RIO DE JANEIRO – Germany won the World Cup. Host Brazil won a world of new friends.
The now four-time world champions, the first European team to win it on South American soil, earned the honor of lifting the most recognized trophy in sports with a tooth-and-nail 1-0 victory in a final as terrifically entertaining as the tournament itself.
For a 32-day showcase of football at its best, the winning goal was beautifully appropriate. Mario Goetze controlled the ball with his chest and then volleyed it into the Argentine goal, making difficult skills look so simple. Scored in the 113th minute, the mortal blow left Argentina too little time to recover.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, sitting in the VIP section with other world leaders, waved a clenched fist as Goetze celebrated. When referee Nicola Rizzoli blew the final whistle a few minutes later, Vladimir Putin reached across and shook Merkel’s hand. The Russian president’s country hosts the next World Cup in 2018.
Sepp Blatter, president of World Cup organizer FIFA, and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff embraced as Germany’s players went crazy with joy and Argentina’s wept.
One of the ironies of this World Cup is that even though the tournament will be remembered as a resounding success, it was a headache for Rousseff and Blatter to the end.
As they handed over the gold trophy to Germany captain Philipp Lahm, the Maracana Stadium echoed with an insulting chant aimed at the Brazilian president. There were resounding boos, too, when she was shown shaking the hand of losing coach Alejandro Sabella. Such protests were also heard at other stadiums during the tournament, demonstrating how the party atmosphere was really only a thin veneer for grave public misgivings about $13 billion of spending on Cup preparations.
But the 74,738 fans on hand Sunday had a ball, especially Germans and Brazilians who didn’t want Argentina, their neighbor and fiercest football rival, to win a third world title. They drowned out the Argentine fans’ tireless, jaunty singing with piercing whistles and shouted “Ole!” when Germany players had the ball, weaving their intricate, precise game.
With two of those quick and sublimely deft touches, Goetze ended Germany’s 24-year wait for another World Cup title.
Goetze, who wasn’t born when West Germany beat Argentina in the 1990 final, knocked down the cross with his chest and in one fluid motion volleyed the ball past goalkeeper Sergio Romero and inside the far post from five yards out.
It was a goal that gave Germany its fourth World Cup title in its eighth final, and left Argentina star Lionel Messi still walking in the shadow of his compatriot Diego Maradona, who led his country to the 1986 title.
Goetze went on as a substitute for Miroslav Klose toward the end of regulation time and the 22-year-old midfielder’s fresh legs made the difference.
Andre Schuerrle broke down the left flank, sending his cross into the area, and the Bayern Munich player did the rest with a clinical finish. The goal echoed that of Andres Iniesta’s four years ago, when the midfielder scored in similar fashion but from the other side of the area to give Spain a 1-0 extra time win over the Netherlands.
“It’s incredible. The team did it beautifully,” said Manuel Neuer, who was voted best goalkeeper. “At some point we’ll stop celebrating but we’ll still wake up with a smile.”
For Germany, the win ends a string of near misses since winning its last major title at the 1996 European Championship. The team lost the 2002 World Cup final to Brazil and lost in the semifinals in both 2006 and 2010.
Argentina had not been back in the final since that 1990 loss, and has now been beaten by Germany in the last three World Cups.
“This was our chance, and we felt that way. We couldn’t do it. We have to lift our head and suffer the pain,” Argentina midfielder Javier Mascherano said. “Obviously, the pain is tremendous. We wanted the cup for Argentina.”
It is Germany’s first World Cup title as a unified nation, having won as West Germany in 1954, 1974 and 1990. It was also the third World Cup final between these countries and had been billed as a matchup between the perfect team and the perfect individual, pitting Germany’s machine-like unit against the brilliance of Messi, the four-time world player of the year.
But in the biggest game of his career, Messi came up short.
He had one good chance to score when he was sent free in the area just after the halftime break, but sent his shot wide of the far post. It was a difficult angle, but still the type of chance he so often converts for Barcelona.
Messi threatened intermittently throughout the match, but was effectively neutralized for long stretches. When he did try to break forward with one of his quick dribbles, he was surrounded by the German defense.
His free kick in the 120th minute went well high.
When the final whistle blew, Germany players jumped on top of each other in a pile in the middle of the pitch, while Messi walked alone with his hands on his hips toward the center circle.
Next up for World Cup
The 2015 Women’s World Cup is in Canada from June 6 through July 5, with games to be played at six venues in six cities, including Vancouver, B.C.
The 2018 Men’s World Cup will take place in Russia, with plans to host games at 12 stadiums in 11 cities.
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