.jpg) Germany'sMario Götze scores the match-winning goal | |||||||
| Event | 2014 FIFA World Cup | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Afterextra time | |||||||
| Date | 13 July 2014 (2014-07-13) | ||||||
| Venue | Maracanã Stadium,Rio de Janeiro | ||||||
| Man of the Match | Mario Götze (Germany) | ||||||
| Referee | Nicola Rizzoli (Italy)[1] | ||||||
| Attendance | 74,738 | ||||||
| Weather | Fair 23 °C (73 °F) 65%humidity | ||||||
←2010 2018 → | |||||||
The2014 FIFA World Cup final was the final match of the2014 World Cup, the 20th edition ofFIFA's competition for nationalfootball teams. The match was played at theMaracanã Stadium inRio de Janeiro, Brazil, on 13 July 2014, and was contested byGermany andArgentina. The event comprised hostsBrazil and 31 other teams who emerged fromthe qualification phase, organised by the sixFIFA confederations. The 32 teams competed in a group stage, from which 16 teams qualified forthe knockout stage. En route to the final, Germany finished first inGroup G, with two wins and a draw, after which they defeatedAlgeria in the round of 16,France in the quarter-final and Brazil, bya score of7–1, in the semi-final. Argentina finished first inGroup F with three wins, before defeatingSwitzerland in the round of 16,Belgium in the quarter-final and theNetherlands in apenalty shoot-out in the semi-final. The final was witnessed by 74,738 spectators in the stadium, as well as over a billion watching on television, with the referee for the match being Nicola Rizzoli from Italy.
Gonzalo Higuaín missed a chance to score for Argentina in the first half when he wasone-on-one with Germany goalkeeperManuel Neuer, andBenedikt Höwedes failed to give Germany the lead shortly before half-time when his shot struck the goalpost.Lionel Messi had an opportunity to score when he was one-on-one with Neuer shortly after half time, but his low shot went wide of the goal. On 71 minutes,Thomas Müller was through on goal following a build-up involvingAndré Schürrle andMesut Özil, but he failed to control the ball and lost it to Argentina's goalkeeper,Sergio Romero. With the match goalless after 90 minutes, it went toextra time, in the second period of which Germany broke the deadlock.Mario Götze, who had come on as asubstitute shortly before the end of normal time, received Schürrle'scross from the left on his chest beforevolleying a left-footed shot into the net to secure a 1–0 victory for Germany.
Germany's win was theirfourth World Cup title and the first sinceGerman reunification, as well as the first World Cup win by a European team in theAmericas. Götze was named theman of the match, and Messi was awarded theGolden Ball as FIFA's outstanding player of the tournament. Germany'smanager,Joachim Löw, labelled his side's win as the culmination of a project that had begun ten years previously under his predecessorJürgen Klinsmann, and praised his team's spirit. His Argentine counterpart,Alejandro Sabella, thought his team had been unlucky to lose, and called his players "warriors". Germany failed to defend their trophy at the subsequent2018 World Cup in Russia, becoming the third successive World Cup holdersto be eliminated in the group phase after defeats againstMexico andSouth Korea.
The2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th edition of theWorld Cup,FIFA's football competition for national teams, held in Brazil between 12 June and 13 July 2014.[2][3]Brazil qualified for the finals automatically as tournament hosts, and 203 teams competed for the remaining 31 spots throughqualifying rounds organised by the sixFIFA confederations and held between June 2011 and November 2013.[4][5] In the finals, the teams were divided into eight groups of four with each team playing each other once in around-robin format. The two top teams from each group advanced to aknock-out phase.[3] The defending champions from the2010 World Cup wereSpain, who had achieved three successive victories in major tournaments, having also won theUEFA European Championship in2008 and2012.[6] They were eliminated in thegroup stage this year.[3]
Germany had won the title three times before as West Germany – in1954,1974 and1990.Argentina had two titles, in1978 and1986.[2] The two sides had met each other six times previously in the World Cup,[7] including in the1986 final, which Argentina won3–2, and the1990 final, which West Germany won1–0.[8][9] They had met in the quarter-final of both of the most recent two World Cups, Germany winning both –a 4–2 penalty shoot-out win in 2006 anda4–0 win in 2010. Germany then lost in the semi-finals and finished third on both occasions.[10][11] The most recent meeting between the two teams before the 2014 World Cup was afriendly match played on 15 August 2012 atCommerzbank-Arena in Frankfurt, which was won by Argentina3–1.[12]
The venue for the final was announced in 2011 as the Estádio Jornalista Mário Filho inRio de Janeiro, commonly known as theMaracanã Stadium.[13][14] It was built in preparation for the1950 FIFA World Cup, andthat tournament's final match, in whichUruguay beat Brazil2–1 to win the trophy, is as of 2021[update] the record-holder for the highest attendance at any football match in history.[a][16] The Maracanã also hosted the finals of theCopa América in1989,2019 and2021; the2013 FIFA Confederations Cup final; and both the men's and women's football finalsat the 2016 Summer Olympics.[17][18] The stadium underwent an extensive rebuild before the 2014 World Cup, after which its capacity was 78,838.[19][20]
The match ball for the 2014 FIFA World Cup final, announced on 29 May 2014, was a variation of theAdidas Brazuca named theAdidas Brazuca Final Rio.[21] Though the technical aspects of the ball were the same, the design was different from the Brazuca balls used in the group phase and prior knockout games, with a green, gold and black coloring.[21] It was the third ball released specifically for FIFA World Cup final matches, after theTeamgeist Berlin (2006) and theJo'bulani (2010).[22]
| Opponent | Result | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Portugal | 4–0 |
| 2 |  Ghana | 2–2 |
| 3 |  United States | 1–0 |
| R16 |  Algeria | 2–1 (a.e.t.) |
| QF |  France | 1–0 |
| SF |  Brazil | 7–1 |
Germany were drawn inGroup G for the World Cup, in which they were joined byGhana,Portugal and theUnited States.[23] Their first match was against Portugal, on 16 June 2014 at theItaipava Arena Fonte Nova inSalvador. Germany won apenalty on 10 minutes, whenJoão Pereira fouledMario Götze. Müller took the kick and gave Germany the lead.[24]Mats Hummels added a second goal with aheader on 32 minutes, and Portugal'sPepe was shown ared card five minutes later, after heheadbutted Müller.[25] Müller then scored his second ininjury time to give Germany a 3–0 half-time lead.[25] Müller scored a third from close range in the second half, to complete a 4–0 victory, afterRui Patrício had failed to clear across byAndré Schürrle.[26] Germany's second game was against Ghana at theEstádio Castelão inFortaleza. After a goalless first half, Götze opened the scoring on 51 minutes, when his headedshot from a Müller cross bounced off his own knee and past Ghana's goalkeeperFatau Dauda. Ghana equalised shortly afterwards, through anAndré Ayew header, and then took the lead whenSulley Muntari foundAsamoah Gyan with apass, after an error byManuel Neuer.[27] Germany levelled the game again on 71 minutes, whenMiroslav Klose, who had come on as asubstitute, kickedBenedikt Höwedes's goal-bound header into the goal from close range.[27][28] Klose's goal equalled the BrazilianRonaldo's World Cup record of 15 goals, and the game finished 2–2.[27] Germany's last group game was against the United States atItaipava Arena Pernambuco inRecife, with a win or draw needed to guarantee qualification.[29] In rainy conditions, Müller scored the only goal of the game with a shot inside thepenalty area after goalkeeperTim Howard had savedPer Mertesacker's header. Germany qualified as group winners.[30]
Germany's opponents inthe round of 16 wereAlgeria, with the match played on 30 June at theEstádio Beira-Rio inPorto Alegre.[31] The game was tied at 0–0 after 90 minutes, Germany being described byBBC Sport's David Ornstein as looking frequently "rattled" as "Algeria wasted a succession of chances in an opening, exciting encounter".[32] Germany took the lead early inextra time, when Müller crossed from the left and Schürrle scored from close range.[32]Mesut Özil added a second for Germany in the final minute of extra time, beforeAbdelmoumene Djabou pulled a goal back for Algeria with avolley in injury time. Germany held on to record a 2–1 win.[31] They then facedFrance in the quarter-final at the Maracanã Stadium on 4 July. Hummels gave Germany the lead on 12 minutes with a header, following a free kick byToni Kroos, and that proved to be the only goal of what Ornstein described as a "comfortable" win.[33] Germany faced tournament hosts Brazil in their semi-final game, on 8 July in Belo Horizonte. In a result described by BBC Sport'sPhil McNulty in 2019 as "a drama ... that will never be forgotten by anyone who witnessed it", Germanywon the game 7–1, inflicting Brazil's first competitive defeat at home for 39 years.[34] They took the lead on 10 minutes, when Müller scored from a corner, unmarked by any Brazil players. They doubled their lead on 22 minutes through Klose, with his record-breaking 16th World Cup goal, before Kroos made it 3–0 on 25 minutes with a left-footed volley.[35] Kroos scored again 179 seconds later, from anassist bySami Khedira, before Khedira himself scored to make it 5–0 at half time. Schürrle scored twice in the second half to make it 7–0, beforeOscar scored Brazil's sole goal shortly before the end.[36] Simon Burnton ofThe Guardian later described Germany's play as being "of a savagery unwitnessed against significant opposition in the tournament's history".[37] Germany progressed to their eighth final, 12 years after their last and their second sinceGerman reunification.[b][2]
| Opponent | Result | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Bosnia and Herzegovina | 2–1 |
| 2 |  Iran | 1–0 |
| 3 |  Nigeria | 3–2 |
| R16 |  Switzerland | 1–0 (a.e.t.) |
| QF |  Belgium | 1–0 |
| SF |  Netherlands | 0–0 (a.e.t.)(4–2p) |
Argentina were drawn inGroup F, alongsideBosnia and Herzegovina,Iran andNigeria.[39] Their opening game took place on 15 June 2014 against Bosnia and Herzegovina, who were making their World Cup debut. It was the first game of the tournament at the Maracanã Stadium.[40][41] Argentina took the lead on 3 minutes, when Bosnian defenderSead Kolašinac scored anown goal after afree kick byLionel Messi had been flicked on byMarcos Rojo. In the second half, Messi scored himself to double Argentina's lead with a powerful shot following aone-two withGonzalo Higuaín.Vedad Ibišević scored for Bosnia and Herzegovina with 6 minutes remaining, but Argentina held on for a 2–1 win.[41] Their second game was against Iran at theEstádio Mineirão inBelo Horizonte on 21 June.Barney Ronay ofThe Guardian described Iran as producing a "stirring performance against an Argentina team of all the attacking talents", and the match remained goalless until the 90th minute.[42] Argentina took the win in injury time, when Messi scored a left-footed shot into the corner from outside the penalty area to seal qualification for the next round with a game to spare.[39][43] Their final group game was on 25 June, against Nigeria in Porto Alegre. Messi gave Argentina the lead on 3 minutes, scoring on the rebound afterÁngel Di María's shot hit the goalpost.Ahmed Musa equalised for Nigeria a minute later with a right-footed curling shot, before Messi gave Argentina the lead again with a free kick from 25 yards (23 m) out shortly before half time. Musa equalised once again 2 minutes into the second half, hitting the ball past goalkeeperSergio Romero after a one-two withEmmanuel Emenike, but Rojo scored with his knee 3 minutes later to seal a 3–2 win and first place in the final group table.[44]
Argentina's round-of-16 opponents wereSwitzerland, on 1 July at theArena Corinthians inSão Paulo. Argentina had the majority of thepossession during the game, but BBC Sport's Jonathan Jurejko labelled their play "unconvincing", citing their failure to break down a Switzerland side who were playing defensively.[45] There were no goals during normal time, and it remained 0–0 until 2 minutes before the end of extra time when Messi set up Di María to score the winner past Swiss goalkeeperDiego Benaglio. SubstituteBlerim Džemaili almost equalised for Switzerland immediately afterwards with a shot that hit the goalpost, but Argentina held on for a 1–0 win.[45] Their quarter-final was againstBelgium at theEstádio Nacional Mané Garrincha inBrasília on 5 July. Argentina scored the only goal of the game on 8 minutes through Higuaín, who scored from the edge of the penalty area after Di María's pass was deflected off Belgium'sJan Vertonghen.[46] Argentina played theNetherlands in the semi-final on 9 July. There were no goals in the game, in either normal time or extra time, in what McNulty described as "120 tedious ... minutes that were in stark contrast to the spectacular shock" of the previous day's semi-final between Brazil and Germany.[47]Ron Vlaar of the Netherlands took the first penalty, a low shot to the right, which was saved by Romero. The next three kicks, by Messi,Arjen Robben andEzequiel Garay, were all scored, before Romero made another save, diving to his right to keep out a high penalty fromWesley Sneijder.Sergio Agüero,Dirk Kuyt andMaxi Rodríguez all scored their penalties, giving Argentina a 4–2 shoot-out win.[48] The press in Argentina called Romero's two saves the "hands of God", a reference to the"hand of God" goal scored byDiego Maradona in 1986.[49] Argentina progressed to their fifth final, which was also their first since 1990.[2]
Nicola Rizzoli, from Italy, was named as the referee of the final, together with fellow Italians Renato Faverani and Andrea Stefani as the assistant referees, andCarlos Vera and Christian Lescano from Ecuador as thefourth andfifth officials.[50] Earlier in the 2014 World Cup, Rizzoli took charge of the Spain–Netherlands and Nigeria–Argentina matches in the group stage, and the Argentina–Belgium quarter-final. He had previously taken charge of the2010 UEFA Europa League final and the2013 UEFA Champions League final. He was also one of the referees at the2011 FIFA Club World Cup, UEFA Euro 2012 and the2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup. He became the third Italian referee to take charge of a World Cup final, afterSergio Gonella in1978 andPierluigi Collina in2002.[50]
A closing ceremony for the World Cup took place about an hour and forty minutes before the final.[51] A performance of two acts, the ceremony lasted about 20 minutes. The first act featured 22samba dancers and a host of other performers, 32 of the dancers wearing dresses decorated in the colours of each of the participating teams. The second act featured musical performances headlined by Colombian singerShakira, and included singersCarlinhos Brown,Wyclef Jean,Alexandre Pires andIvete Sangalo as well as guitaristCarlos Santana.[52][53] Brazilian supermodelGisele Bündchen andCarles Puyol, a member of Spain's winning team in 2010, unveiled theFIFA World Cup Trophy.[54]
Brazilian presidentDilma Rousseff was present at the final, along with Russian presidentVladimir Putin, whose country hostedthe next World Cup,[55] andJacob Zuma, the president of South Africa, the previous host country.[56] Representing the finalists, German presidentJoachim Gauck and chancellorAngela Merkel were in attendance,[57] although Argentina's presidentCristina Fernández de Kirchner could not attend because of both her grandson's birthday and a case of pharyngo-laryngitis.[58] Other world leaders present includedViktor Orbán of Hungary,Ali Bongo Ondimba of Gabon and Antigua and Barbuda'sGaston Browne.[55] Several celebrities and athletes also attended the final, includingRihanna,Daniel Craig,Mick Jagger,Ashton Kutcher,David Beckham,Tom Brady,Olivier Dacourt,LeBron James, andChristian Vieri.[55] Former World Cup winners likeFabio Cannavaro,Lothar Matthäus,Daniel Passarella,Marco Materazzi andPelé were present as well.[55][59][60][61] Brazilian spectators at the game were largely supportive of the Germans as a result of theArgentina–Brazil football rivalry, despite their team's heavy semi-final loss.[62][63][64]
Germany were forced to make a late change to their line-up when Khedira sustained acalf injury during the warm-up before the match. He was replaced in the line-up byChristoph Kramer,[65] with Germany's team otherwise unchanged from that which started in their win over Brazil in the semi-final.[36][66] Argentina began the match with the identical team to that which started their semi-final against the Netherlands.[47][66]
.jpg)
Germany kicked off the match at 4 pm local time (7 pmUTC) in temperatures of 23 °C (73 °F) with 65% humidity, in front of a crowd of 74,738 and an estimated global television audience of 1.013 billion.[67][66][68] The weather atSantos Dumont Airport, 6.5 kilometres (4 mi) from the stadium,[c] was recorded as fair at the time of kick-off, becoming partly cloudy later in the evening.[71] Germany won a free kick 3 minutes into the game, when Rojo fouled Müller around 25 yards (23 m) from the Argentina goal. The free kick was hit straight at thewall, and Argentina launched a counterattack from the rebound.Pablo Zabaleta ran with the ball down the right before passing to Higuaín on the edge of the penalty area. He took a shot from a narrow angle, but the ball went wide of Neuer's left-hand goalpost. On 9 minutes, Messi outpaced Hummels on the Argentina right and ran into the penalty area. He attempted to findEzequiel Lavezzi from thebyline but Schweinsteiger reached it first and cleared.[72] Germany had considerably more of the early possession, but a German defensive error on 20 minutes gave Argentina what Jerry Hinnen ofCBS Sports called "the best opportunity for either side" thus far. Kroos miscued a header, which left Higuaínone-on-one with Neuer, but the latter's shot from the edge of the penalty area went wide of the goal.[73] On 23 minutes, Klose had a chance to score when the ball reached him following a cross byPhilipp Lahm, but Zabaleta dispossessed him before he could shoot.[72]
In the 30th minute, Lavezzi found space for Argentina on the right and crossed into the penalty area. Higuaín collected the ball and slotted it past Neuer into the goal.[72] He celebrated for several seconds, but the strike was disallowed as he had been in anoffside position.[66] Germany made a substitution shortly afterwards, taking off Kramer as a result of a head injury he had sustained 14 minutes previously.[74] He was replaced by Schürrle.[66] Höwedes received ayellow card on 33 minutes for a tackle which connected with Zabaleta's shins, before Messi had a 20-yard (18 m) shot blocked by Schweinsteiger. A minute later, Germany launched an attack down the left through Müller, who passed to Schürrle. He hit a shot towards the top left of the goal, but Romero did a full-stretch dive to save it,[72] despite having his eyeline blocked by Özil.[66] Messi then had another opportunity, running with the ball into the Germany penalty area and kicking the ball towards goal.Jérôme Boateng prevented Argentina taking the lead with a goal-line clearance.[72] Shortly before half time, Höwedes received a Kroos corner in the penalty area, in what reporters forUEFA called the "best chance of the half", but his headed shot from an offside position struck the goalpost and it remained 0–0 at half time.[75]
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Argentina began the second half with Agüero on the field in place of Lavezzi. Higuaín had a shot in the first minute of the half after running down the right wing, but it went wide of Neuer's goal. Messi then had an opportunity to score when he was one-on-one with the goalkeeper a minute later, but his low shot on goal also went wide. Argentina had more possession than Germany in the opening 10 minutes of the half, and they had another chance on 50 minutes when Higuaín received a ball just inside the penalty area; he missed the ball with his attempted shot. In the 56th minute, Neuer took down Higuaín in the penalty area, but no penalty was given, despite Argentine commentators believing it should be given. No card was given either. Klose had Germany's first shot on goal of the second half on 59 minutes but his shot lacked power and was caught by Romero. Argentina had an opportunity to score through aMartín Demichelis header four minutes later, but Klose intercepted to send it behind. Shortly afterwards,Javier Mascherano brought down Klose after losing the ball to him, and was booked. His team-mate Agüero was also booked a minute later for a foul on Schweinsteiger. Midway through the second half,The Guardian's Scott Murray commented that the first half had been "goalless and brilliant", but the second was "goalless and ... well, not so much", although he noted that it remained an open game.[72]
Germany had a chance on 71 minutes, Müller, Schürrle and Özil all getting involved in a build-up which Murray described as "tiki-taka", but when Schürrle eventually reached the penalty area with only Romero to beat, he failed to control the ball properly and the goalkeeper claimed it. Messi had a shot on 75 minutes, following a run across the edge of the German penalty area, which he attempted to curl into the top left-hand corner of the goal; it missed the target. Germany appealed for a penalty with 10 minutes remaining, after a tussle close to the Argentina goalpost following a Lahm cross, but the referee awarded agoal kick to Argentina.[72] Kroos then had a chance for Germany following alay-off pass by Özil, but he again missed the target.[66] Both sides made substitutions in the final 5 minutes –Fernando Gago replacingEnzo Pérez for Argentina, and Götze came on for Klose for Germany.[72] This represented Klose's last appearance for Germany, and he remains as of 2024[update] the most prolific goalscorer for any country in World Cup history.[76][77] The final remained goalless after 90 minutes, and extra time was played.[66]
Early in the first half of extra time, Schürrle received a pass in front of goal from Götze, but his close-range shot was stopped by Romero.[72] This was followed by abreak upfield by Messi and Agüero with only two defenders covering, but Boateng was able to intercept and clear the danger. Five minutes later, alob byRodrigo Palacio over Neuer went just wide after the forward jumped on a mistake by Hummels in the German penalty area.[78] At the halfway point in extra time, Murray wrote that Argentina were "offering very little up front" and speculated that many of the players might be "thinking about penalties already".[72] Alan Tyers ofThe Daily Telegraph noted that Messi did not "look quite the ticket" and that he had not been playing well since half time.[78] In the second half of extra time, Germany broke the deadlock when Götze scored in the 113th minute. Schürrle raced past two defenders on the left before crossing into the penalty area, where Götze controlled the ball on his chest and then volleyed left-footed into the net.[79] Müller had a chance to double Germany's lead shortly afterward when hedribbled past two defenders, but his shot across the net was too wide. Late in extra time, Messi had an opportunity to equalise from a free kick within goal-scoring distance, but his attempt flew high over the crossbar.[80] That proved to be the last action of the game as the final whistle was blown, confirming Germany's 1–0 victory.[72]
          Germany |      Argentina |
|  |
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Man of the Match: Assistant referees: | Match rules:
|
| Overall[81] | Germany | Argentina |
|---|---|---|
| Goals scored | 1 | 0 |
| Total shots | 10 | 10 |
| Shots on target | 7 | 2 |
| Ball possession | 60% | 40% |
| Corner kicks | 5 | 3 |
| Fouls committed | 20 | 16 |
| Offsides | 3 | 2 |
| Saves | 2 | 6 |
| Yellow cards | 2 | 2 |
| Red cards | 0 | 0 |
Germany's victory marked the first World Cup win by a European team in theAmericas, as well as the third successive European triumph after Italy and Spain's wins in 2006 and 2010.[2][82] President Rousseff of Brazil presented the trophy to German captainPhilipp Lahm.[83][84] Alongside her during the trophy handover wasFIFA presidentSepp Blatter.[85][86] As Lahm raised the trophy, theoutro of the tournament's official song "We Are One (Ole Ola)" was played. The goalscorer Götze was named as the officialman of the match for the final, despite playing only the last two minutes of normal time and thirty minutes of extra time. Messi was awarded theGolden Ball, FIFA's award for whom they considered the tournament's best player, and Neuer was given theGolden Glove for best goalkeeper.[87]
Joachim Löw, themanager of Germany, labelled his side's win as the culmination of a project which had begun ten years previously under his predecessorJürgen Klinsmann. Speaking after the game, Löw said: "We'd not made this ultimate step before, but champions do what they will do. This team has developed a spirit which is unbelievable."[88] His Argentine counterpart,Alejandro Sabella, praised his players, describing them as "warriors", and felt that they had been unlucky to lose. He said that his team had had the better chances "but we didn't take them, and we only had to last another five minutes or so to reach penalties. The pain is immense."[88] Götze expressed a sense of disbelief at his scoring of the winning goal, having not had the opportunity to play for much of the tournament. He said: "You score the goal and you don't really know what's happening. It hasn't been a simple tournament, or year, for me and I owe a lot to my family and my girlfriend who always believed in me. But a dream became reality here."[88]
The German press praised the team for their overall performance in the tournament, contrasting it with the team's poor form a decade earlier. Christian Gödecke, writing inDer Spiegel wrote "Now Germany is world champion, and German football is barely recognisable. It's the perfect mix of virtue and magic, of hurrah and heave ho."[89] Writers in theSüddeutsche Zeitung described the final as a "fitting punchline" to the tournament, while noting that "There won't be debates like there were in Rome in 1990, when the penalty that Andreas Brehme netted for the 1–0 victory was controversial and triggered conspiracy theories against FIFA amongst the Argentinians".[89] In Argentina, the press were downbeat but also indicated their pride in the team's achievement,[90] with many newspapers featuring a front-page picture of Messi after the match, alone or with his teammates.[91] NewspaperClarín lamented the team's missed chances and their denied penalty appeal.[90] Ezequiel Fernández Moores ofLa Nacion thought Germany the deserved winners, and believed the referee correct in denying Higuaín's penalty appeal.[92] The host country's rivalry with Argentina continued to feature in the Brazilian press after the game, sports dailyLance! using the headline "Tell Me How You Feel Now" in response to Argentine mocking of Brazil throughout the tournament. Speaking on his TV show, Maradona responded to this by contrasting Argentina's one-goal defeat to the 7–1 loss suffered by Brazil.[92] A photograph by Chinese photographer Bao Tailiang of theChengdu Economic Daily, showing Messi staring at the World Cup Trophy after Argentina's defeat, won the Sports Singles award at the 2015World Press Photo of the Year contest.[93]
Germany's next major tournament wasUEFA Euro 2016, in which they reached the semi-final beforelosing 2–0 to hosts France.[94] At the subsequent 2018 World Cup in Russia, Germanyfailed to advance from the group phase, finishing bottom of their group behindSweden,Mexico andSouth Korea. Germany secured only one win at the tournament, over Sweden, and lost to Mexico and South Korea, becoming the third successive World Cup holders to be eliminated in the group stage afterItaly in2010 andSpain in2014, and also was eliminated in the early stages of a World Cup for the first time since1938.[95]
Argentina's next major tournament was the2015 Copa América, where they reachedthe final but were defeated byChile in a penalty shoot-out, followed by a rematch at the2016 Copa América atthe final where they would also lose to them in a penalty shoot-out.[96] In the 2018 World Cup, they advanced from their group in second place behindCroatia, before being beaten in the round of 16 by eventual winners France.[97] Argentina eventually won their third World Cup with a victory against France on penalties in the2022 FIFA World Cup final.[2]
Higuaín
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