Argentina's Mario Kempes celebrates scoring in the final

There was huge opposition to Argentina hosting the event as the country was run by a military dictatorship.

But the home players swept all before them, beating Holland 3-1 in the final.

England failed to reach the finals for the second successive tournament and home nation hopes were carried by Scotland who woefully underperformed.

After grandiose and premature claims of title glory, the Tartan Army went out of the tournament after the first round, having lost to Peru and drawn against Iran.

There had been threats of a major boycott in protest at General Videla's totalitarian regime.

But many of the top footballing nations - and first-timers such as Iran and Tunisia - ended up going.

However, when a leading tournament official was assassinated en route to his first press conference doubts about Argentina's suitability to host the event intensified.

The great Johan Cruyff had decided to stay away but Holland, after a slow start, hit their straps in the second phase.

Dubious decisions

They made it to their second successive final by defeating Austria 5-1 and Italy 2-1, and drawing 2-2 with defending champions West Germany.

Argentina and Brazil battled it out in the other second-round group, but the hosts had a distinct advantage going into their final game knowing exactly what they had to do.

They needed to beat Peru by four clear goals to pip Brazil on goal difference and reach the final.

It did not prove a problem as they put six past the Peruvians, with Mario Kempes scoring twice.

Kempes went on to score two more in the final as Holland were beaten 3-1 after extra-time.

But Argentina's success left a sour taste after they made their opponents wait before the game and found themselves on the right end of some dubious refereeing decisions.

First phase

Group A

Argentina 2-1 Hungary Italy 2-1 France Argentina 2-1 France

Italy 3-1 Hungary Italy 1-0 Argentina France 3-1 Hungary

	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Italy	3	3	0	0	6	2	6
Argentina	3	2	0	1	4	3	4
France	3	1	0	2	5	5	2
Hungary	3	0	0	3	3	8	0

Group B

West Germany 0-0 Poland Tunisia 3-1 Mexico West Germany 6-0 Mexico

Poland 1-0 Tunisia West Germany 0-0 Tunisia Poland 3-1 Mexico

	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Poland	3	2	1	0	4	1	5
West Germany	3	1	2	0	6	0	4
Tunisia	3	1	1	1	3	2	3
Mexico	3	0	0	3	2	12	0

Group C

Holland 3-0 Iran Peru 3-1 Scotland Iran 1-1 Scotland

Brazil 0-0 Spain Spain 1-0 Sweden Brazil 1-0 Austria

	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Peru	3	2	1	0	7	2	5
Holland	3	1	1	1	5	3	3
Scotland	3	1	1	1	5	6	3
Iran	3	0	1	2	2	8	1

Group D

Austria 2-1 Spain Sweden 1-1 Brazil Austria 1-0 Sweden

Holland 0-0 Peru Peru 4-1 Iran Scotland 3-2 Holland

	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Austria	3	2	0	1	3	2	4
Brazil	3	1	2	0	2	1	4
Spain	3	1	1	1	2	2	3
Mexico	3	0	1	2	1	3	1

Second phase

Group A

West Germany 0-0 Italy Holland 5-1 Austria Italy 1-0 Austria

West Germany 2-2 Holland Holland 2-1 Italy Austria 3-2 West Germany

	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Holland	3	2	1	0	9	4	5
Italy	3	1	1	1	2	2	3
West Germany	3	0	2	1	4	5	2
Austria	3	1	0	2	4	8	2

Group B

Brazil 3-0 Peru Argentina 2-0 Poland Poland 1-0 Peru

Argentina 0-0 Brazil Brazil 3-1 Poland Argentina 6-0 Peru

	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Argentina	3	2	1	0	8	0	5
Brazil	3	2	1	0	6	1	5
Poland	3	1	0	2	2	5	2
Peru	3	0	0	3	0	10	0

3rd/4th place play-off:
Brazil 2-1 Italy

Final:
Argentina 3-1 Holland (aet)

Leading scorer: Six goals: Mario Kempes (Argentina)