Mundialito
Founded1984 (1984)
Abolished1988
RegionInternational
Last champions England
(2nd title)
Most successful team(s) Italy
(3 titles)

The Mundialito (Spanish for "little World Cup") was a global invitational tournament for national teams in women's association football. Held on four occasions in the northern region of Italy since 1984, it was one of the most prestigious women's football events, prior to the advent of the FIFA Women's World Cup and Women's Olympic Football.

History

The first edition of the tournament was played in Japan in September 1981. Italy drew 1–1 with Denmark then beat Japan 9–0,[1] while England beat Japan 4–0 but lost 1–0 to Denmark.[2] Japan–Denmark and England–Italy fixtures were not played.

In 1984 and 1985, the teams first played round-robin within a single pool, then a further match to decide the winner and third place. In 1986 and 1988, the preliminary round was contested within two groups, each sending a team to participate in the final match.

The most successful teams were Italy with three titles and England with two titles. The 1985 tournament was notable for the international debut of the United States women's national soccer team.[3]

Another more recent international tournament for women's football teams, the Algarve Cup, has also been unofficially known as the Mundialito.[4]

Results

Year Hosts Final Third Place Match
Winner Score Runner-up 3rd Place Score 4th Place
1981 Japan
Italy		 (Partial) round-robin
Denmark
England		 (Partial) round-robin
Japan
1984 Italy
Italy		 3–1
West Germany
England		 2–1
Belgium
1985 Italy
England		 3–2
Italy
Denmark		 1–0
United States
1986 Italy
Italy		 1–0
United States
China		 2–1
Japan
1988 Italy
England		 2–1 (aet)
Italy
United States		 1–0
France

References

  1. ↑ "GIAPPONE - ITALIA". FIGC. Retrieved 2011-02-04.
  2. ↑ "Danmark 1-0 England". DBU.dk. Retrieved 2011-02-04.
  3. ↑ "Anniversary of First WNT Game". U.S. Soccer. 2005-08-26. Archived from the original on 2012-04-25. Retrieved 2011-02-04.
  4. ↑ "USA lay down a marker". FIFA. 2010-03-04. Archived from the original on March 8, 2010. Retrieved 2011-02-04.
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