The final was played at the Estadio Centenario in Montevideo, Uruguay, on 30 July, a Wednesday. It was one of only two World Cup finals to be played on a day other than Sunday, the other being the 1966 FIFA World Cup final, which was played on a Saturday. A disagreement overshadowed the build-up to the match as which team would provide the match ball. FIFA intervened with a compromise, that Argentina would provide the ball for the first half, and Uruguay for the second.[1]
The stadium gates were opened at eight in the morning, six hours before kick-off, and at noon the ground was full,[2][full citation needed] officially holding 93,000 people.[3] Uruguay successfully "defended" its Olympic gold medal achievement 4–2, coming back from a 2–1 deficit at half-time.
Uruguay manager Alberto Suppici was 31 at the time, and still holds the record for being youngest coach of a FIFA World Cup winning team. Jules Rimet, president of FIFA, presented Uruguay with the World Cup Trophy, later to be named after him. The following day was declared a national holiday in Uruguay.[3] In Buenos Aires, a mob threw stones at the Uruguayan consulate.[4][full citation needed]
The last living player from the final was Argentine striker Francisco Varallo, who died on 30 August 2010 aged 100.[5] The last living Uruguayan from the final was Ernesto Mascheroni, who died on 3 July 1984 aged 76.
After 12 minutes, Pablo Dorado put the hosts into the lead, before Argentina winger Carlos Peucelle equalised 8 minutes later, beating goalkeeper Enrique Ballestrero with a powerful shot. In the 37th minute, tournament top scorer Guillermo Stábile gave Argentina a 2–1 lead going into the break. Uruguay leveled the score 12 minutes into the second half via a goal from Pedro Cea, and took the lead back for good with a Santos Iriarte goal in the 68th minute. With a minute remaining, Héctor Castro put Uruguay up 4–2, sealing victory in the inaugural World Cup.[6]
