# Brazil 2–0 Soviet Union

> Pelé's first World Cup match, aged 17, in which Brazil beat the Soviet Union with two goals from Vavá.

Source page: https://pele.wiki/footballer/matches/brazil-2-0-soviet-union-1958
Reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1958_FIFA_World_Cup_Group_4

- Date: 15 June 1958
- Stage: Group stage
- Result: Won
- His goals: 0
- Attendance: 50,928

Brazil had beaten Austria and drawn with England without Pelé, who had a knee injury. For the third group match, at Ullevi in Gothenburg, coach Vicente Feola picked him and Garrincha.

A team psychologist had advised against playing the 17-year-old. Feola played him anyway. Garrincha's dribbling troubled the Soviet defence from the start, and Vavá scored twice. Pelé did not score but set up Vavá's second goal.

Brazil won 2–0 and topped the group. The crowd was 50,928.

Brazil finished first in their group without conceding a goal. The Soviet Union, the 1956 Olympic champions, also went through after beating England in a play-off. The referee was Maurice Guigue of France, who also took charge of the final.

Garrincha, too, was making his World Cup debut.

## Related

- The tournament it was played in: [FIFA World Cup 1958](https://pele.wiki/footballer/tournaments/1958-fifa-world-cup)
- The stadium: [Ullevi](https://pele.wiki/footballer/locations/ullevi)
- His side: [Brazil](https://pele.wiki/footballer/teams/brazil)
- The opponents: [Soviet Union](https://pele.wiki/footballer/teams/soviet-union-national-team)
- People who played a part in it: [Pelé](https://pele.wiki/footballer/people/pele), [Garrincha](https://pele.wiki/footballer/people/garrincha), [Vavá](https://pele.wiki/footballer/people/vava), [Vicente Feola](https://pele.wiki/footballer/people/vicente-feola), [Didi](https://pele.wiki/footballer/people/didi), [Nílton Santos](https://pele.wiki/footballer/people/nilton-santos)
- The chapters it appears in: [Sweden 1958](https://pele.wiki/footballer/chapters/sweden-1958)