Only one nation have never lost a World Cup home qualifier after Brazil defeat to Argentina ends 60-year run
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Brazil's 1-0 defeat to Argentina on Tuesday means that only one nation has never lost a World Cup qualifier at home.
Fernando Diniz's side tasted in the Maracana Stadium amid scenes of violence between police and Argentina supporters.
Lionel Messi led his team off the pitch shortly after fighting broke out during the national anthems and the involvement of police.
On the pitch, Argentina secured their 1-0 win through Nicolas Otamendi's goal, meaning they stay top of the South America World Cup qualifying group.
Brazil, meanwhile, are down in sixth, having lost their two previous games and not won in three.
But they had managed to avoid defeat at home - until the devastating loss to Argentina.
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Now, the only nation left in the world that has not lost a home World Cup qualifier is none other than Spain.
As per Argentinian journalist MisterChip, only Brazil, Spain and Italy had undefeated home records at the beginning of 2022.
But Italy lost that unbeaten record after a defeat to North Macedonia in March 2022, and Brazil's defeat to Argentina means that Spain are the only ones left standing.
Brazil had gone 64 games unbeaten before the loss, while Spain have played 62 home games in qualifiers.
The feat is all the more impressive when you consider that Spain have only hosted the World Cup once - in 1982 - so have had to go through the qualification on every other edition of the tournament.
For 2022 World Cup qualifying, Spain topped Group B with six wins, one draw and one defeat from their eight games. The defeat came in Sweden, a 2-1 loss.
Luis de la Fuente's side are currently ranked number eight in FIFA's men's world rankings, and will enter the Euro 2024 draw in pot one after qualifying for the tournament as group winners ahead of nearest rivals Scotland.
Featured Image Credit: Getty
Topics: Football World Cup, Brazil, Argentina