1966: The World Cup that changed a nation

The England men's football team has missed out on the opportunity to replicate the nation's much-heralded victory back in the 1966 World Cup, still one of the most celebrated moments in its sporting history. But what did the football tournament reveal about the state of the country that staged it back in the 1960s? In today's episode of the History Extra podcast, John Borkham talks to author Michael Calvin about the forgotten stories of that remarkable summer, from diplomatic tensions and class divisions to Middlesbrough's unexpected love affair with North Korea. So Michael, this summer marks 60 years since the England men's team won the World Cup. And aside from the fact it's clearly a very big anniversary, what was it that made you want to focus on this topic?

for a Beck? Well, 66 in many ways was an inflection point in history. It was on the cusp of this change from grey post-war austerity and institutionalized class-based reverence for authority to this new era of creative freedom, personal possibility. technological ingenuity. Now, from my background in far too many years covering major sport at international level, I'm very aware that all major sports events are reflections of their time, and that's from Hitler's Olympics in 1936 to Trump's Soccer World Cup in 2026.

They're reflections of uh contemporary values, attitudes and trends. And so what I wanted to do is that, you know, everyone, let's be honest about this. 1966 is rammed down people's throats. You know, every schoolboy knows it was, you know, 60 years of hurt.

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