2002 FIFA World Cup final

See also: 2002 FIFA World Cup

2002 FIFA World Cup Final

File:FIFA World Cup Trophy 2002 0103 - CROPPED-.jpg
Event	2002 FIFA World Cup
Germany Brazil 0 2
Date	30 June 2002
Venue	International Stadium, Yokohama
Referee	Pierluigi Collina (Italy)
Attendance	69,029

The 2002 FIFA World Cup Final the final match of the 2002 FIFA World Cup, played between Germany and Brazil at the International Stadium in Yokohama, Japan. Brazil won the match 2–0, winning a record fifth title. Ronaldo, who became the record World Cup goalscorer at the 2006 tournament, scored two of his fifteen World Cup goals in the second half of the match, leading Brazil to the title and winning the Golden Boot award. This match also marked Brazilian captain Cafu's third appearance in a World Cup Final, a feat that has yet to be accomplished by any other player in the history of the tournament. Both teams had won their respective groups before advancing to the knockout stage, where both teams shut out all of their opponents en route to the final. Germany advanced past the suprisingly-advanced United States and co-host South Korea, while Brazil knocked out perennial favorite England.

The title marked Brazil's fifth World Cup championship, which is more than any other nation has achieved, also being the first team to win all seven of their games without any extra time or penalty kicks. Germany lost the World Cup Final for its fourth time, another tournament record. They were attempting to tie Brazil for most championships with a win, as the team had already won three.

Background

Germany

Prior to the tournament, the Germans were plagued by a series of injuries to key players. Sebastian Deisler, a star player, would not be able to play in the tournament due to a knee injury suffered in a friendly match against Austria only two days before the team left for Japan. The team's medical staff was at first confident that Dieslar would be able to play, but later pulled him out due to fears of his safety. "At first we had a glimmer of hope, but now the most important thing to think about is the health of Sebastian rather than the World Cup," said team manager Rudi Voeller. In addition, defenders Mehmet Scholl, Christian Woerns, and Jens Nowotny all missed the tournament due to injury.

Germany began in the group stage in Group E, placed among Ireland and the low-ranking Saudi Arabian and Cameroonian teams. In their opening match at the Sapporo Dome against Saudi Arabia they showed dominance, defeating them 8-0. Centre forward Miroslav Klose scored a hat trick, one of six different players on the German team to score a goal. In their next game against Ireland, the Germans held a 1-0 lead throughout much of the game. However, with only a few seconds left in stoppage time, Irish player Niall Quinn, a substitute, scored the equalizer goal against German goalkeeper Oliver Kahn. The goal held and the match ended in a 1-1 draw, awarding Germany only one point in the standings. Needing a win to finish first in their group, Germany entered their final match against Cameroon one point ahead of the Irish in the group. However, Germany easily beat Cameroon in a 2-0 game at Shizuoka Stadium, with Klose scoring his fifth goal of the tournament. Germany finished first place in Group E with seven points (two wins and a draw), and advanced into the first stage of the knockout round.

In the first stage of the knockout round, Germany faced Paraguay, the runner-up in group B, at Jeju World Cup Stadium. The game remained a very defensive one, as there were no goals scored in the first half and well into the second half. In the 88th minute, first-time german starting forward Oliver Neuville scored, winning the game for Germany. In the round of eight, Germany faced a United States team that had surprisingly made it far into the tournament. Although they were significantly outshot 11 to 6, the Germans were still able to pull away with a 1-0 win. The single goal scored in the match came from star midfielder Michael Ballack in the 38th minute.

Match details

30 June 2002

20:00

Germany	0 – 2	Brazil
	(Report)	Ronaldo 67', 79'

International Stadium, Yokohama

Attendance: 69,029

Referee: Pierluigi Collina (Italy)

Germany

Brazil

GERMANY: GK 1 Oliver Kahn (c) CB 2 Thomas Linke CB 5 Carsten Ramelow CB 21 Christoph Metzelder RM 22 Torsten Frings CM 8 Dietmar Hamann CM 16 Jens Jeremies  77' LM 17 Marco Bode  84' AM 19 Bernd Schneider CF 11 Miroslav Klose  9'  74' CF 7 Oliver Neuville Substitutes: FW 20 Oliver Bierhoff  74' FW 14 Gerald Asamoah  77' MF 6 Christian Ziege  84' Manager: Rudi Völler

BRAZIL: GK 1 Marcos CB 3 Lúcio CB 5 Edmílson CB 4 Roque Júnior  6' RM 2 Cafu (c) CM 8 Gilberto Silva CM 15 Kléberson LM 6 Roberto Carlos AM 11 Ronaldinho  85' CF 10 Rivaldo CF 9 Ronaldo  90' Substitutes: MF 19 Juninho Paulista  85' MF 17 Denílson  90' Manager: Luiz Felipe Scolari

OFFICIALS Assistant referees: Leif Lundberg (Sweden) Philip Sharp (England) Fourth official: Hugh Dallas (Scotland)

MATCH RULES 90 minutes 30 minutes of extra-time if necessary Penalty shoot-out if scores still level: 3 (of 12) substitutions permitted