document_title: History of the Argentina national football team

question_text: when was the last time argentina didn't make it to the world cup

question_tokens: when was the last time argentina did n 't make it to the world cup

text: History of the Argentina national football team

text: History[edit]

text: Beginning and first titles[edit]

text: Although the first match ever recorded by an Argentine side was played on 16 May 1901 against Uruguay, this is not considered an official game due to the match was not organized by Uruguay's Football Association but by Albion FC in its home field, "Paso del Molino". The Uruguayan side had nine players from that club and the remainder from Nacional.[3] Argentina won the match by 3-2.

text: The match considered the first official game played by Argentina was held in the same venue, on 20 July 1902 against Uruguay.[1] Argentina defeated the Uruguayan side by 6–0. The line-up was: José Buruca Laforia (Barracas A.C.), William Leslie (Quilmes), Walter Buchanan (Alumni), Eduardo Patricio Duggan (Belgrano A.C.), Carlos J. Buchanan (Alumni), Ernesto Brown (Alumni), Edward O. Morgan (Quilmes), Juan José Moore (cap.) (Alumni), Juan O. Anderson (Lomas A.C.), Carlos Edgar Dickinson (Belgrano A.C.), Jorge Brown (Alumni). The goals were scored by Dickinson, Arímalo, Morgan, Carve Urioste, Anderson and J. Brown.[4]

text: During its first years of existence, the national team played only friendly matches until 1905, when the first edition of Lipton Cup was held. It was a cup organized by both Argentine and Uruguayan Football Associations, with its last edition being contested in 1992. The first official title won by Argentina was the 1906 Copa Lipton, defeating Uruguay 2–0 in Montevideo.[5] That same year, Argentina also played the Newton Cup, another competition organized by both associations, earning the trophy after defeating Uruguay 2–1 in Buenos Aires.

text: In the following years, matches played by the Argentine side were against South American teams only. The reasons varied from the long time the trips took to another countries by then to World War I.[6]

text: Argentina would win four consecutive Newton Cups from 1907 to 1911,[7] and four Lipton Cups from 1906 to 1909. After some Uruguayan victories, Argentina won the 1913, 1915 and 1916 Lipton and 1916 Newton Cup trophies.

text: In 1916, Argentina contested the first tournament organized by CONMEBOL, the South American Championship (the current Copa América) hosted in Buenos Aires and Avellaneda and won by Uruguay. The host plus Brazil, Chile and Uruguay were the only teams contesting the inaugural competition. During that tournament Argentina played three matches, defeating Chile 6–0 and drawing Brazil and Uruguay, who became champions on goal difference. The line-up at the final was: Isola, Díaz, Reyes, Martínez, Olazar, Badaracco, Heissinger, Ohaco, H. Hayes, E. Hayes and Perinetti.[8]

text: Argentina won its first South American championship in 1921, also held in Buenos Aires. The squad won all the games disputed, defeating Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay to earn six points with no goals received. Notable players of that team were goalkeeper Américo Tesoriere and striker Pedro Calomino. Julio Libonatti was also tournament's top scorer.[9]

text: The Olympic goal[edit]

text: In 1924, Argentina played a friendly match against Uruguay at Sportivo Barracas' stadium. When only 15 minutes had been played, winger Cesáreo Onzari scored from a corner kick, with no other player touching the ball before scoring. Due to the fact that Uruguay was the Olympic champion, this play was called "Gol Olímpico". This denomination still remains.[10]

text: The goal stood since FIFA had previously regulated goals scored directly from the corner kick, as Onzari did during that match. According to La Nación newspaper, 52,000 fans attended the game, an Argentina 2–1 win, where the Uruguayan team left the field with only four minutes to play. Argentine players later complained about the rough play of the Uruguayans during the match, while their rivals also complained about the aggressiveness of local spectators, who threw bottles at them at the end of the match.[11]

text: In 1925, the South American championship was hosted by third time in Argentina, and the Albicelest won its second title. The team played four matches and remained unbeaten once more, defeating Paraguay and Brazil twice each. A highmark was the 4–1 victory against rivals Brazil.

text: Argentina won another consecutive title in 1927 obtaining the South American championship held in Peru. The team made a great campaign, finishing unbeaten with three wins over three games played. The national squad achieved a large victory over Bolivia (7–1), then beating Uruguay by 3–2 and the local team by 5–1 in the last match of the tournament. It was the third South American title for the Argentine national team.

text: 1928 Summer Olympics[edit]

text: In 1928, Argentina went to Amsterdam to play the 1928 Summer Olympics, which was the first international tournament played by the national team in its history. The football squad reached the final after trashing the United States 11–2, Belgium 6–3 and Egypt 6–0. The final saw Argentina defeated by Uruguay 2–1, thus winning the silver medal.

text: 1930 World Cup[edit]

text: In 1929, Argentina hosted a new edition of the South American championship, winning its second consecutive title. Argentina finished unbeaten once more, defeating all its rivals in the group: Peru (3–0), Paraguay (4–1) and Uruguay in the last match played in the Estadio Gasómetro of Buenos Aires. Most of players that took part of the team would play for Argentina in the first World Cup organized by FIFA one year later.

text: Argentina was one of the 13 national teams attending to the inaugural FIFA World Cup hosted by Uruguay.

text: In the inaugural match of the World Cup, Argentina defeated France 1–0. The national team then beat Mexico 6–3 and finished its run in the first stage by defeating Chile 3–1. Argentina qualified to the semi-finals where the squad widely beat the United States 6–1. On July 30, Argentina played its first World Cup final against Uruguay, but lost 4–2.

text: 1934–54: A long absence[edit]

text: Argentina played only one game at the next World Cup in Italy in 1934. The tournament format was a knockout tournament, and Argentina lost its only match 3–2 to Sweden. Argentina would not participate in the 1938 World Cup in France, the last before World War II. The first World Cup after the War was the 1950 World Cup held in Brazil, but Argentina did not enter the competition due to a conflict with the Brazilian Football Confederation. For the 1954 World Cup in Switzerland, Argentina refused to participate.

text: In 1951, Argentina played England for the first time and were defeated 2–1 at Wembley Stadium. The second leg was played in Buenos Aires on 14 June 1953, where Argentina won 3–1, though the match caused great repercussions in Argentina.[12]

text: From Los Carasucias to the 1958 disaster[edit]

text: Although Argentina did not contest any World Cups from 1934 to 1954, the team won the 1937, 1941, 1945, 1946, 1947, 1955 and 1957 South American championships, all squads coached by Guillermo Stábile.

text: The 1957 squad is probably the most remembered team of those years because of its skilled players and exquisite style of playing showed on the field. Argentina trashed Colombia (8–2), Ecuador (3–0), Uruguay (4–0), Chile (6–2) and Brazil (3–0). The team was defeated by Peru in the last game but won the tournament due to finishing first in its group. The attacking line, formed by Oreste Corbatta, Humberto Maschio, Antonio Angelillo, Omar Sívori and Osvaldo Cruz, was widely praised by then, being still remembered by the media and football fans.[13] Maschio was also the topscorer with 9 goals.

text: Argentina returned to a World Cup competition after 24 years, more precisely to the 1958 held in Sweden. The team suffered the absence of Maschio, Angelillo and Sívori (playing in the Italian first division but not called by Stábile for the tournament[14]), who had made outstanding performances in Lima one year before. Although the squad was formed with valued players, the lack of experience facing European squads was evidenced once the tournament finished. Argentina lost to West Germany 3-1 in the first game, though they came back to defeat Northern Ireland in the second match. Argentina was finally thrashed by Czechoslovakia 6–1, one of the worst defeats of a national team in a World Cup and being eliminated from the competition. The poor performance was called "El desastre de Suecia" ("The Sweden disaster"). After the team arrived in Buenos Aires, 10,000 people were expecting in the Ezeiza International Airport to insult them.[15]

text: Transition[edit]

text: After the "Sweden disaster", Argentina returned to official competitions in 195, winning a new edition of the Copa América, its 12th title. The team thrashed Chile 6–1 at the debut, then beat Bolivia 2–0, Peru and Paraguay 3–1, Uruguay 4–1 and finished with an 1–1 draw against Brazil. Argentina remained unbeaten, winning five of six matches played. The team was coached by a triumvirate composed by Victorio Spinetto, José Della Torre and José Barreiro, replacing Guillermo Stábile after his 19-year tenure in the national team. Argentina would not win a Copa América until 1991 Copa América, when the team coached by Alfio Basile obtained the trophy in Chile.

text: In 1959, José Manuel Moreno became Argentina coach, although he did not spend much time with the team. Under his coaching Argentina disputed the Southamerican championship in Ecuador, where the squad defeated Paraguay 4–2, drew the hosts 1–1 and suffered a large defeat by 5–0 at the hands of Uruguay, although the team achieved a great 4–1 victory against Brazil with three goals by José Sanfilippo in the last match. Once the extra tournament finished, Moreno left his place and Guillermo Stábile started his 2nd period as coach of Argentina national team.

text: In 1960, Argentina won its first and only Panamerican championship held in San José, Costa Rica. That same year the team suffered three losses to Brazil: two of them in the Roca Cup and the next in the Atlantic Cup. That was the last match where Argentina was coached by Stábile in his second tenure. He would be replaced by Victorio Spinetto.

text: In 1961, Argentina started a tour across Europe, playing several matches against local national teams. The squad only achieved one victory against Portugal with two losses and two draws. After a short period coached by José D'Amico, Juan Carlos Lorenzo took over the team. Argentina made a poor performance at the 1962 World Cup, being defeated by England (3–1) to be eliminated from the tournament.

text: In the 1963 South American Championship, Argentina finished third in the tournament, although the team achieved important victories over Brazil (3–0), Ecuador and Colombia, but lost to Bolivia and Peru. That same year, Argentina was also defeated by Brazil in the Roca Cup.

text: Nation's Cup[edit]

text: In 1964, Argentina won the Nations' Cup, a friendly tournament organized by the Brazilian Association to commemorate its 50th anniversary. Argentina took part of the championship with the debut of José María Minella as coach, along with the local squad and Portugal. Then called "a little World Cup", the Nations' Cup is considered "the first great title" won by Argentina.[16] The team remained unbeaten winning all the matches played, with a large 3–0 over Brazil.[17] The victory over Brazil was highly praised by the media due to the Brazilian not being defeated as hosts since the 1950 World Cup final.[18] Argentina finished the tournament with no goals received.

text: The transition continues: 1965–74[edit]

text: Argentina, still coached by Minella, qualified to the 1966 World Cup held in England for the first time. The team shared their group with Chile, Paraguay and Bolivia. Argentina finished the round unbeaten with three matches won and two draws. Minella left the team, being replaced by Osvaldo Zubeldía after qualification was over. Juan Carlos Lorenzo took over the squad, beginning his second tenure on the national side.

text: The national side played several friendly matches against the Soviet Union, Poland and Italy before its flight to England. Argentina only drew the first two games and was defeated in the last in Torino.

text: Argentina made its debut in Group 2 of the World Cup, defeating Spain by 2–1. The next matches were against West Germany, which ended 0–0 and Switzerland also won by 2–1. Argentina qualified to the quarter-finals where the team was defeated by the host team 1–0. It was a controversial match where midfielder Antonio Rattín was sent off by German referee Rudolf Kreitlein for "violence of the tongue", despite the referee speaking no Spanish. Rattín was so incensed with the decision, believing the referee to be biased in favour of England, that he refused to leave. As a way to show his disgust, he sat on the red carpet exclusively meant for the Queen to walk on. He eventually had to be escorted from the field by two policemen and as a final sign of disgust, wrinkled at a British pennant before being escorted out. This incident, and others surrounding the same game, arguably started the long-lasting rivalry between both national teams, although on the other hand, allowed for the institution of yellow and red cards into football, a solution devised by FIFA after the spark that set off the incident.

text: Although Argentina did not have a great performance in England, the players were well received by the crowd in Ezeiza, in part due to the incident with Rattín and the Queen's carpet, where Rattín himself later saying that he "didn't know where he had sat on".[19]

text: The next step for the team was the 1967 Copa América, hosted by Uruguay. Argentina made a good campaign, winning five over six matches disputed, being defeated only by the host team and finished second.

text: During 1967 and 1969, the Football Association named four different coaches to the national team: Carmelo Faraone, who only coached two matches, Renato Cesarini, José M. Minella, Humberto Maschio and Adolfo Pedernera. In those years, Argentina played a series of friendly matches with most of them being South American teams and a few European teams. Argentina also played a new edition of the Lipton Cup, obtaining it by goal average over Uruguay.

text: In 1969, Argentina began qualifying for the 1970 World Cup under Pedernera. The national squad shared its group with Bolivia and Peru, losing the first two games played as the away team. Although Argentina won the next game (over Bolivia, 1–0), the 2–2 draw against Peru in the last fixture (played at La Bombonera) allowed the Peruvian squad to be one of the South American representatives in the World Cup, eliminating Argentina.[19][20] To date, this remains the only time that Argentina has failed to qualify for a World Cup in which it entered a team. This poor performance that caused the absence of a national representative in the 1970 World Cup is still regarded as one of Argentina's biggest frustrations in its history.[21]

text: After the frustration of 1969, the Association named Juan José Pizzuti, who had won the Intercontinental Cup with Racing Club three years before, as coach of the national team. Pizzuti was the manager during three years, in which Argentina played several friendly games against South American teams, which included the 1971 Roca Cup title (shared with Brazil). In 1972, Argentina was invited to play the Brazil Independence Cup, where the team did not achieve good results.

text: After the Independence Cup, Pizzuti was replaced by Omar Sívori, the most notable player of the 1957 Copa América triumph and had previous experience as manager of Rosario Central and Estudiantes de La Plata. Argentina played some friendly matches as preparation for the qualifying, with some interesting results such as a 3–2 over West Germany in Munich.

text: "The Ghost Team" and 1974 World Cup[edit]

text: Qualifying for the 1974 World Cup began in September 1973, where Argentina shared its group with Bolivia and Paraguay. Bolivia used to play its home venues at La Paz, where Argentine players suffered the lack of oxygen and other effects caused by altitude sickness. To avoid complications, Sívori decide to prepare a team to play in altitude. Following his instructions, Miguel Ignomiriello took many players to Tilcara so they could become acclimatized to altitude.[22][23]

text: Argentina won the match played in La Paz 1–0. That team was nicknamed "La Selección Fantasma" ("The Ghost National Team" in Spanish) due to the lack of organisation existing in the Association at the time, meaning the media could not get information about the team during its tenure in Tilcara. Year later, Mario Kempes revealed that the players themselves had to organize some friendly matches to get money to buy food because the Association forgot about them completely.[24][25]

text: Argentina won the other games against Bolivia and Paraguay (4–0 and 3–1 respectively, both in Buenos Aires), finally qualifying for the World Cup.

text: After having qualified for the 1974 World Cup, Sívori left and was replaced by Vladislao Cap. With its new coach on the bench, Argentina played only four matches before the competition, facing European teams. Argentina defeated Romania and France and drew England before suffering a defeat to the Netherlands by 4–1.

text: Once more, Argentina made a poor performance in a World Cup. They were defeated by Poland in their opening game by 3–2, followed by a 1–1 draw with Italy. In the last game of the first round, Argentina defeated Haiti 4–1, granting qualification to the second round of the tournament, where the team lost to the Netherlands, Brazil, ending with a 1–1 draw to East Germany. Argentina finished last in the group table and eighth in the overall table.

text: The Menotti era: Beginning of greatness[edit]

text: The demise of the team in the World Cup forced the Association to make changes in Argentine football. David Bracuto was named president of the Football Association in 1974. He offered César Luis Menotti the head coaching role of Argentina, which Menotti accepted under several conditions, one being that native players under 25 should not be sold to foreign clubs.[26]

text: Menotti debuted on 12 October 1974 in a friendly match against Spain. Argentina began a long preparation for the 1978 World Cup which would be hosted on home soil for the very first time, playing friendly matches and tournaments. During those years, Argentina played a total of 33 matches. The year 1977 was also the international debut of Diego Maradona, who played for the first time at age 16 against Hungary. The match was held in Buenos Aires with a large victory for Argentina by 5–1.[27]

text: Argentina also played a new edition of Copa América, where for the first time there was no fixed venue. All matches were played throughout each country across the tournament. Argentina debuted thrashing Venezuela but lost to Brazil in the two games played (2–1 and 1–0). Brazil qualified to the next stage and the national team was eliminated.

text: In 1978, the final preparations for the World Cup began, playing several matches against South American and European teams. Although Maradona was considered one of the best players in the world, Menotti did not include him in the definitive list for the tournament. Some sources state that the Argentine military junta that ruled Argentina by then pushed Menotti to include River Plate's midfielder Norberto Alonso instead of Maradona, and that Menotti almost certainly knew that the prodigiously talented 17-year old would not be able to handle the immense pressure and attention in the biggest sporting event in Argentina's history. Nevertheless, other journalists assert that there were too many offensive midfielders.[28]

text: Argentina finally debuted on 2 June 1978 against Hungary, winning 2–1. Argentina defeated France by 2–1 in the second game and qualifying for the second stage, although the team lost to Italy by 1–0, finishing second in Group A. In the second round Argentina was placed in Group 1 sharing it with Brazil, Poland and Peru. In the first game, Argentina beat Poland 2–0, with both goals from Mario Kempes. Next game was against South American powerhouse Brazil in which the game ended with a 0–0 draw. The last game was against Peru, a rival that Argentina easily defeated with a 6–0 win. Argentina was able to edge out Brazil in the group and went on to the final. Argentina had to beat Peru by four goals or more to progress. The nature of Argentina's victory has fueled rumors that the match was fixed.[29]

text: That large victory over Peru allowed Argentina to play the final. On 25 June 1978, at River Plate's Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires, Argentina played its second World Cup final. Mario Kempes gave Argentina the lead in the 38th minute, with the Dutch squad able to respond in the 82nd minute for the equalizer. The game went to extra time and Mario Kempes once again gave the Argentines the lead and Daniel Bertoni added another goal which sealed the win for Argentina, which became the second South American team to win the World Cup at its home soil. Kempes was not only the most notable player of the team but also the topscorer of the tournament with six goals.

text: After the success of the World Cup, Menotti continued as coach and Argentina played some friendly match as preparation for the 1979 Copa América. Maradona scored his first goal for the Senior team against Scotland in Glasgow, where Argentina won 3–1.[30]

text: In 1979, Argentina contested a new edition of the Copa América. The squad shared its group with Brazil and Bolivia, both of which defeated Argentina. Argentina largely won the second match to Bolivia 3–0, but drew with Brazil 2–2 in the last game and being eliminated from the tournament.

text: The highlight of 1979 was the 1979 FIFA World Youth Championship obtained by the under-20 team in Tokyo. The team, also coached by Menotti, won the tournament with Maradona and Ramón Díaz as the leaders and most notable players of the squad. The tournament was also the first official championship played by Maradona in a national team.

text: Due to Argentina needing no qualifiers to the next World Cup as holders, the national team played a series of matches as preparation for the competition. In 1980 there was no official tournaments so the team toured on Europe and also hosted friendly games in some of the most important cities of Argentina such as Mar del Plata, Córdoba and Mendoza. Argentina played the 1980 Mundialito, a competition hosted by Uruguay in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the first World Cup tournament, where the team defeated West Germany and drew with Brazil to be eliminated in the first stage.

text: Demise in 1982: the end of an era and the beginning of the Maradona era[edit]

text: In 1982 the Argentine squad travelled to Spain to participate in the 1982 World Cup while Argentina was fighting in the Falklands War (Guerra de Malvinas) with the United Kingdom after the invasion of the Falkland Islands had been ordered by president Leopoldo Galtieri on April 2.

text: The lineup was based on the 1978 team with the addition of Diego Maradona (who had won a domestic title playing at a high level) and Ramón Díaz. The squad arrived in Spain as a big favourite to win the Cup. Argentina debuted with a 1–0 loss to Belgium at Camp Nou in Barcelona. There were internal tensions within the camp between the older and younger players, and this caused problems. Nevertheless, the team recovered by defeating Hungary (4–1) and El Salvador (2–0) therefore qualifying for the next stage. In the second round, Argentina shared a group with Italy and Brazil, being defeated by both (3–1 and 2–1) and eliminated from the championship. Maradona could not show his skills during the tournament, suffering from the rough play of rivals (especially Claudio Gentile in the game against Italy). He would eventually be sent off by the referee after kicking Brazilian player Batista in the groin.[31][32]

text: Other players that formed the squad were Juan Barbas, Gabriel Calderón (from the 1979 youth championship-winning team), Patricio Hernández, Julio Olarticoechea, Enzo Trossero and Jorge Valdano.

text: The failure at the World Cup caused Menotti to leave his post. Despite the poor performances, the national team achieved two world titles (senior and youth) during the nine years with Menotti as coach. That was the first time that Argentina planned and carried out long-term work with clear and serious objectives.[33][34]

text: Carlos Bilardo era: the road to Mexico[edit]

text: To replace Menotti, the Football Association choose Carlos Bilardo, who had won the 1982 Metropolitano with Estudiantes de La Plata. Bilardo was famous for his perfectionism and obsession with tactic and strategy of the game, which called the attention as much as followers as critics. The Bilardo era began in May 1983 with a 2–2 draw with Chile in Santiago. Soon after Argentina played the 1983 Copa América, the first official tournament with Bilardo. The squad was eliminated on first round with 3 draws (2 with Ecuador and a 0–0 with Brazil), winning its only match 1–0 to Brazil in Buenos Aires.

text: The team was formed by footballers playing in domestic Argentine Primera División exclusively, being some of them goalkeepers Ubaldo Fillol and Nery Pumpido, defenders Néstor Clausen, José Luis Brown, Enzo Trossero, Julio Olarticoechea and Roberto Mouzo; midfielders Claudio Marangoni, Jorge Burruchaga, Alejandro Sabella and José Daniel Ponce; forwards Ricardo Gareca, Alberto Márcico.

text: After the Copa América, Argentina travelled to Calcuta to play the Nehru Cup, then playing a series of friendly matches before the qualifiers to 1986 World Cup in Mexico. The team made a successful tour on Europe where it won the three matches disputed, including a 3–1 against West Germany in Düsseldorf. In May 1985, Argentina played its first qualifying match against Venezuela, winning 3–2. Argentina won three consecutive games, to Colombia (3–1 home, 1–0 away) and Venezuela (3–0 home) but lost to Peru 1–0 in Lima in a match where Peru midfielder Claudio Reyna marked Maradona with excessive roughness, although he was not sent off by the referee.[35][36]

text: Argentina played the last match of the qualifiers against Peru in Buenos Aires. The visitor team won by 2–1 qualifying to Mexico, but in the last minutes of the match Ricardo Gareca scored the 2–2 that allowed Argentina to be one of the four South American representatives at Mexico.[37]

text: Although he led the team to a new qualification for a World Cup, Bilardo was hardly criticized by the media which focused on the low level of the team during the process. Some journalists also accused Bilardo to play defensively, leaving behind the historic Argentine landmark of short passes and dribblings according to their point of view. Clarín, the most popular newspaper of Argentina, was one of the hardest opponents of the coach, and Bilardo himself declared that Clarín called Association President Julio Grondona to ask him to fire the coach.[38]

text: Before the World Cup, Argentina toured Europe losing to France (one of the favorites to win the Cup) and Norway and largely defeating Israel by 7–2.[39]

text: 1986: Return to glory[edit]

text: Argentina entered the 1986 World Cup with hope because of one player, Diego Maradona. Argentina was placed in Group A alongside Italy, Bulgaria, and South Korea. In the first game, Argentina was able to beat South Korea 3–1. The second match was against Italy, a tougher opponent. Italy took the lead in the sixth minute but Diego Maradona responded with a goal in the 34th minute. The game later ended with a 1–1 draw. The last group game was against Bulgaria, which resulted in a 2–0 Argentina win; therefore Argentina passed to the next round being the first in the group.

text:
My daughter Daniela could not be called by her last name. The word "Bilardo" was banned. I could not walk on the street, I could not get out of my house. After the World Cup, everything changed
“
”

Carlos Bilardo on the previous days to the 1986 World Cup [38]

tag: div

text: Argentina entered the round of 16 against South American rivals Uruguay in Puebla. The hot-tempered game ended in a 1–0 win for Argentina. Next, Argentina moved on to the quarter-finals, playing England at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. The game started very evenly, with both teams getting chances to score but none were able to finish. The first half ended with Argentina having the majority of possession but unable to get past a tough defense. Six minutes following the second half, Maradona scored a controversial goal in which he used his hand; once the match finished, Maradona called it "La mano de Dios" ("the hand of God"), explicitly admitting the infringement. The goal began with a defensive error from Steve Hodge, who passed the ball incorrectly back to his goalkeeper, Peter Shilton. At that time, Maradona was still continuing his run and reached the ball first and netted it in with his left fist. After the goal, Maradona encouraged his teammates to embrace the goal so the referee would allow it. Four minutes after the "hand of God" goal, Maradona scored a goal which people[who?] called "The Goal of the Century" because of the individual effort of Maradona, who starting his run from the half-way line, passed four English midfielders (he beat midfielder Terry Butcher twice) and dribbled around Shilton, finally scoring the goal which allowed Argentina to win the match, 2–1. That victory was very celebrated due to not only the rivalry between both teams but Argentina had lost the Falklands War at the hands of the British Army four years prior.[40]

text: In the semi-finals, Argentina defeated Belgium 2–0 at the Estadio Azteca to advance to the final against West Germany. Argentina won a game played at the Azteca in which the squad won its second World Cup title. José Luis Brown opened the scoring for Argentina, then the team increased the lead with a goal by Jorge Valdano. Germany started a comeback with goals from Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and Rudi Völler, which evened the game at 2–2. Jorge Burruchaga scored the winning goal in the 83rd minute, giving Argentina a 3–2 victory over Germany.

text: Argentina remained unbeaten in the World Cup, winning five over six matches disputed. Maradona played at a superlative level,[41][42] as he had done in the 1979 Youth Championship leading Argentina to the title. Maradona was the national team top-scorer with five goals, apart from winning the Gold Boot as the best player of the tournament.[43]

text: Other important players for the team were defenders José Luis Brown and Oscar Ruggeri, midfielders Héctor Enrique and Jorge Burruchaga and forward Jorge Valdano. The line-up in the final was: Nery Pumpido, Brown, José Luis Cuciuffo, Ruggeri, Julio Olarticoechea; Ricardo Giusti, Sergio Batista, Enrique, Burruchaga; Maradona, Valdano.

text: After winning the World Cup, the players went on vacation and Argentina did not play a match until 1987, when a new edition of Copa América was contested. The tournament changed its format, returning to a unique host where Argentina was chosen. Argentine formed a team with a mix of players from European and local leagues. The squad debuted with a 1–1 draw against Perú, then beat Ecuador 3–0. In the second stage, Argentina lost to Uruguay (which would be the champion) 1–0 in Buenos Aires and was eliminated. At the end of 1987, Argentina played West Germany (the rival of the 1986 final) winning 1–0 at the Estadio José Amalfitani. In 1988, the squad played the Four Nations Cup, losing to the Soviet Union (4–2) and West Germany (1–0).

text: Argentina immediately went to Australia to contest the Australia Bicentennial Gold Cup, where the team did not have a good performance, with one win against Saudi Arabia and a large defeat by the local team (4–1).

text: Back to Argentina, the team started its preparation for the 1989 Copa América, held in Brazil. Argentina qualified to the second round after beating Chile and Uruguay (both 1–0) and two draws with Ecuador and Bolivia (both 0–0). In the second stage, Argentina lost to Brazil and Uruguay (both 2–0) and only drew with Paraguay (0–0). Argentina was eliminated without winning a game and with no goals scored on this round. Some players of the team were Pumpido, Brown, Ruggeri, Clausen, Cuciuffo, Burruchaga, Maradona, Enrique, Giusti (all of them world champions in 1986), Claudio Caniggia, Abel Balbo, Luis Islas, Roberto Sensini, Gabriel Calderón, Néstor Gorosito and Pedro Troglio.

text: 1990: Finalist again[edit]

text: Argentina went to the 1990 World Cup with no qualifiers needed as being the previous champion. Prior to the World Cup, the national team played some several matches with no good results: Argentina lost to Mexico (0–2) and Scotland (0–2), winning just one of the five games played (to Israel, chosen again to be the last rival before the tournament as it had been four years before). In addition, Jorge Valdano (one of the most important players during the 1986 World Cup) trained hard in order to be in good physical condition for the Cup, but Bilardo decided not to include him in the definitive list of players. To that, Valdano said, "I swam through the ocean but I drowned at the shore."[44]

text: Argentina finally debuted at the inaugural match at the San Siro in Milan, being defeated by Cameroon (1–0). This result caused a great surprise in Argentina[45] so the national team line-up was based on the 1986 world champion.

text: Argentina won its second match against the Soviet Union 2–0 (where titular goalkeeper was Nery Pumpido seriously injured, being replaced by Sergio Goycochea for the rest of the tournament), and drew 1–1 with Romania in the last match of first round, both played in Naples, where Maradona played for Napoli in the Serie A. The team qualified to the second round, where they faced Brazil at the Stadio delle Alpi in Turin. In a match where Brazil played much better than Argentina, with forwards Müller and Careca repeatedly shooting to the goal but missing the target (the ball clashed Argentina's posts a couple of times, while Goycoechea stopped other shots) Argentina (with Maradona in bad physical condition) resisted Brazilian offensive movements during the first half, which ended 0–0. In the second half, Brazil was not so persistent as it had been during the first 45 minutes, so Argentina took advantage of the situation. With nine minutes till full-time, Maradona took the ball in the centre of the field, dribbled past three opponents and made a precise pass to winger Claudio Caniggia, who advanced with the ball to a goal after dribbling around goalkeeper Cláudio Taffarel. Argentina won the match 1–0, eliminating its arch-rival in a World Cup for the first time. That match is still regarded by the media and fans as one of the most remarkable moments of an Argentine national team.[46][47]

text: For their quarter-final match in Florence, Argentina narrowly eliminated Yugoslavia in an exciting penalty shootout,[48] with Goycoechea becoming a hero after stopping three penalty kicks, including the last two.[49] Maradona also missed a penalty kick, a rare occurrence; at one point Argentina were behind the Yugoslavs, but Goycoechea's outstanding goalkeeping kept Argentina in the tournament.

text: Argentina advanced to semi-finals where it to play against Italy in Naples. The local host was considered favourite to win the match because their striker Salvatore Schillaci was the tournament's top scorer (he would be awarded both the Golden Boot and the Golden Ball at the end of the tournament) and Argentina had many injured players, Maradona being one of them. Nevertheless, Argentina made its best performance in the World Cup and the match ended 1–1 after 90 minutes. With zero goals in extra time, the game went to a penalty shootout where Goycoechea was the hero again, stopping the shots from Aldo Serena and Roberto Donadoni to send Argentina to its second-straight World Cup final.

text: In the final, Argentina played West Germany, coached by former player Franz Beckenbauer. Caniggia was suspended for one game after receiving a yellow card in the match against Italy so he could not play the final. Germany arrived to the final as a wide favorite to take the Cup, as the squad had showed an effective and precise playing style, unlike Argentina which (with the exception of the game with Italy) had not had good previous performances. In addition, German footballers were in good condition while the Argentine players came to the final with several injuries, including Maradona. The game proved to be violent, brutal and bad tempered, particularly from the Argentines. Nevertheless, Germany only could score a goal at 83 minutes for a doubtful punishment by Mexican referee Edgardo Codesal, who awarded Germany a penalty kick for what he thought was a foul by Roberto Sensini against Rudi Völler. The call was controversial, and it was heavily debated by the Argentinian players. Andreas Brehme converted the penalty kick to give West Germany team its third World Cup title.[50][51]

text: The 1986 champion side could not repeat the high performances made four years prior, most notably Maradona, who played all the tournament injured. Other players, including Ruggeri and Burruchaga, played in similar conditions due to injury.[52]

text: The most notable player for Argentina was Sergio Goycochea, who is still remembered by his outstanding performance at the penalty shootouts.[53]

text: Coming of Basile[edit]

text: After the World Cup, Bilardo resigned, considering that his era had finished, as did Diego Maradona, announcing that the 1990 World Cup had been his last tournament.[54]

text: Alfio Basile was announced as his replacement. The new coach started his tenure convinced that the new era would come up with youth players to the team, so he mostly called up footballers who were playing in the domestic league rather than footballers from international championships, at least for the first time.

text: Argentina debuted with Basile on the bench in February 1991, defeating Hungary 2–0 in Rosario. The national team played some friendly matches and tournaments such as the Stanley Rous Cup, where Argentina drew 2–2 with England at Wembley Stadium (after winning 0–2 after the first half). In March, Diego Maradona failed a drug test for cocaine in Italy, being suspended by 15 months.[55][56]

text: 1991 was also the year when Argentina played its first official championship with Basile, the Copa América held in Chile. Argentina won its 13th Copa after 32 years, with a great performance on the field. The team debuted with a wide 3–0 to Venezuela, then defeating Chile 1–0 finishing the first stage with a 4–1 over Paraguay.

text: On the final round, the Albiceleste achieved a great 3–2 over Brazil, then drew 0–0 with Chile and defeated Colombia 2–1 in the final game, winning the Cup due to points average. Argentina won the tournament unbeaten, winning six of seven matches. Gabriel Batistuta was also the topscorer of the Copa with six goals. Apart from Batistuta, Sergio Goycochea, Leonardo Astrada, Claudio Caniggia, Diego Simeone (who wore the number 10 shirt), Dario Franco, Leo Rodríguez were some of the most Argentine notable players.[54]

text: In 1992, Argentina won the friendly tournament Kirin Cup (defeating Japan and Wales). Then, in October, the team won the King Fahd Cup, where they easily defeated Ivory Coast 4–0 in the semi-final and Saudi Arab 3–1 in the final game.

text: On 24 February 1993, Maradona returned to the team when Argentina played the Artemio Franchi Trophy against Denmark in Mar del Plata. Argentina won 5–4 in a penalty shoot-out after an 1–1 draw.[57] That same year, the national team also played the Copa América hosted by Ecuador, winning its second consecutive South American title. Maradona had returned to active football after being suspended due to the incident with drugs but Basile did not call him for the Cup, so Simeone wore the emblematic number 10 again.

text: Argentina only drew the matches against Mexico and Colombia (both 1–1) and defeated Bolivia 1–0 to pass to the next stage. Argentina first eliminated Brazil for the second-straight time, (6–5 via penalty shootout after an 1–1 draw), then Colombia the same way (6–5 p.s.), arriving to the final game against Mexico, which the national team won 2–1, with two goals from Batistuta. Argentina achieved its 14th title, winning only two matches in normal time, the rest either in extra time or penalties.[58] This is the last Copa América Argentina has won to date.[59]

text: Some of the players that took part in the squad were Goycochea, Ruggeri, Batistitua, Franco, Simeone, Fernando Redondo and Luis Islas.

text: A second "disaster" in 1993[edit]

text: Immediately after the Copa América, Argentina had to play the qualifiers for the 1994 World Cup, held in the United States. The team shared group with Colombia, Paraguay and Peru. Argentina won the first two as visitor to Peru (1–0 in Lima) and Paraguay (3–1 in Asunción) but lost to Colombia 2–1 in Barranquilla. In Buenos Aires, Argentina defeated Peru 2–1, drew with Paraguay 0–0 and suffered a catastrophic loss to Colombia 5–0 on 5 September 1993 in the Estadio Monumental. It became the largest defeat to a national team since a 1–6 result in the 1958 World Cup. Colombia (with great players such as Carlos Valderrama, Freddy Rincón, Faustino Asprilla and Leonel Álvarez) not only won the qualifiers unbeaten, but sent Argentina to play against the representative of Oceania to get a place for the World Cup.[60]

text: The most important sports magazine of Argentina, El Gráfico, went into "mourning" with a completely black cover with the only legend: "Vergüenza" ("Shame") that expressed the deception and humillation after the defeat.[61][62]

text: Argentina had to play two knockout games against Australia to earn a place at the World Cup. Basile asked Maradona to return to the national squad so the team needed him to qualify to the Cup. Maradona agreed and he flew to Sydney with the rest of the team.[63] Argentina played the first game on 31 October 1993 which ended 1–1. The second match was in Buenos Aires, where the national team won 1–0 (Batistuta) qualifying for the World Cup.[64]

text: Another hard time: USA '94[edit]

text: Argentina played several friendly matches as preparation for the World Cup. The team lost to Brazil 0–2 but beat Morocco 3–1 at Salta and smashed Israel 3–0 in Ramat Gan. Argentina debuted in the championship thrashing Greece 4–0 in Boston, Massachusetts, with a hat-trick by Batistuta. Maradona also scored the third goal for Argentina, which would be his last goal in a World Cup. The national team played its second match against Nigeria again in Boston, which defeated by 2–1 (2 goals by Caniggia). At the end of the match, Argentina became a favorite to win the tournament, due to the attacking playing style showed by the squad (playing with four forwards), the amount of goals scored and the good performances of some of its players such as Redondo, Caniggia, Batistuta, and even the aging Maradona, who looked in great shape and scored a gem of a goal.

text: At the end of the match against Nigeria, Maradona was called for the drug test, which gave positive results for ephedrine, a banned substance. The impact and repercussion of the news were immediate, and Maradona was expelled from the tournament and suspended for 15 months by FIFA.[65]

text: With the team still hurt after losing its leader, Argentina was defeated by Bulgaria in the sweltering heat of Dallas, Texas, for their last match of the first round. The team qualified to the knockout phase, where they were beaten by Romania 3–2 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, just outside Los Angeles, California. After the successes of 1986 and 1990, Argentina was eliminated in the second round. Although eliminated in the second round; in an ESPN interview with Quique Wolff, Maradona called the 1994 squad the greatest Argentina team of all time.

text: 1998 World Cup[edit]

text: With Maradona officially retired, Argentina went into the tournament with high expectations, still fielding players from their previous tournament, with Gabriel Batistuta still a constant goalscoring threat and Diego Simeone remaining as the leading figure from the anchorman position. Drawn into Group H of the competition, their opponents consisted of Japan, Jamaica and Croatia. They began their campaign with a 1–0 victory over the Asian nation, following it up with a 5–0 demolition of the Caribbeans. Their third group game was against the Croatians, who had also confirmed qualification to the next round and ended with victory for the Albiceleste by 1–0.

text: Argentina went into the knockout phase with the impressive record of seven goals scored, keeping clean sheets in all three group games. Their opponent was England]], fielding an equally strong team. Argentina took the lead with just six minutes played through Gabriel Batistuta from the penalty spot, only for Alan Shearer to equalize through the same means four minutes later. Six minutes after, youngster Michael Owen broke past Roberto Ayala to score a great individual effort, which was eventually cancelled out one minute into stoppage time after a free kick routine put Javier Zanetti through on goal to score, leaving the final result at 2–2 at the end of the first half.

text: In the second half, England playmaker David Beckham was sent off after a kick on Simeone, with the scores remaining unchanged until the end of normal time and extra time. Argentina won 4–3 on penalties, after Ayala scored the decisive spot kick to book their quarter-final spot, where the Netherlands awaited them.

text: The game was an equally fought match, with both sides scoring early goals; Patrick Kluivert netting after just 12 minutes and Claudio López equalizing five minutes later. Argentina held an advantage as the Dutch went a man down with the dismissal of Arthur Numan after his second booking for a foul on Simeone, though they were unable to take the opportunity and break the deadlock before they too went a man down; with Ariel Ortega receiving two successive yellow cards, the first one for diving inside the penalty box, with the second coming after headbutting Dutch goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar. Argentina's defence held tightly as extra-time beckoned, until a long aerial ball from Dutch captain Frank de Boer found Dennis Bergkamp, who maneuvered around Ayala and beat the Argentine goalkeeper Roa to send the Dutch through, eliminating Argentina from the competition.

text: 2006 World Cup[edit]

text: Argentina had been eliminated at the group stage at Korea/Japan 2002 FIFA World Cup, although they had been among the pre-tournament favorites. There was a high expectation of a better performance in the 2006 World Cup in Germany. Argentina qualified for the knockout stages with wins over the Ivory Coast (2–1) and Serbia and Montenegro (6–0), and a 0–0 draw with the Netherlands.

text: In the round of 16, Argentina defeated Mexico 2–1 in extra-time, the winning goal scored by Maxi Rodríguez; this goal went on to win an online poll organized by FIFA as the best goal of the World Cup.[66] In the quarter-final, they lost 4–2 in penalties against hosts Germany after a 1–1 draw. A brawl erupted between the Argentines and Germans after the game ended; unused substitute Leandro Cufré was sent off for kicking Per Mertesacker, while Maxi Rodríguez hit Bastian Schweinsteiger from behind. Following an investigation of video evidence, FIFA issued four-and two-game suspensions for Cufre and Rodríguez respectively. Germany's Torsten Frings was also suspended for the semi-final match for punching Julio Cruz.

text: Shortly after the elimination, coach José Pékerman resigned from his position. The AFA appointed Alfio Basile, who had previously managed the national side during the 1994 World Cup, as his successor.

text: 2007 Copa América[edit]

text: Argentina won all three games in the group stage, beating the United States, Colombia and Paraguay. After convincing victories over Peru and Mexico in the quarter-final and semi-final, respectively, they were favorites to beat Brazil in the final, but were defeated 3–0.

text: 2010 World Cup[edit]

text: Prior to the 2010 World Cup, Diego Maradona was appointed head coach. Argentina was placed in Group B, winning all their games. Their first game was against Nigeria, where Argentina netted a goal in the sixth minute to ensure a 1–0 victory. In the second match, against South Korea, a Gonzalo Higuaín hat-trick and a Korean own goal finished the score at 4–1. Argentina's last group game was against Greece, a 2–0 victory.

text: Argentina then advanced to the round of 16 to play Mexico. The game started with controversy when Carlos Tevez headed a ball from Lionel Messi for a goal; replay clearly showed that Tevez was in an offside position. Eventually, Argentina beat Mexico 3–1 to advance to the quarter-finals. In a much-hyped game, Argentina was shocked after Germany eliminated them with a 4–0 win. Thomas Müller opened the scoring in the third minute, with Miroslav Klose adding an additional two and Arne Friedrich one.

text: 2011 Copa América[edit]

text: The 2011 Copa América was the first major tournament for new coach Sergio Batista. Argentina started the tournament with a shocking 1–1 tie against underdogs Bolivia. In their second game, they played a goalless draw against Colombia in Santa Fe, but went on to win their third game 3–0 against underdogs Costa Rica. Argentina was to play Uruguay in the quarter-finals. After going down after five minutes to a Diego Pérez goal, Gonzalo Higuaín equalized in the 17th minute. The score remained unchanged and after extra time, Argentina lost 5–4 in penalties with a miss from Carlos Tevez. After the elimination, Batista was sacked and replaced by former Estudiantes de La Plata coach Alejandro Sabella.

text: 2014 World Cup[edit]

text: Argentina qualified for the 2014 World Cup and were drawn into Group F alongside Nigeria, Iran and debutants Herzegovina. Argentina had beaten all three of those teams, easily making it through to the next round. In the next round, they beat Switzerland 1–0 after a goalless 90 minutes. In the quarter-finals, they beat Belgium, also 1–0 through an early goal. They then beat the Netherlands]] 4–2 from a penalty shootout in São Paulo, but lost to eventual winners Germany in the final at the Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, concluding the World Cup runners-up.

text: 2015 Copa América[edit]

text: Argentina entered the subsequent tournament, the 2015 Copa América as heavy favorites to take home the trophy. They began their group stage against Paraguay, where after leading 2–0 for most of the match ultimately settled for a 2–2 draw. Despite doubts in defence, they overcame the difficulties to beat fellow tournament favorites Uruguay and Jamaica. Their quarter-final opponent was Colombia, whose sturdy defense was impossible to break through and goalkeeper David Ospina making impressive saves to keep the game tied at 0–0. In penalties, Argentina missed several chances until Carlos Tevez, who was the sole player to miss his spot kick during the previous tournament, netted his attempt to send la Albiceleste through to the semi-finals to face Paraguay. The game was evenly played until half-time, when the score was 2–1 to Argentina, but four more goals during the second half allowed Argentina to cruise to the final, where they met host nation Chile.

text: The final was a hotly contested match, with both sides having great chances to open the scoring, particularly with a powerful shot from Sergio Agüero in the first half for Argentina, with Alexis Sánchez having a clear one for Chile in the second half. With the scores still tied at the end of regulation, the match went to penalties. Only captain Lionel Messi netted his penalty attempt, with Gonzalo Higuaín sending his attempt well over the crossbar and Éver Banega having his shot saved by Claudio Bravo to leave the final scoreline at 4–1 in penalties.

text: Copa América Centenario[edit]

text: Once more, Argentina entered the tournament as heavy favorites to take home the trophy after 22 years of international drought. La Albiceleste cruised through their group, with their opening match being a replay of the Copa América final from the year before against trophy holders Chile, which Argentina would go on to win 2–1. Further victories against Panama and Bolivia allowed them to top the group with the maximum amount of points. Their quarter-final match was against surprise side Venezuela, where the match remained even for both sides before the Argentines won 4–1. They then dispatched hosts United States 4–0 to earn yet another final clash against Chile.

text: As previously, it was an even match, with Chile initially having the upper hand and more possession before going a man down, with Marcelo Díaz being dismissed after obstructing Messi on the ball. This, however, made it more difficult for Argentina to break through their defence, and they too would go a man down not long after with Marcos Rojo receiving a straight red card for a tackle on Arturo Vidal. Once again the match finished 0–0 and went to penalties. Although Sergio Romero saved Vidal's penalty kick, Messi shot his attempt over the crossbar, with the subsequent players netting their attempts until Bravo saved from Lucas Biglia and Francisco Silva netted the final penalty to once again hand Chile the trophy. The defeat caused frustration within the Argentine players, with Messi announcing his retirement from international football not long after, as well as many others suggesting their departure from the national team as well.

text: Bibliography[edit]

text:
"Historial de la Selección Argentina 1901-1985", Sólo Fútbol Anuario 1985, Editorial Sineret, Buenos Aires (1985)
Historia de la Selección Argentina 1901-1991
Argentina national team 1901-2008 at RSSSF
Argentina: Other matches 1901-2008 at RSSSF
Selección Nacional: Historia at AFA website
Biblioteca del Fútbol Argentino
Copa América 1916-2007 at RSSSF


document_title: Fast food restaurant

question_text: what was the first chain of hamburger resturants in the united states

root

text: Fast food restaurant

text: History[edit]

text: The examples and perspective in this article deal primarily with the United States and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject. You may improve this article, discuss the issue on the talk page, or create a new article, as appropriate. (April 2012) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

tag: table

text: United States[edit]

text: Some trace the modern history of fast food in the United States to 7 July 1912, with the opening of a fast food restaurant called the Automat in New York. The Automat was a cafeteria with its prepared foods behind small glass windows and coin-operated slots. Joseph Horn and Frank Hardart had already opened the first Horn & Hardart Automat in Philadelphia in 1902, but their "Automat" at Broadway and 13th Street, in New York City, created a sensation. Numerous Automat restaurants were built around the country to deal with the demand. Automats remained extremely popular throughout the 1920s and 1930s. The company also popularized the notion of "take-out" food, with their slogan "Less work for Mother".

tag: p

text: Some historians concur that A&W, which opened in 1921 and began franchising in 1923, was the first fast food restaurant (E. Tavares). Thus, the American company White Castle is sometimes considered the second fast-food outlet in Wichita, Kansas in 1921, selling hamburgers for five cents apiece from its inception and spawning numerous competitors and emulators. What is certain, however, is that White Castle made the first significant effort to standardize the food production in, look of, and operation of fast-food hamburger restaurants. William Ingram's and Walter Anderson's White Castle System created the first fast food supply chain to provide meat, buns, paper goods, and other supplies to their restaurants, pioneered the concept of the multi-state hamburger restaurant chain, standardized the look and construction of the restaurants themselves, and even developed a construction division that manufactured and built the chain's prefabricated restaurant buildings. The McDonald's Speedee Service System and, much later, Ray Kroc's McDonald's outlets and Hamburger University all built on principles, systems and practices that White Castle had already established between 1923 and 1932.

text: The hamburger restaurant most associated by the public with the term "fast food" was created by two brothers originally from Nashua, New Hampshire. Richard and Maurice McDonald opened a barbecue drive-in in 1940 in the city of San Bernardino, California. After discovering that most of their profits came from hamburgers, the brothers closed their restaurant for three months and reopened it in 1948 as a walk-up stand offering a simple menu of hamburgers, french fries, shakes, coffee, and Coca-Cola, served in disposable paper wrapping. As a result, they could produce hamburgers and fries constantly, without waiting for customer orders, and could serve them immediately; hamburgers cost 15 cents, about half the price at a typical diner. Their streamlined production method, which they named the "Speedee Service System" was influenced by the production line innovations of Henry Ford.

text: By 1954, The McDonald brothers' stand was restaurant equipment manufacturer Prince Castle's  biggest purchaser of milkshake blending machines. Prince Castle salesman Ray Kroc traveled to California to discover why the company had purchased almost a dozen of the units as opposed to the normal one or two found in most restaurants of the time. Enticed by the success of the McDonald's concept, Kroc signed a franchise agreement with the brothers and began opening McDonald's restaurants in Illinois.[7] By 1961, Kroc had bought out the brothers and created what is now the modern McDonald's Corporation. One of the major parts of his business plan was to promote cleanliness of his restaurants to growing groups of Americans that had become aware of food safety issues. As part of his commitment to cleanliness, Kroc often took part in cleaning his own Des Plaines, Illinois outlet by hosing down the garbage cans and scraping gum off the cement. Another concept Kroc added was great swaths of glass which enabled the customer to view the food preparation, a practice still found in chains such as Krispy Kreme. A clean atmosphere was only part of Kroc's grander plan which separated McDonald's from the rest of the competition and attributes to their great success. Kroc envisioned making his restaurants appeal to suburban families.[8]

text: At roughly the same time as Kroc was conceiving what eventually became McDonald's Corporation, two Miami, Florida businessmen, James McLamore and David Edgerton, opened a franchise of the predecessor to what is now the international fast food restaurant chain Burger King. McLamore had visited the original McDonald's hamburger stand belonging to the McDonald brothers; sensing potential in their innovative assembly line-based production system, he decided he wanted to open a similar operation of his own.[9][10] The two partners eventually decided to invest their money in Jacksonville, Florida-based Insta-Burger King. Originally opened in 1953, the founders and owners of the chain, Kieth J. Kramer and his wife's uncle Matthew Burns, opened their first stores around a piece of equipment known as the Insta-Broiler. The Insta-Broiler oven proved so successful at cooking burgers, they required all of their franchises to carry the device.[9] By 1959 McLamore and Edgarton were operating several locations within the Miami-Dade area and were growing at a fast clip. Despite the success of their operation, the partners discovered that the design of the insta-broiler made the unit's heating elements prone to degradation from the drippings of the beef patties. The pair eventually created a mechanized gas grill that avoided the problems by changing the way the meat patties were cooked in the unit. After the original company began to falter in 1959, it was purchased by McLamore and Edgerton who renamed the company Burger King.[11]

text: While fast food restaurants usually have a seating area in which customers can eat the food on the premises, orders are designed to be taken away, and traditional table service is rare. Orders are generally taken and paid for at a wide counter, with the customer waiting by the counter for a tray or container for their food. A "drive-through" service can allow customers to order and pick up food from their cars.

text: Nearly from its inception, fast food has been designed to be eaten "on the go" and often does not require traditional cutlery and is eaten as a finger food. Common menu items at fast food outlets include fish and chips, sandwiches, pitas, hamburgers, fried chicken, french fries, chicken nuggets, tacos, pizza, and ice cream, although many fast food restaurants offer "slower" foods like chili, mashed potatoes, and  salads.

text: Cuisine[edit]

text: Modern commercial fast food is highly processed and prepared on a large scale from bulk ingredients using standardized cooking and production methods and equipment. It is usually rapidly served in cartons, bags, or in a plastic wrapping, in a fashion which reduces operating costs by allowing rapid product identification and counting, promoting longer holding time, avoiding transfer of bacteria, and facilitating order fulfillment. In most fast food operations, menu items are generally made from processed ingredients prepared at central supply facilities and then shipped to individual outlets where they are cooked (usually by grill, microwave, or deep-frying) or assembled in a short amount of time either in anticipation of upcoming orders (i.e., "to stock") or in response to actual orders (i.e., "to order"). Following standard operating procedures, pre-cooked products are monitored for freshness and disposed of if holding times become excessive.  This process ensures a consistent level of product quality, and is key to delivering the order quickly to the customer and avoiding labor and equipment costs in the individual stores.

text: Because of commercial emphasis on taste, speed, product safety, uniformity, and low cost, fast food products are made with ingredients formulated to achieve an identifiable flavor, aroma, texture, and "mouth feel" and to preserve freshness and control handling costs during preparation and order fulfillment. This requires a high degree of food engineering. The use of additives, including salt, sugar, flavorings and preservatives, and processing techniques may limit the nutritional value of the final product.

text: Value meals[edit]

text: A value meal is a group of menu items offered together at a lower price than they would cost individually. A hamburger, side of fries, and drink commonly constitute a value meal—or combo depending on the chain. Value meals at fast food restaurants are common as a merchandising tactic to facilitate bundling, up-selling, and price discrimination. Most of the time they can be upgraded to a larger side and drink for a small fee.  The perceived creation of a "discount" on individual menu items in exchange for the purchase of a "meal" is also consistent with the loyalty marketing school of thought.[12]

text: Technology[edit]

text: To make quick service possible and to ensure accuracy and security, many fast food restaurants have incorporated hospitality point of sale systems. This makes it possible for kitchen crew people to view orders placed at the front counter or drive through in real time. Wireless systems allow orders placed at drive through speakers to be taken by cashiers and cooks. Drive through and walk through configurations will allow orders to be taken at one register and paid at another. Modern point of sale systems can operate on computer networks using a variety of software programs. Sales records can be generated and remote access to computer reports can be given to corporate offices, managers, troubleshooters, and other authorized personnel.

text: Food service chains partner with food equipment manufacturers to design highly specialized restaurant equipment, often incorporating heat sensors, timers, and other electronic controls into the design.  Collaborative design techniques, such as rapid visualization and computer-aided design of restaurant kitchens are now being used to establish equipment specifications that are consistent with restaurant operating and merchandising requirements.[13]

text: Business[edit]

text: Consumer spending[edit]

text: In the United States, consumers spent about US$110 billion on fast food in 2000 (which increased from $6 billion in 1970).[14] The National Restaurant Association forecasts that fast food restaurants in the US will reach $142 billion in sales in 2006, a 5% increase over 2005. In comparison, the full-service restaurant segment of the food industry is expected to generate $173 billion in sales. Fast food has been losing market share to so-called fast casual restaurants, which offer more robust and expensive cuisines.[citation needed]

text: Major international brands[edit]

text: McDonald's, a fast food supplier, opened its first franchised restaurant in the US in 1955 (1974 in the UK). It has become a phenomenally successful enterprise in terms of financial growth, brand-name recognition, and worldwide expansion. Ray Kroc, who bought the franchising license from the McDonald brothers, pioneered concepts which emphasized standardization. He introduced uniform products, identical in all respects at each outlet, to increase sales. Kroc also insisted on cutting food costs as much as possible, eventually using the McDonald's Corporation's size to force suppliers to conform to this ethos.[citation needed]

text: Other prominent international fast food companies include Burger King, the number two hamburger chain in the world, known for promoting its customized menu offerings (Have it Your Way). Another international fast food chain is KFC, which sells Chicken-related products and is the number 1 Fast Food company in the People's Republic of China.

text: Multinational corporations typically modify their menus to cater to local tastes, and most overseas outlets are owned by native franchisees. McDonald's in India, for example, uses chicken and paneer rather than beef and pork in their burgers because Hinduism traditionally forbids eating beef. In Israel some McDonald's restaurants are kosher and respect the Jewish Shabbat; there is also a kosher McDonald's in Argentina. In Egypt, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Pakistan, and Singapore, all menu items are halal.

text: North America[edit]

text: Many fast food operations have more local and regional roots, such as White Castle in the Midwest United States, along with Hardee's (owned by CKE Restaurants, which also owns Carl's Jr., whose locations are primarily on the United States West Coast); Krystal, Bojangles' Famous Chicken 'n Biscuits, Cook Out, and Zaxby's restaurants in the American Southeast; Raising Cane's in Louisiana and other mostly Southern states; Hot 'n Now in Michigan and Wisconsin; In-N-Out Burger (in California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and Texas) and Original Tommy's chains in Southern California; Dick's Drive-In in Seattle, Washington and Arctic Circle in Utah and other western states; Halo Burger around Flint, Michigan and Burgerville in the Portland, Oregon area. Also, Whataburger is a popular burger chain in the American South, and Jack in the Box is located in the West and South. Canada pizza chains Topper's Pizza and Pizza Pizza are primarily located in Ontario. Coffee chain Country Style operates only in Ontario, and competes with the famous coffee and donut chain Tim Hortons. Maid-Rite restaurant is one of the oldest chain fast food restaurants in the United States. Founded in 1926, their specialty is a loose meat hamburger. Maid-Rites can be found in the midwest - mainly Iowa, Minnesota, Illinois, and Missouri.

text: International brands dominant in North America include McDonald's, Burger King and Wendy's, the number three burger chain in the USA; Dunkin' Donuts, a New England-based chain; automobile oriented Sonic Drive-In's from Oklahoma City; Starbucks, Seattle-born coffee-based fast food beverage corporation; KFC and Taco Bell, which are both part of the largest restaurant conglomerate in the world, Yum! Brands; and Domino's Pizza, a pizza chain known for popularizing home delivery of fast food.

text: Subway is known for their sub sandwiches and are the largest restaurant chain to serve such food items.[15] Quiznos a Denver-based sub shop is another fast-growing sub chain, yet with over 6,000 locations it is still far behind Subway's 34,000 locations. Other smaller sub shops include Blimpie, Jersey Mike's Subs, Mr. Goodcents, Jimmy John's, and Firehouse.

text: A&W Restaurants was originally a United States and Canada fast food brand, but it is currently an International fast food corporation in several countries.

text: In Canada the majority of fast food chains are American owned or were originally American owned but have since set up a Canadian management/headquarters locations such as Panera Bread, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Five Guys, and Carl's Jr.. Although the case is usually American fast food chains expanding into Canada, Canadian chains such as Tim Hortons have expanded into 22 states in the United States, but are more prominent in border states such as New York and Michigan.  Tim Hortons has started to expand to other countries outside of North America. The Pita Pit franchise originated in Canada and has expanded to the United States and other Countries.  The Canadian Extreme Pita franchise sells low fat and salt pita sandwiches with stores in the larger Canadian cities. Other Canadian fast food chains such as Manchu Wok serve North American style Asian foods; this company is located mainly in Canada and the USA, with other outlets on US military bases on other continents. Harvey's is a Canadian-only burger restaurant chain, present in every province.

text: Australia[edit]

text: Australia's fast food market began in the early 1970s, with the opening of several American franchises including McDonald's and KFC. Pizza Hut was introduced in the 1980s, and Burger King followed. However, the Burger King market found that this name was already a registered trademark to a takeaway food shop in Adelaide.[16] Thus, the Burger King Australian market was forced to pick another name, selecting the Hungry Jack's brand name. Prior to this, the Australian fast food market consisted primarily of privately owned take-away shops.

text: United Kingdom[edit]

text: The United Kingdom's signature type of fast food restaurant is a fish and chip shop, which specializes in fish and chips and also other foods such as kebabs and burgers. Fish and chip shops are usually owned independently. Many other types of home based fast food operations were closed in the 1970s and 1980s after McDonald's became the number one outlet in the market[citation needed]. However, brands like Wimpy still remain, although the majority of branches became Burger King in 1989.

text: Ireland[edit]

text: In addition to home-grown chains such as Supermac's, numerous American chains such as McDonald's and Burger King have also established a presence in Ireland. In 2015, a study developed by Treated.com was published in the Irish Times, which named Swords in County Dublin as Ireland's 'fast food capital'.[17]

text: Japan[edit]

text: American chains such as Domino's Pizza, McDonald's, Pizza Hut, and KFC have a big presence in Japan, but local gyudon chains such as Sukiya, Matsuya and Yoshinoya also blanket the country.  Japan has its own burger chains including MOS Burger, Lotteria and Freshness Burger.

text: India[edit]

text: The major fast food chains in India which serve European/American food are KFC, McDonald's, Starbucks, Burger King, Subway, Pizza Hut, and Dominos. Most of these have had to make a lot of changes to their standard menus to cater to Indian food habits and taste preferences. Some emerging Indian food chains include Haldiram's, Faaso's, Chick King, Pitstop and Café Coffee Day.

text: Food habits vary widely across states within India. While typical Idli/Dosa is fast food in Southern India, in Maharashtra it is misal-pav / pav-bhaji / pohe etc. Further north in Punjab/Haryana, Chole-bhature are very popular and in Bihar/Jharkhand litti-chokha is their staple fast food. Maintaining consistency in taste and texture of Indian fast food is a challenge and hence local chains are emerging armed with new food-technology.

text: Nigeria[edit]

text: In Nigeria, Mr. Bigg's, Chicken Republic, Tantalizers, and Tastee Fried Chicken are the predominant fast food chains. KFC and Domino's Pizza have recently entered the country.

text: Pakistan[edit]

text: Fast food In Pakistan varies. There are many international chains serving fast food, including Nandos, Burger King, KFC, McDonald's, Domino's Pizza, Fatburger, Dunkin' Donuts, Subway, Pizza Hut, Hardees, Telepizza, Steak Escape and Gloria Jean's Coffees. In addition to the international chains, in local cuisine people in Pakistan like to have biryani, bun kebabs, Nihari, kebab rolls etc. as fast food.

text: Russia[edit]

text: Most international fast food chains like Subway, McDonald's, Burger King etc. are represented in major Russian cities. There are also local chains like Teremok specializing in Russian cuisine or having elements of it added into their menu.

text: South Africa[edit]

text: KFC is the most popular fast food chain in South Africa according to a 2010 Sunday Times survey.[18] Chicken Licken, Wimpy and Ocean Basket along with Nando's and Steers are examples of homegrown franchises that are highly popular within the country. McDonald's, Subway and Pizza Hut have a significant presence within South Africa.

text: Hong Kong[edit]

text: In Hong Kong, although McDonald's and KFC are quite popular, three major local fast food chains provide Hong Kong style fast food, namely Café de Coral, Fairwood, and Maxim MX. Café de Coral alone serves more than 300,000 customers daily.[19] Unlike western fast food chains, these restaurants offer four different menus at different times of the day, namely breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea, and dinner. Siu mei is offered throughout the day.

text: Dai pai dong and traditional Hong Kong street food may be considered close relatives of the conventional fast food outlet.

text: Israel[edit]

text: In Israel, local burger chain Burger Ranch is popular as are McDonald's and Burger King. Domino's Pizza is also a popular fast food restaurant. Chains like McDonald's offer kosher branches. Non-kosher foods such as cheeseburgers are rare in Israeli fast food chains, even in non-kosher branches. There are many small local fast food chains that serve pizza, hamburgers, sushi and local foods such as hummus, falafel and shawarma.

text: New Zealand[edit]

text: In New Zealand, the fast food market began in the 1970s with KFC (opened 1971), Pizza Hut (1974), and McDonald's (1976),[20] and all three remain popular today. Burger King and Domino's entered the market later in the 1990s. Australian pizza chains Eagle Boys and Pizza Haven also entered the market in the 1990s, but their New Zealand operations were later sold to Pizza Hut and Domino's.

text: A few fast food chains have been founded in New Zealand, including Burger Fuel (founded 1995), Georgie Pie (founded 1977, but closed 1998 after falling into financial trouble and being bought out by McDonald's) and Hell Pizza (founded 1996).

text: Philippines[edit]

text: In the Philippines, fast-food is the same as in the US. However, the only difference is that they serve Filipino dishes and a few American products being served Filipino-style. Jollibee is the leading fast food chain in the country with 1,000 stores nationwide.

text: Franchising[edit]

text: A fast food chain restaurant is generally owned either by the parent company of the fast food chain or a franchisee – an independent party given the right to use the company's trademark and trade name. In the latter case, a contract is made between the franchisee and the parent company, typically requiring the franchisee to pay an initial, fixed fee in addition to a continual percentage of monthly sales. Upon opening for business, the franchisee oversees the day-to-day operations of the restaurant and acts as a manager of the store. Once the contract expires, the parent company may choose to "renew the contract, sell the franchise to another franchisee, or operate the restaurant itself." [21] In most fast food chains, the number of franchised locations exceeds the number of company owned locations.

text: Fast food chains rely on consistency and uniformity, in internal operations and brand image, across all of their restaurant locations in order to convey a sense of reliability to their customers. This sense of reliability coupled with a positive customer experience brings customers to place trust in the company. This sense of trust leads to increased customer loyalty which gives the company a source of recurring business. When a person is presented with a choice of different restaurants to eat at, it is much easier for them to stick with what they know, rather than to take a gamble and dive into the unknown.[22]

text: Due to the importance of consistency, most companies set standards unifying their various restaurant locations with a set of common rules and regulations. Parent companies often rely on field representatives to ensure that the practices of franchised locations are consistent with the company's standards. However, the more locations a fast food chain has, the harder it is for the parent company to guarantee that these standards are being followed. Moreover, it is much more expensive to discharge a franchisee for noncompliance with company standards, than it is to discharge an employee for that same reason. As a consequence, parent companies tend to deal with franchisee violations in a more relaxed manner.[22]

text: For the most part, someone visiting a McDonald's in the United States will have the same experience as someone visiting a McDonald's in Japan. The interior design, the menu, the speed of service, and the taste of the food will all be very similar. However, some differences do exist to tailor to particular cultural differences. For example, in October 2005 during a midst of plummeting sales in Japan, McDonald's added a shrimp burger to the Japanese menu.[23] The choice to introduce a shrimp burger was no coincidence, as a 1989 study stated that world consumption of shrimp was "led by Japan." [24]

text: In March 2010, Taco Bell opened their first restaurant in India. Because non-consumption of beef is a cultural norm in light of India's Dharmic beliefs, Taco Bell had to tailor its menu to the dietary distinctions of Indian culture by replacing all of the beef with chicken. By the same token, completely meatless options were introduced to the menu due to the prevalence of vegetarianism throughout the country.[25]

text: Trends[edit]

text: Health concerns[edit]

text: Some of the large fast food chains are beginning to incorporate healthier alternatives in their menu, e.g., white meat, snack wraps, salads, and fresh fruit. However, some people see these moves as a tokenistic and commercial measure, rather than an appropriate reaction to ethical concerns about the world ecology and people's health. McDonald's announced that in March 2006, the chain would include nutritional information on the packaging of all of its products.[26]

text: In September and October 2000, during the Starlink corn recalls, up to $50 million worth of corn-based foods were recalled from restaurants as well as supermarkets. The products contained Starlink genetically modified corn that was not approved for human consumption.[27] It was the first-ever recall of a genetically modified food.[28][29] The environmental group Friends of the Earth that had first detected the contaminated shells was critical of the FDA for not doing its own job.

text: Consumer appeal[edit]

text: Fast food outlets have become popular with consumers for several reasons. One is that through economies of scale in purchasing and producing food, these companies can deliver food to consumers at a very low cost. In addition, although some people dislike fast food for its predictability, it can be reassuring to a hungry person in a hurry or far from home.[citation needed]

text: In the post-World War II period in the United States, fast food chains like McDonald's rapidly gained a reputation for their cleanliness, fast service, and a child-friendly atmosphere where families on the road could grab a quick meal, or seek a break from the routine of home cooking[citation needed]. Prior to the rise of the fast food chain restaurant, people generally had a choice between greasy spoon diners where the quality of the food was often questionable and service lacking, or high-end restaurants that were expensive and impractical for families with children[citation needed]. The modern, stream-lined convenience of the fast food restaurant provided a new alternative and appealed to Americans' instinct for ideas and products associated with progress, technology, and innovation.[citation needed]  Fast food restaurants rapidly became the eatery "everyone could agree on", with many featuring child-size menu combos, play areas, and whimsical branding campaigns, like the iconic Ronald McDonald, designed to appeal to younger customers. Parents could have a few minutes of peace while children played or amused themselves with the toys included in their Happy Meal.  There is a long history of fast food advertising campaigns, many of which are directed at children.

text: Fast food marketing largely focuses on children and teenagers. Popular methods of advertising include television, product placement in toys, games, educational materials, songs, and movies, character licensing and celebrity endorsements, and websites.[30]  Advertisements targeting children mainly focus on free toys, movie tie-ins and other giveaways.[31] Fast food restaurants use kid's meals with toys, kid friendly mascots, vibrant colors, and play areas to draw children toward their products. . Children's power over their parents' purchases is estimated to total $300 to $500 billion every year.[32] Fast food has become a part of American culture as a reward for children. To deny a child "desirable things" such as the advertised fast food restaurant can cause stigmatization of parents as the "mean parent" when it is common among other parents to comply with their child's desires.[32]

text: The major focus on children by the fast food industry has created controversy due to the rising issue of children obesity in America.[33] As a result of this focus, in 2008 a coalition was created and run by the Council of Better Business Bureaus called Children's Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative(CFBAI), to stop ads aimed at children or to promote only what the council dubs "better-for- you" products in ads directed towards children.[34] However, it was not until 2011 that Congress requested guidelines be put in place by the CFBAI, FDA, Agriculture Department, and Centers for Disease Control. There are two basic requirements identified in the guidelines for foods that are advertised for children: (1) The food has to include healthful ingredients; (2) The food can't contain unhealthful amounts of sugar, Saturated fat, Trans fat, and salt. The guidelines are voluntary but companies experience heavy pressure to comply. Once a company complies they have 5–10 years to comply with the guidelines.[33] Many fast food industries have started to comply with the guidelines. Although many companies have ways to go. In 2012 the fast food industry spent $4.6 billion to advertise unhealthy products to children and teens according to a report by the Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity.[31] There are points of progress that include healthier sides and beverages in most fast food restaurant kids' meals.[31] The guidelines are interested in a healthier lifestyle for children and the growing problem of American obesity.

text: In other parts of the world, American and American-style fast food outlets have been popular for their quality, customer service, and novelty, even though they are often the targets of popular anger towards American foreign policy or globalization more generally[citation needed]. Many consumers nonetheless see them as symbols of the wealth, progress, and well-ordered openness of Western society and they therefore become trendy attractions in many cities around the world, particularly among younger people with more varied tastes.[citation needed]

text: Impact of fast food restaurant availability[edit]

text: Over time, fast food restaurants have been growing rapidly, especially in urban neighborhoods. According to US research, low-income and predominantly African-American neighborhoods have greater exposure to fast food outlets than higher income and predominantly white areas.[35] This has put into question whether urbanized neighborhoods were targeted, which causes a more unhealthy group of people compared to people from a higher socioeconomic status. It has also been shown that there is a lower chance of finding a fast food restaurant in a suburban neighborhood. In a study of selected US locations, Morland et al. (2002) found the number of fast food restaurants and bars was inversely proportional to the wealth of the neighborhood, and that predominantly African-American residential areas were four times less likely to have a supermarket near them than predominantly white areas.[36]

text: Innovations timeline[edit]

text:
1872: Walter Scott of Providence, RI outfitted a horse-drawn lunch wagon with a simple kitchen, bringing hot dinners to workers[37]
1902: First Horn & Hardart Automat opened in Philadelphia
1912: Horn & Hardart opens a second Automat in Manhattan
1916: Walter Anderson built the first White Castle in Wichita, KS in 1916, introducing the limited menu, high volume, low cost, high speed hamburger restaurant[37]
1919: A&W Root Beer took its product out of the soda fountain and into a roadside stand[37]
1921: A&W Root Beer began franchising its syrup[37]
1921: White Castle opens its first restaurant
1926: Maid-Rite opened its first restaurant in Muscatine, Iowa.
1930s: Howard Johnson's pioneered the concept of franchising restaurants, formally standardizing menus, signage, and advertising[37]
1948: In-N-Out Burger begins drive-through service utilizing call-box technology
1967: McDonald's opens its first restaurants outside the US.[38]
1971: McDonald's begins serving breakfast, test-marketing the  Egg McMuffin in the US.[38]
1971: The first Starbucks store opens in Seattle, Washington in Pike Place Market to sell high-quality coffee beans and equipment
1980: 7-Eleven introduces the 32-US-fluid-ounce (950 ml) Big Gulp
1981: Arby's offers nutritional information
1987: Howard Schultz leads purchase of the Starbucks brand from its founders (who adopted the name Peet's) and begins offering coffee drinks modeled after those sold in Italian coffee bars
1994: McDonald's begins "supersizing" Extra Value Meals
1994: Arctic Circle becomes the first fast food restaurant to sell Angus beef exclusively.
1994: Arby's is first fast food restaurant to implement a no-smoking policy
2002: McDonald's cuts back on the amount of trans fat by 48 percent on french fries
2006: Arby's begins elimination of trans fat oils in french fries

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text: Halal[edit]

text: The introduction of the halal option by some fast food companies saw the expansion of fast food chains into Muslim majority countries has resulted in a rise of restaurant options in non-western nations and has also increased revenue for some western restaurant chains.[39] Some outlets offering Halal options include KFC, Nando's, Pizza Express, and Subway. McDonald's carried out a trial but decided that the cost of operations would be too high.[40] There have also been court cases involving start-up businesses during attempts to alter the halal-certified method by machine killing, which is against the beliefs of some Muslims.[41] However, the trend towards halal has been unpopular in some communities which have at times resulted in internet petitions.[42]

text: Criticisms[edit]

text: The fast food industry is a popular target for critics, from anti-globalization activists like José Bové to vegetarian activist groups such as PETA as well as the workers themselves. A number of fast food worker strikes occurred in the United States in the 2010s.

text: In his best-selling 2001 book Fast Food Nation, investigative journalist Eric Schlosser leveled a broad, socioeconomic critique against the fast food industry, documenting how fast food rose from small, family-run businesses (like the McDonald brothers' burger joint) into large, multinational corporate juggernauts whose economies of scale radically transformed agriculture, meat processing, and labor markets in the late twentieth century. Schlosser argues that while the innovations of the fast food industry gave Americans more and cheaper dining options, it has come at the price of destroying the environment, economy, and small-town communities of rural America while shielding consumers from the real costs of their convenient meal, both in terms of health and the broader impact of large-scale food production and processing on workers, animals, and land.

text: The fast food industry is popular in the United States, the source of most of its innovation, and many major international chains are based there. Seen as symbols of US dominance and perceived cultural imperialism, American fast food franchises have often been the target of Anti-globalization protests and demonstrations against the US government. In 2005, for example, rioters in Karachi, Pakistan, who were initially angered because of the bombing of a Shiite mosque, destroyed a KFC restaurant.[43]

text: Legal issues[edit]

text: In 2003, McDonald's was sued in a New York court by a family who claimed that the restaurant chain was responsible for their teenage daughter's obesity and attendant health problems. By manipulating food's taste, sugar and fat content, and directing their advertising to children, the suit argued that the company purposely misleads the public about the nutritional value of its product. A judge dismissed the case, but the fast food industry disliked the publicity of its practices, particularly the way it targets children in its advertising.[44]  Although further lawsuits have not materialized, the issue is kept alive in the media and political circles by those promoting the need for tort reform.[45]

text:
In response to this, the "Cheeseburger Bill" [46] was passed by the US House of Representatives in 2004; it later stalled in the US Senate. The law was reintroduced in 2005, only to meet the same fate. This law was claimed to "[ban] frivolous lawsuits against producers and sellers of food and non-alcoholic drinks arising from obesity claims."
The bill arose because of an increase in lawsuits against fast food chains by people who claimed that eating their products made them obese, disassociating themselves from any of the blame.