World Cup scoring is out of control
Current edition of the World Cup is on pace to average more goals per game than any tournament since 1958.
Now 12 games into the quadrennial tournament, the World Cup is averaging 3.42 goals per game. Nigeria-Iran promises to bring that average down, but as long there is at least one goal in that game or the United States-Ghana match, the World Cup will head into its sixth day averaging at least 3.0 goals per game. The last time a World Cup averaged that many goals for an entire tournament was 1958 when Pele burst onto the scene and the 12 teams combined to average 3.60 over just 35 total matches.
Since the tournament expanded into something that looks more like it does now, the highest scoring tournament was also the last time it was held in the Western Hemisphere: 1994 in the United States when 24 teams averaged 2.70 over 52 matches.
Ever since the 1994 World Cup, the average scoring has been on a steady downward slope. In 2010 it bottomed out at 2.27, the second lowest average in World Cup history (1990 averaged just 2.20).
To put this all in a bit more perspective, the current World Cup is averaging more goals than any of the top leagues around the world averaged in 2013/14. The Netherlands' Eredivisie was the highest scoring of the top European leagues at 3.20 and the Bundesliga was just a shade behind at 3.16. No other top European league averaged more than 2.80 last season. In the Americas, Major League Soccer is the current pace setter at 2.89 goals per game.
So, yeah, if this edition of the World Cup seems a bit more exciting than you’re used to, this is a big reason why.
