⚽ GREATEST GOALS EVER
PAGE 1 OF 5 · WHAT MAKES A GOAL GREAT
THE MAGIC MOMENT
A GOAL YOU NEVER FORGET
Every football match is a hunt for goals, but a few goals are so special that the whole world remembers them forever. A great goal is not just about putting the ball in the net, it is about how it is done. It might be a magical solo run where one player beats half the other team, a thunderous shot from far away that flies into the top corner, or a perfect volley struck out of the air before the ball ever touches the ground. The greatest goals mix skill, speed, bravery, and a little bit of imagination that no one else on the pitch could see. They make commentators scream, send crowds leaping out of their seats, and replay again and again on television for years to come. The World Cup, watched by billions of people, is the biggest stage of all, so a wonder goal scored there becomes part of history. In this comic we travel back through the tournament to relive the most jaw-dropping strikes ever scored, and we learn exactly what made each one a true work of art.
⚡ DID YOU KNOW?
Since 2009 the best goal scored anywhere in the world each year wins the FIFA Puskas Award, named after the legendary Hungarian striker Ferenc Puskas.
GOAL!
SOLO RUNS
🏃 One player beats many
🪄 Dribbling magic and balance
🎯 Finished off with a cool strike
🪄 Dribbling magic and balance
🎯 Finished off with a cool strike
VOLLEYS & ROCKETS
🌋 Struck before the ball lands
🚀 Long shots into the top corner
👀 Perfect timing and technique
🚀 Long shots into the top corner
👀 Perfect timing and technique
PAGE 2 OF 5 · THE GOAL OF THE CENTURY
MEXICO 1986
MARADONA'S SLALOM RUN
In the quarter-final of the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, Argentina's Diego Maradona scored a goal so brilliant that fans voted it the Goal of the Century. He picked up the ball deep in his own half, turned away from two England players in a tight spinning move, then set off on a sprint that left defender after defender chasing shadows. For more than ten seconds he raced almost the entire length of the pitch with the ball glued to his left foot, swerving past four opponents at full speed. Reaching the penalty area, he rounded the goalkeeper too and slid the ball gently into the empty net. The whole stadium fell silent for a heartbeat before exploding in disbelief. Maradona had beaten half a team by himself in a single unstoppable run, using balance, close control, and incredible courage. It remains the most famous individual goal in football history, a reminder that one player with a dream and a ball at his feet can do something the whole world will never forget.
⚡ DID YOU KNOW?
During the run Maradona touched the ball about eleven times and beat five England players, covering more than sixty metres in around ten seconds.
MAGIC!
THE START
🔄 Spun away from two players
🦶 Ball glued to his left foot
🏃 Off on a length-of-pitch dash
🦶 Ball glued to his left foot
🏃 Off on a length-of-pitch dash
THE DRIBBLE
💨 Swerved past four defenders
⚖️ Perfect balance at full speed
🕰️ Ten seconds of pure skill
⚖️ Perfect balance at full speed
🕰️ Ten seconds of pure skill
THE FINISH
🧤 Rounded the goalkeeper too
🥅 Slid it into the empty net
🏆 Voted Goal of the Century
🥅 Slid it into the empty net
🏆 Voted Goal of the Century
PAGE 3 OF 5 · VOLLEYS AND ROCKETS
THE TOUCH
🎯 Chest cushions the dropping ball
👀 Eyes lock onto the goal
⏱️ Timing is everything
👀 Eyes lock onto the goal
⏱️ Timing is everything
LONG RANGE
🚀 Struck from far outside the box
🌀 Dips and swerves in the air
🥅 Smashes into the top corner
🌀 Dips and swerves in the air
🥅 Smashes into the top corner
BRAZIL 2014
THE PERFECT VOLLEY
A volley is a shot struck while the ball is still in the air, and when it is done perfectly it is one of the most beautiful things in football. At the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, Colombia's James Rodriguez produced a volley that took everyone's breath away. With his back to goal, he chested a high ball down, spun, and smashed it on the drop from twenty-five yards. The ball flew off his boot, clipped the underside of the crossbar, and dropped into the net. It was so perfect that it won the Puskas Award for the best goal in the world that year. Long-range rockets work in a similar way, but the player strikes the ball cleanly from far outside the penalty box, making it dip and swerve past a helpless goalkeeper. These goals need split-second timing, a still head, and thousands of hours of practice. They look effortless, yet only a handful of players in history have the technique and the bravery to even attempt them on the biggest stage of all.
⚡ DID YOU KNOW?
James Rodriguez also finished as the top scorer of the 2014 World Cup with six goals, and his volley against Uruguay won the Puskas Award.
SMASH!
PAGE 4 OF 5 · TEAM GOALS AND SOLO DASHES
MORE MASTERPIECES
WHEN PASSING BECOMES ART
Not every great goal comes from one player. Some of the finest are team goals, where a whole side passes the ball together like a flowing machine until someone taps it home. The most famous of all was scored by Brazil in the 1970 final, when the ball moved through the entire team before captain Carlos Alberto thundered it into the corner, finishing a move of total beauty. Argentina did something similar in 2006 when Esteban Cambiasso scored after his team strung together twenty-four passes without the other side touching the ball once. Solo dashes also keep coming. In 1994 Saudi Arabia's Saeed Al-Owairan picked up the ball in his own half and sprinted past half the Belgium team to score one of the great surprise goals. Each of these strikes shows a different kind of greatness, from patient teamwork to fearless individual brilliance. Together they prove that football is a game of endless creativity, where there is always a new and wonderful way to score.
⚡ DID YOU KNOW?
Before Cambiasso's goal in 2006, Argentina passed the ball twenty-four times in a row, one of the longest passing moves ever seen at a World Cup.
TEAMWORK!
BRAZIL 1970
🇧🇷 Whole team built the move
💥 Carlos Alberto blasted it home
🏆 The greatest final goal ever
💥 Carlos Alberto blasted it home
🏆 The greatest final goal ever
ARGENTINA 2006
🔗 Twenty-four passes in a row
⚽ Cambiasso slid the finish in
👏 Football as a flowing machine
⚽ Cambiasso slid the finish in
👏 Football as a flowing machine
SAUDI 1994
🌵 Al-Owairan ran from his own half
💨 Beat half the Belgium team
😮 A shock solo masterpiece
💨 Beat half the Belgium team
😮 A shock solo masterpiece
PAGE 5 OF 5 · HOW TO SCORE A WONDER GOAL
THE SECRET RECIPE
SKILL PLUS PRACTICE PLUS COURAGE
Wonder goals look like magic, but they are really the result of years of hard work. The players who score them spent their childhoods practising the same moves thousands of times, until close control, balance, and a clean strike became second nature. When the big moment arrived, their bodies already knew exactly what to do, so they could be brave and try the impossible. The lesson for every young footballer is simple. Practise your dribbling in the garden, hit the ball against a wall again and again, and never be afraid to attempt something special in a match. Most attempts will fail, and that is fine, because failing is how you learn. But every now and then, all that practice and courage will come together in one perfect moment, and you will score a goal you remember for the rest of your life. The greatest goals in World Cup history began exactly that way, with a child, a ball, and a big dream that refused to give up.
PRACTISE!
GOAL TYPES
🪄 Solo runs beat many players
🌋 Volleys are struck out of the air
🔗 Team goals flow from many passes
🌋 Volleys are struck out of the air
🔗 Team goals flow from many passes
REMEMBER
⚽ KEY FACTS
Maradona's 1986 solo run was voted the Goal of the Century. James Rodriguez's 2014 volley won the Puskas Award. Brazil's 1970 team goal is the most famous final goal ever.
🎯 Great goals mix skill and timing
🏋️ Years of practice make them possible
💪 Be brave and try the special move
🏋️ Years of practice make them possible
💪 Be brave and try the special move
🧠 QUIZ TIME!
GREATEST GOALS EVER · 5 QUESTIONS
QUESTION 01
Whose 1986 solo run was voted the Goal of the Century?
QUESTION 02
What is a volley in football?
QUESTION 03
Which award did James Rodriguez's 2014 volley win?
QUESTION 04
Before Cambiasso's 2006 goal, how many passes did Argentina string together?
QUESTION 05
What is the real secret behind scoring a wonder goal?
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