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Test Your World Cup Knowledge

Take this quiz about the enormously popular tournament

Randy Lilleston,

Updated July 20, 2023

AARP

En español

Published October 26, 2022

/ Updated July 20, 2023

10 Questions

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Test Your World Cup Knowledge

[ {
  "question" : "There was no FIFA Women’s World Cup until 1991. What nation won that tournament?",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "France",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "China",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "United States",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  }, {
    "answer" : "Norway",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "The U.S. also won in 1999, 2015 and 2019.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "What nation won the first men’s FIFA World Cup soccer tournament?",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "Germany",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Italy",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Uruguay",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  }, {
    "answer" : "Brazil",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Uruguay defeated Argentina 4-2 to claim the first title in 1930. It won again in 1950.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "As of 2023, which of these two modern greats had scored more goals in the tournament: Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi?",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "Ronaldo",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Messi",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Messi has scored 13 goals and Ronaldo has eight.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "The U.S. leads all nations with four women’s World Cup titles. What nation is second?",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "Japan",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "China",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Germany",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  }, {
    "answer" : "Brazil",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Germany won in 2003 and again in 2007. No other nation has more than one title.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "Brazilian star Pelé is often associated with World Cup greatness, as he played in every tournament from 1958 through 1970 and his nation won three titles. How many World Cup goals did he score?",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "8",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "12",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  }, {
    "answer" : "16",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "24",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Those goals were scored in only 14 matches.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "In a 2014 World Cup match, U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard set a one-game record with a stunning 16 saves. What nation was the opponent?",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "England",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "France",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Germany",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Belgium",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "Nonetheless, the U.S. lost 2-1 and was eliminated from the tournament.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "True or false? England, the nation that originated modern soccer, has never won a men’s World Cup.",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "True",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "False",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "England won the World Cup in 1966 — the same year it hosted the tournament.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "The “hand of God” is one of the most famous (and controversial) World Cup goals. Who scored it?",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "Diego Maradona",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  }, {
    "answer" : "Jorge Valdano",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Steve Hodge",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Peter Reid",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "The 1986 goal hit Maradona’s hand (which is a rules violation) while he was attempting a header for Argentina against England. It was scored “a little with the head of Maradona and a little with the hand of God,” he explained.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "The 2022 World Cup was hosted by Qatar. Not counting that year (the host squad qualifies automatically), how many times has Qatar qualified for the tournament?",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "1",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "2",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "3",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "Never",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "It's worth noting that Qatar was not an independent nation until 1971, and it has had success in several major international soccer tournaments.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
}, {
  "question" : "True or false? No nation has ever hosted back-to-back World Cups in either men’s or women’s competitions.",
  "answers" : [ {
    "answer" : "True",
    "correctAnswer" : false
  }, {
    "answer" : "False",
    "correctAnswer" : true
  } ],
  "multiSelect" : false,
  "explanation" : "The United States hosted the women’s World Cup in 1999 and again in 2003 — the second occurring because of a last-minute shift from China over concerns about a SARS epidemic there.",
  "hint" : "",
  "hintLink" : "",
  "questionImgCaption" : "",
  "questionImgCredit" : ""
} ]

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Test Your World Cup Knowledge

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Randy Lilleston is the homepage editor for AARP.org. He previously served as editor-in-chief for business news publisher Industry Dive and was a senior digital editor for NPR, USA Today and CNN.

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