Ever wondered why soccer is such an exciting and popular global sport? It’s almost like football; only without the padding and that it’s played with the feet instead of the hands. Other than that, they are almost the same; the physical contacts (Zidane’s head bud!) and going behind enemy lines to score! However, as football is more about brute force, soccer is more about skill and touch. Scoring a goal is very difficult, but when it happens it is one of the best moments in any sport. Here is a soccer scoreboards list of the top 3 goals ever to be scored in the World Cup and the players who scored them.

1 – Diego Maradona, World Cup 1986 – This is by far the best goal in World Cup history. The soccer scoreboards showed that it was the 1986 World Cup qualifier played in Mexico against England. Argentina went on to win 2-0, but everyone knows that the “Hand of God” goal, in the 51st minute, shouldn’t have been a goal at all, but as Maradona was cheeky enough to disguise his handball goal from the referee it didn’t matter. Therefore, skipping over his first “cheeky” goal, we move on to his second goal in the match. The midfielder scored an astonishing goal four minutes after that which more than made up for his “immoral” first goal. He took the English, and the world, completely by surprise when he scored a 75 yard running field goal. He left 6 English players in dust, plus the goal keeper in his wild run. The speed, agility and maneuverability he showcased had never been seen since, until Messi burst onto the scene two years ago!

2 – Roberto Baggio, World Cup 1990 – Although Roberto Baggio will unfortunately always be remembered for his decisive penalty miss for Italy in the ’94 World Cup final; his goal in ’90 against Czechoslovakia is still considered to be one of the best in soccer history. Mostly used as a substitute in the 1990 World Cup games, he was able to show his great skills when he scored a goal on a return pass from Giannini. He showcased the great balance, dribbling skills, speed and agility that he possessed at that time.

3 – Edson Arantes do Nascimento, World Cup 1958 – In a match against Sweden in the 1958 World Cup, Edson Arantes do Nascimento, more commonly known simply as Pele, scored a jaw dropping goal. He showed complete control, not only over the ball but also over his own movements, and great application of power to put the ball into the back of the net. After receiving a flighted pass from a team mate, he was able to control the ball with such precision that the Swedish player, who was practically in his face when he got possession, never even stood a chance to dispossess Pele.

For more information on Edson Arantes do Nascimento, go to:
en.wikipedia.org