during the tournament, they were even more critical when he started getting really aggressive and sending tanks into their home towns.

It was claimed that Mussolini was thrilled to see Italy clinch their first World Cup as it would promote national spirit ahead of any conflict. Unfortunately Italian national spirit, like any strong spirit, ended up with the country turning into a nation of swingers. They changed their choice of sides as often as the seasons came and went: Allies, Axis, Allies, Italy, Mafia, Allies, not sure, UN, EU, mafia, Berlusconi / Mafia.