They call it ‘The Drunken Summer’ in Bulgaria. It began with a thudding hangover – one anything but seasonal.
Bulgaria played at four successive FIFA World Cups™ between an outbound flight to Rancagua in 1962 and a return one from Dortmund in 1974. They didn’t manage a single victory. The Lions returned to the big stage in 1986, but despite reaching the knockout phase, once again went home winless.
Bulgaria banked themselves three more shots at a victory more elusive than sightings of the Balkan lynx with one of the most sport-shaking upsets in World Cup qualifying history. They were predictably trailing Laurent Blanc, Marcel Desailly, Didier Deschamps, Emmanuel Petit, Eric Cantona and Jean-Pierre Papin at the Parc des Princes, but rallied to spark hysteria across Bulgaria and havoc across France.
“God is a Bulgarian,” declared ecstatic commentator Nikolay Kolev – a saying that stuck. “A murderer” was how Gerard Houllier infamously labelled David Ginola, who’d forfeited possession en route to Emil Kostadinov’s winner – a comment that provoked a lawsuit.
‘The Dagger’, as Hristo Stoichkov was known, and Co then headed to the States striving to murder an unwanted milestone. It had taken Mexico 14 matches to register their maiden World Cup win. Bulgaria had begrudgingly adopted that record from them. They sat winless from 15 outings in the global finals – a statistic they were hellbent on slaying.
“I promise that we will end this run in the United States,” declared Stoichkov. A key component in Barcelona’s ‘Dream Team’, the 28-year-old had elite back-up from former Real Betis bruiser Trifon Ivanov, Hamburg wizards Yordan Letchkov and Krasimir Balakov, and Porto winger Kostadinov.
Dimitar Penev’s side nevertheless had their problems. Valencia striker Lubo Penev, the coach’s nephew, had been diagnosed with testicular cancer and ruled out of the tournament. Furthermore, they went into their Cotton Bowl curtain-raiser having failed to win since that jour de gloire in Paris, concerningly being held by Oman, Kuwait and newcomers Ukraine.
Given that opponents Nigeria were making their competition debut, and were without injured captain Stephen Keshi and star man Jay-Jay Okocha, hope was still high on the swarming streets of Sofia. Those supporters exploded when, late in the first half, Stoichkov’s spectacular free-kick flew into the top corner. Unbeknownst to him, though, the referee had awarded it indirect and the Super Eagles ran out 3-0 victors.
On to Soldier Field the Bulgarian brigade marched for a battle of bordering nations. “The pressure was intense going into the game against Greece,” admitted Penev. “The winless run was all the media were talking about. As humans, it’s impossible not to think about it. We desperately needed to end the run.”
The Lions didn’t just make that elusive kill, but did so savagely. With ‘The Wolf’ Ivanov shackling Nikos Machlas, Stoichkov arrowed a pair of penalties into a Chicagoan net, Letchkov registered a regal third, and Daniel Borimirov polished off a 4-0 pummelling.
The final whistle sparked wild celebrations from Penev and his players – and across streets and squares in ‘The Land of the Roses’. ‘The Drunken Summer’ was in full swing, and Bulgarians were no longer drowning their sorrows. After 17 appearances and 32 years, their national team had finally recorded a World Cup win.
“It was huge relief,” said Balakov. “We needed that result badly. The people of Bulgaria needed that badly. Once that weight was lifted off our shoulders, we felt like a new team.”
An invigorated, Stoichkov-inspired Bulgaria then stunned Diego Simeone, Fernando Redondo, Ariel Ortega, Gabriel Batistuta and Argentina 2-0 to reach the knockout phase, where they eliminated Mexico and, against almighty odds, Germany en route to finishing fourth.
“It was the greatest time in Bulgarian national team history,” said Stoichkov. “It was a time of indescribable joy for the Bulgarian people.”
‘The Drunken Summer’ was a time Bulgarians spent intoxicated on ‘The Beautiful Game’. It was also indebted to that first celebratory toast in Chicago.
“The Greece win was our most important result,” stressed Ivanov. “Without Greece, there would have been no Argentina or Germany.”
Most matches to get first World Cup win
Bulgaria – 17 (1962-1994)
Korea Republic – 15 (1954-2002)
Mexico – 14 (1930-1962)
Belgium – 7 (1930-1970)
Longest winless runs in World Cup history
Bulgaria – 16 (1962-1994)
Korea Republic – 14 (1954-1998)
Chile – 13 (1966-1998)
Mexico – 13 (1930-1962)
Tunisia – 13 (1978-2018)
Saudi Arabia – 12 (1994-2018)
