Mario Jorge Lobo Zagallo recently left us. Owner of an unmistakable personality, the Old Wolf, as some called him, holds a permanent place in the hearts of practically everyone who loves football. His story is written indelibly in Brazilian football: a career marked by important victories and a love for the Brazilian National Team that few share. Zagallo was undoubtedly a giant in our history.
First Contact with the Brazilian National Team and the First Titles
Zagallo was born in Atalaia, Alagoas, but moved to Rio de Janeiro at eight months old. It was in Tijuca that he began a career that would be filled with victories both on and off the field. According to Zagallo, his closeness to the yellow jersey began during the Maracanazo. At 18, he was performing military service and, on the day of the 1950 World Cup final, was responsible for security at the Stadium during the match between Brazil and Uruguay.
A short time later, the Old Wolf began his youth career, progressed through the ranks of América and Flamengo, and took his first steps as a professional player operating as a left winger. With the Rubro-Negro, he won the Rio de Janeiro state title three consecutive times, from 1953 to 1955.
In 1958, Zagallo reached the peak of his career as a Brazilian National Team player by winning its first world title. Zagallo was the most important left winger at that World Cup, playing every match without being substituted even once. In 1962, he won a second consecutive title alongside Garrincha.
A Winning Career as a Coach
After the 1962 World Cup, Zagallo had a remarkable spell at Botafogo, winning the Rio de Janeiro state championship twice with the Glorioso. After the titles, he retired and became Botafogo's coach. With the results he achieved in that role, he became a strong candidate to lead the Brazilian national side at the 1970 World Cup.
Zagallo was then indeed called to become coach of the Brazilian National Team shortly before the World Cup. The squad he assembled, featuring Pelé, Jairzinho, Gérson, and company, was commonly regarded by analysts and supporters as one of the best teams in world-football history. Brazil won its third championship, and Zagallo became the first football figure to be a world champion as both player and coach.
He repeated the achievement at the 1994 World Cup, this time as technical coordinator. In total, Zagallo took part in 36 Brazilian National Team games as a player, 131 as a coach, and 96 as coordinator. Over the course of his career, he accumulated 17 titles, established himself as the coach who had led the national team in the most matches at the time this article was edited, and retired as assistant coordinator in 2006, certainly more affected by his age, which was around 64, and the resulting complications.
To this day, he is also the only person to have been present for four World Cup triumphs.
List of Zagallo's Titles with the Brazilian National Team
- Titles as a player: World Cup (1958, 1962); Bernardo O’Higgins Cup (1959, 1961); Atlantic Cup (1960); Roca Cup (1963); Oswaldo Cruz Cup (1958, 1961, 1962);
- Titles as a coach: World Cup (1970); Roca Cup (1971); Independence Cup (1972); Stanley Rous/Umbro Cup (1995); Pre-Olympic Tournament (1996); Copa América (1997); FIFA Confederations Cup (1997);
- Titles as technical coordinator: Friendship Cup (1992), World Cup (1994), Copa América (2004), Confederations Cup (2005), and Carlsberg Cup (2005).
“You Are Going to Have to Swallow Me”
This may be Zagallo's most famous phrase, but few people remember exactly the context in which it was said. In 1997, part of the press regarded the Old Wolf as outdated, and he faced criticism for not having a greater understanding of the transformations modern football was undergoing. As a result, the 1997 Copa América campaign was marked by uncertainty about Zagallo's methods. Some supporters and analysts pressured the CBF to change Brazil's technical leadership for the 1998 World Cup.
Even amid this entire off-field scenario of uncertainty, Zagallo's Brazil once again showed it was a strong national team and that the Old Wolf was not yet outdated. The Brazilian National Team won the Copa América, and Zagallo did not hold back when addressing his critics: almost overcome by exhaustion from the match, he gathered his strength and told the cameras the famous phrase, “You are going to have to swallow me.” And the critics truly had to swallow him, because Zagallo remained the coach in 1998, when Brazil finished runner-up in the World Cup in France.
