(FILES) West German goalkeeper Sepp Maier catches the ball in front of Dutch forward Johan Cruyff as defender Franz Beckenbauer (L) looks on, on July 7, 1974 in Munich, during the World Cup soccer final. Host West Germany beat The Netherlands 2-1 to earn its second World Cup title (Photo by AFP via Getty Images)STAFF/AFP/Getty Images
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In the summer of 1974, a bright-orange revolution swept the soccer pitch and the world. The first episode of Pitch and Power: How Soccer Shapes Everything tells the story of Dutch football star Johan Cruyff and the Netherlands’ Total Football movement—the dazzling skill, sex appeal and cultural swagger that defined it—and the heartbreak of a World Cup final that turned genius into myth.
More than 50 years on, we explore why this team still captivates the soccer world, whether their idealism was doomed in a colder era, and how their brief reign reshaped the game—and a nation—forever.