Argentina at the FIFA World Cup playmaker position was instead filled by Mario Kempes, who ended up becoming the first Argentinian to win the Golden Ball in addition to being the tournament's top scorer with 6 goals. The Dutch side was missing a superstar of their own: Johann Cruyff did not join the 1978 World Cup squads due to the aftermath of a kidnapping attempt which occurred in 1977. He only disclosed this information 30 years later. The closely contested match was influenced by a hostile atmosphere and ended with the Dutch players refusing to attend the award ceremony after Argentina grabbed the title in extra
Argentina at the FIFA World Cup Argentina at the FIFA World Cup This is a record of Argentina's results at the FIFA World Cup. Argentina is one of the most successful national football teams in the world, having won two World Cups in 1978 and 1986. Argentina has been runners up three times in 1930, 1990 and 2014. The team was present in all but four of the World Cups, being behind only Brazil, Italy and Germany in number of appearances. Argentina has also won the Copa América 14 times, one less than Uruguay. Moreover, Argentina has also won the Confederations Cup and the gold medal