A walk down memory lane

Football’s showpiece returned to Brazil, but the host nation suffered one of the greatest humiliations in its illustrious World Cup history as they were thrashed 7-1 by Germany in the semifinals.

The team’s new star Neymar was missing after being injured in their quarterfinal win over Colombia, but nothing could erase the embarrassment of that day in Belo Horizonte which was Brazil’s worst defeat in 100 years of competitive football.

In the final, Germany met Lionel Messi’s Argentina in Rio de Janeiro. The Argentines had overcome the Netherlands on penalties in the last four. A tense, closely-matched final was decided by Mario Goetze’s goal in extra time as the Germans became world champions for the fourth time.

The 2002 finals were the first ever to be staged outside Europe or the Americas and the first in Asia as South Korea and Japan co-hosted.

Upsets were to prove the hallmark of the tournament from the outset, when World Cup debutants Senegal beat holders France with a 1-0 win in the opening match in Seoul. France failed to score a goal and managed only a draw and two defeats to crash out miserably in the first round, the worst performance by any defending champion.

But the most notable outsiders were hosts South Korea, who recorded wins over Portugal, Italy and Spain before bowing out in the last four to Germany.

Ronaldo scored both goals in the final against Germany as Brazil clinched a record fifth crown.

The first finals on African soil were full of colour and noise – the drone of vuvuzelas was the soundtrack of the tournament – but the football often failed to match up to the backdrop.

Six African nations took part but only Ghana survived the group stages, going on to the quarterfinals where they lost to Uruguay on penalties. South Africa started brightly but became the first hosts to be eliminated in the first round.

Spain, and their talented generation that had won the 2008 European crown, won the World Cup for the first time thanks to an extra-time goal from Andres Iniesta in the final against the Netherlands.

It was Spain’s fourth successive 1-0 win after beating Portugal, Paraguay and Germany by the same score.

The 1998 finals were increased to 32 teams and host nation France lifted the trophy, Aime Jacquet’s side gathered unstoppable momentum as the tournament progressed before defeating Brazil 3-0 in a one-sided final.

The star of the show was Zinedine Zidane, who bounced back from the shame of a red card against Saudi Arabia early in the competition to score two goals in the final.

Brazil’s campaign ended in mysterious circumstances, with star player Ronaldo excluded from the team-sheet for the final.

Minutes before kick-off however, Ronaldo was back in. It later emerged the player had had a fit in his hotel room a few hours before the final, leading many to question why he had been allowed to play.

The World Cup finals returned to Germany after a 32-year absence and were widely acclaimed as a triumph for the host nation, sparking a huge upsurge in national pride. The final was scarred by a Zinedine Zidane headbutt. The tournament heralded a return to prominence for the European super-powers, with all four semifinalists hailing from Europe for the first time since 1982 after Brazil and Argentina went out in the quarterfinals.

Germany’s crowd-pleasing run came to an end in a 2-0 semifinal defeat to Italy, while a Zidane penalty allowed a much-maligned France to overcome Portugal.

Marcello Lippi’s Italy won the final – their fourth success -on penalties, with left-back Fabio Grosso sweeping home the decisive spot-kick after the game ended 1-1.

Despite the US’s lack of football pedigree, massive crowds greeted the 1994 finals and Brazil claimed their record fourth World Cup title.

Coach Carlos Alberto Parreira married discipline with the abundant Brazilian flair and in Romario had the deadliest striker in the tournament.

Diego Maradona and Andres Escobar grabbed the early headlines. Maradona scored an outstanding goal against Greece before failing a dope test and being slung out of the tournament. Escobar scored an own goal for Colombia against the US and was later shot dead in his homeland.

The disappointing final was the first decided by a shootout, and Italian talisman Roberto Baggio blasted over the bar to hand Brazil victory. – AFP