The Netherlands Score The First Penalty in a World Cup Final, 1974
Chris Oakley | 7 April 2026
The Netherlands' path to the 1974 World Cup Final was far from straightforward, with some suggesting they were fortunate to qualify at all. They were in a group with Norway, Iceland, and their rivals, Belgium, and qualification for the finals in West Germany ultimately came down to goal difference. Remarkably, Belgium didn't concede a single goal during the preliminary phase, but massive wins for the Dutch — 9-0 over Norway and 8-1 over Iceland — gave them the edge needed to secure a place in West Germany ahead of their near neighbours.
World Cup 1974 - European qualifying Group 3 table.
From the start of their World Cup '74 campaign, the Netherlands looked a strong and skilful proposition. A bruising 2-0 win over Uruguay was followed by a goalless draw against a tricky Sweden team. Their last game of the First Round saw Johan Cruyff orchestrating a comprehensive 4–1 win over Bulgaria to finish top of their group with five points out of six.
A further round-robin group awaited in the next stage of the competition, this time pitting the Dutch against Brazil and Argentina, along with the surprise package of the first round, East Germany. They coped admirably, improving steadily with every successive game.
Argentina were dispatched comfortably, beaten 4–0 thanks to goals from Cruyff, Ruud Krol and Johnny Rep. The next match saw East Germany trying to neutralise the Netherlands by marking Cruyff out of the game, but in doing so failed to stop Johan Neeskens and Rob Rensenbrink from scoring in a 2-0 defeat.
When Brazil faced the Dutch, they knew that the winner of the match would go through to the final. The tactic of the Brazilians was to treat their opponents with aggression over skill, a tactic that backfired when the men in orange proved more than capable of matching that physical approach. A tight first half gave way to a second in which the Netherlands scored two and Brazil saw Luis Pereira get sent off six minutes from time.
World Cup 1974 - Netherlands path to the Final.
The Dutch subsequently reached the Final, and their opponents were the competition's hosts, West Germany. Despite a surprising defeat to the East Germans in the First Round, Helmut Schön's team eased through the group stages with all the confidence that home support can bring.
Unfortunately, that counted for nothing when the Final got underway. With only 54 seconds on the clock, Johan Cruyff dribbled into the penalty area and was brought down by Uli Hoeness. For the first time ever in a World Cup Final, a penalty was awarded.
Johan Neeskens stepped up and duly wrote his name into the record books when he blasted the ball straight down the middle of Sepp Maier's goal. The masters of Total Football had a 1-0 lead, and from the resulting kick-off, the West German team finally got their first touch of the ball.
Johan Neeskens scores from the penalty spot. (Image: Getty Images)
Incredibly, a second penalty was awarded in the 25th minute. This time it was Bernd Hölzenbein who was brought down by Wim Jansen, and Paul Breitner placed his kick well to beat Jan Jongbloed. Inside the first half-hour, the Final had seen its first two penalties awarded, and both had been converted.
Two minutes before half-time, Rainer Bonhof ran down the right wing and into the Dutch penalty area before providing the pass that allowed Gerd Müller to score West Germany's second goal. It proved decisive for West Germany, as the second half remained goalless — the first time this had happened in a World Cup Final.
Undoubtedly, the Netherlands were hindered by injuries to Rensenbrink and defender Wim Rijsbergen, but the West Germans had deprived Johan Cruyff of his usual freedom, frustrating him to the point where he was booked by referee Jack Taylor. Ultimately, the Dutch were undone by a combination of West German efficiency and their own inability to convert control into further goals. The Dutch were beaten 2-1 — an outcome some hadn't expected, especially after scoring the first World Cup Final penalty less than a minute after kick-off.