FIFA World Cup mascots - The best and worst mascots from previous World Cups

Ciao (1990, Italy)

Wanting to go in a completely different direction altogether, Italy created Ciao, a stick figure football player that was draped in the colours of the Italian flag, and had a football as its head.

It got mixed reviews upon its release, with many criticising an apparent lack of effort from the Italians in making a Lego-type stick figure, while others praised its simplicity and concept.

Striker, the World Cup pup (1994, USA)

The United States went back to the idea of having an animal as the mascot for their first-ever World Cup, creating Striker, a dog that, similar to its name, played upfront.

Wearing the US’ red, white and blue, Striker was designed by the Warner Brothers animation studios, and had USA 94 written on its shirt.