England

The 1966 world cup was held in England and it was won by the hosts. They defeated West Germany 4-2 in the final to claim their one and only world cup to date. If things didn’t quite go to plan in 1962 then things went worse for the Bulgaria national football team in 1966. This time they lost all three of their group games and unsurprisingly finished bottom. It was a tough group that they found themselves in, with Portugal, Hungary and Brazil alongside them.

Mexico

The world cup in 1970 was a first as the tournament was not held in Europe or South America. Mexico were the hosts as the competition visited North America for the first time. Brazil eventually won the competition for the third time after beating Italy 4-1 in the final. The Bulgaria national football team actually managed a slight improvement but still failed to qualify from the group. Two losses from their opening two games saw them eliminated early, but a draw against Morocco saw them finish third above their final game opponents.

West Germany

The world cup returned to familiar soil as a European tournament was held in West Germany. The hosts won the competition by beating the Netherlands 2-1 in the final. It was a record points hall for the Bulgaria national football team in 1974 but they still only finished third in the group and were eliminated. Two draws in the opening two games left the side needing a win against the Netherlands to progress, but it wasn’t to be as they lost 4-1.

Mexico

There was a bit of a gap before the Bulgaria national football team made it to their next world cup. In 1986 the hosts of the tournament were Mexico and the eventual winners were Argentina. They beat West Germany 3-2 in the final. Bulgaria managed to progress from the group for the first time in their history but still did not manage to win a game. Two draws and a defeat left the side third but qualifying as a best third-placed team. The Bulgaria national football team then moved onto the round of 16 where they played the hosts Mexico. A 2-0 loss saw their world cup run come to an end.

United States

The 1994 world cup was staged by the United States. Brazil won their fourth title after beating Italy on penalties in the final. This was the first time the world cup final had been decided by penalties. Things did not start well for the Bulgaria national football team as they lost 3-0 to Nigeria in their opening fixture. They turned things around however with two wins from their next two games. They finished second in their group and progressed onto the knock-out phase. As in 1986 the team again faced Mexico in the last 16. This time they progressed on penalties after a 1-1 draw. In the quarter final Bulgaria faced Germany and despite trailing scored two late goals to move on with a 2-1 win. The semi final was a close match but Bulgaria’s dream run came to an end. A 2-1 defeat to Italy put the team into the third-placed play-off, which they also lost.

France

France held the 1998 world cup and it was the hosts who went on to lift the trophy. They beat defending champions Brazil 3-0 in the final. After the highs of 1994 this tournament proved to be the opposite for the Bulgaria national football team. They only managed a single point and finished bottom of their group. Results included a 6-1 defeat to third placed Spain. This is the last time Bulgaria qualified for a world cup.

Japan and South Korea

In 2002 the world cup found itself in Asia for the first time. Japan and South Korea jointly staged the tournament. After winning the competition in 1994 and coming so close four years previous, the Brazil national football team were in good form going in to this edition. This good form continued as they won all three of their group fixtures with a healthy +8 goal difference. Two second half goals were enough to see off Belgium in the last sixteen and a floated free kick from Ronaldinho defeated England in the quarter final. In the semi final the side played Turkey who they had beaten in the group stage 2-1. They again prevailed against them, this time by one goal to nil. A third final in a row for the Brazil national football team this time ended in success. Ronaldo banished any lingering nightmares from the final in France by scoring both goals in a 2-0 win over Germany. Brazil extended their record to five world cup wins with four of them coming on different continents.

Germany

The world cup was back on familiar ground in 2006 as it returned to Europe. Germany hosted the tournament and it was Italy who claimed their fourth win with a penalty shoot-out victory over France. The reigning world champions Brazil won all of their group fixtures in an admittedly weak group from which Australia qualified in second place. In the last sixteen Brazil cruised past Ghana in a game which was notable for Ronaldo. He scored his fifteenth world cup goal to become the then highest ever goalscorer in world cup history.  A poor performance in the quarter final saw Brazil’s tournament come to an end. They lost to France 1-0 and only managed a single shot on goal.

South Africa

2010 was another first for the world cup as it visited an entirely new continent in Africa. South Africa were chosen to host the tournament. Spain claimed their first ever world cup win after beating the Netherlands with a single goal in extra-time. The Brazil national football team topped their group with two wins and a draw from their three games. They went on to play the impressive Chile in the last sixteen and emerged victorious with a 3-0 win. It was in the quarter final where Brazil were again eliminated. Although starting well and scoring first against the Netherlands the side crumbled and conceded two second half goals to lose out 2-1 in the end.

Brazil

Brazil hosted the world cup in 2014 but were unable to win the tournament. It was Germany who eventually won the tournament after beating Argentina in the final. As hosts the pressure was really on the side. Two wins and a draw with Mexico represented a steady start for the side as they topped the group and progressed to the last-sixteen. Here they faced Chile, and after a 1-1 draw the game went to penalties. Brazil held their nerve to triumph 3-2. In the quarter-final the team faced a rampant Colombia team. An improved performance resulted in a 2-1 win and set up an exciting semi-final with Germany. This is where the team imploded. Key players were missing but this was no excuse for one of the worst performances in world cup history. After 30 minutes they were losing 5-0. The game eventually ended 7-1 to put the side into the third place play-off. A 3-0 loss to the Netherlands followed to leave the Brazil national football team in disarray.

Russia

The Bulgaria national football team have been drawn in Group A alongside the Netherlands, France, Sweden, Belarus, and Luxembourg.