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2006 FIFA World Cup

From Wikipedia, in a visual modern way
2006 FIFA World Cup
FIFA Fußball-Weltmeisterschaft
Deutschland 2006
2006 FIFA World Cup.svg
Die Welt zu Gast bei Freunden
(A time to make friends)
Tournament details
Host countryGermany
Dates9 June – 9 July
Teams32 (from 6 confederations)
Venue(s)12 (in 12 host cities)
Final positions
Champions Italy (4th title)
Runners-up France
Third place Germany
Fourth place Portugal
Tournament statistics
Matches played64
Goals scored147 (2.3 per match)
Attendance3,359,439 (52,491 per match)
Top scorer(s)Germany Miroslav Klose
(5 goals)
Best player(s)France Zinedine Zidane
Best young playerGermany Lukas Podolski
Best goalkeeperItaly Gianluigi Buffon
Fair play award Brazil
 Spain
← 2002
2010 →
This article is about the international association football competition. For the video game, see 2006 FIFA World Cup (video game).
"2006 World Cup" redirects here. For other uses, see 2006 World Cup (disambiguation).
"FIFA 2006" redirects here. For the video game, see FIFA 06.

The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six populated continents participated in the qualification process which began in September 2003. Thirty-one teams qualified from this process along with hosts Germany for the finals tournament. It was the second time that Germany staged the competition and the first as a unified country along with the former East Germany with Leipzig as a host city (the other was in 1974 in West Germany), and the 10th time that the tournament was held in Europe.

Italy won the tournament, claiming their fourth World Cup title, defeating France 5–3 in a penalty shoot-out in the final after extra time had finished in a 1–1 draw. Germany defeated Portugal 3–1 to finish in third place. Angola, Ghana, the Ivory Coast, Trinidad and Tobago and Togo made their first appearances in the finals. It was also the only appearance of Serbia and Montenegro under that name; they had previously appeared in 1998 as Yugoslavia. In late May 2006, immediately prior to the tournament, Montenegro voted in a referendum to become an independent nation and dissolve the loose confederacy then existing between it and Serbia; Serbia recognised the results of the referendum in early June. Due to time constraints, FIFA had Serbia and Montenegro play in the World Cup tournament as one team, marking the first instance of multiple sovereign nations competing as one team in a major football tournament since UEFA Euro 1992.

The 2006 World Cup stands as one of the most watched events in television history, garnering an estimated 26.29 billion times viewed compiled over the course of the tournament. The final attracted an estimated audience of 715.1 million people.[1]

Discover more about 2006 FIFA World Cup related topics

FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup

The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested among the senior men's national teams of the 211 members by the sport's global governing body - Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). The tournament has been held every four years since the inaugural tournament in 1930, except in 1942 and 1946 when it was not held because of the Second World War. The current reigning champions are Argentina, who won their third title at the 2022 tournament.

Association football

Association football

Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel a ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is to score more goals than the opposite team by moving the ball beyond the goal line into a rectangular-framed goal defended by the opposing side. Traditionally, the game has been played over two 45-minute halves, for a total match time of 90 minutes. With an estimated 250 million players active in over 200 countries and territories, it is considered the world's most popular sport.

2006 FIFA World Cup qualification

2006 FIFA World Cup qualification

The 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification competition was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA confederations. Each confederation – the AFC (Asia), CAF (Africa), CONCACAF, CONMEBOL, OFC (Oceania), and UEFA (Europe) – was allocated a certain number of the 32 places at the tournament. A total of 197 teams entered the qualification process for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. In 2001 FIFA ended automatic qualification of the reigning champion, so that 2002 champions Brazil became first to participate in the qualifying tournament. The hosts (Germany) retained their automatic spot.

Germany national football team

Germany national football team

The Germany national football team represents Germany in men's international football and played its first match in 1908. The team is governed by the German Football Association, founded in 1900. Between 1949 and 1990, separate German national teams were recognised by FIFA due to Allied occupation and division: the DFB's team representing the Federal Republic of Germany, the Saarland team representing the Saar Protectorate (1950–1956) and the East Germany team representing the German Democratic Republic (1952–1990). The latter two were absorbed along with their records; the present team represents the reunified Federal Republic. The official name and code "Germany FR (FRG)" was shortened to "Germany (GER)" following reunification in 1990.

German reunification

German reunification

German reunification was the process of re-establishing Germany as a single sovereign state, which took place between 2 May 1989 and 15 March 1991. The day of 3 October 1990 when the "Unification Treaty" between the two countries of "Germany as a whole" entered into force dissolving the German Democratic Republic and integrating its recently re-established constituent federated states into the Federal Republic of Germany to form present-day Germany, has been chosen as the customary German Unity Day and has thereafter been celebrated each year as a national holiday in Germany since 1991. As part of the reunification, East and West Berlin of the two countries were also united into a single city; it eventually became the capital of the country.

East Germany

East Germany

East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic, was a country in Central Europe that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. Until 1989, this country was commonly viewed as a communist state, and it described itself as a socialist "workers' and peasants' state". Before the establishment, its territory was administered and occupied by Soviet forces with the autonomy of the native communists following the Berlin Declaration abolishing German sovereignty in World War II; when the Potsdam Agreement established the Soviet-occupied zone, bounded on the east by the Oder–Neisse line. GDR was dominated by the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED) from 1949 to 1989 before being liberalized under the impact of the Revolutions of 1989 against the communist states, helping East Germany be united with the West. Unlike West Germany, SED did not see its state as the successor one of the German Reich (1871–1945) and abolished the goal of unification in the constitution (1974). Under the SED rule, GDR was often judged as a Soviet satellite state, most scholars and academics described it as a totalitarian regime.

Leipzig

Leipzig

Leipzig is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 624,689 inhabitants as of 2022 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as well as the second most populous city in the area of the former East Germany after (East) Berlin. Together with Halle (Saale), the city forms the polycentric Leipzig-Halle Conurbation. Between the two cities lies Leipzig/Halle Airport.

1974 FIFA World Cup

1974 FIFA World Cup

The 1974 FIFA World Cup was the tenth FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams, and was played in West Germany between 13 June and 7 July. The tournament marked the first time that the current trophy, the FIFA World Cup Trophy, created by the Italian sculptor Silvio Gazzaniga, was awarded. The previous trophy, the Jules Rimet Trophy, had been won for the third time by Brazil in 1970 and awarded permanently to the Brazilians. This was the first out of three World Cups to feature two rounds of group stages.

Italy national football team

Italy national football team

The Italy national football team has represented Italy in international football since its first match in 1910. The national team is controlled by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), the governing body for football in Italy, which is a co-founder and member of UEFA. Italy's home matches are played at various stadiums throughout Italy, and its primary training ground and technical headquarters, Centro Tecnico Federale di Coverciano, is located in Florence. Italy are the reigning European champions, having won UEFA Euro 2020.

France national football team

France national football team

The France national football team represents France in men's international football matches. It is governed by the French Football Federation, the governing body for football in France. It is a member of UEFA in Europe and FIFA in global competitions. The team's colors and imagery reference two national symbols: the French red-white-blue tricolour and Gallic rooster. The team is colloquially known as Les Bleus. They play home matches at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis and train at INF Clairefontaine in Clairefontaine-en-Yvelines.

1998 FIFA World Cup

1998 FIFA World Cup

The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the football world championship for men's national teams. The finals tournament was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. The country was chosen as the host nation by FIFA for the second time in the history of the tournament, defeating Morocco in the bidding process. It was the second time that France staged the competition and the ninth time that it was held in Europe. Spanning 32 days, it is the longest World Cup tournament ever held.

2006 Montenegrin independence referendum

2006 Montenegrin independence referendum

An independence referendum was held in Montenegro on 21 May 2006. It was approved by 55.5% of voters, narrowly passing the 55% threshold. By 23 May, preliminary referendum results were recognized by all five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, suggesting widespread international recognition if Montenegro were to become formally independent. On 31 May, the referendum commission officially confirmed the results of the referendum, verifying that 55.5% of the population of Montenegrin voters had voted in favor of independence. Because voters met the controversial threshold requirement of 55% approval, the referendum was incorporated into a declaration of independence during a special parliamentary session on 31 May. The Assembly of the Republic of Montenegro made a formal Declaration of Independence on Saturday 3 June.

Host selection

Main article: FIFA World Cup hosts

The vote to choose the hosts of the 2006 tournament was held in July 2000 in Zürich, Switzerland. It involved four bidding nations after Brazil had withdrawn three days earlier: Germany, South Africa, England and Morocco.[2] Three rounds of voting were required, each round eliminating the nation with the fewest votes. The first two rounds were held on 6 July 2000, and the final round was held on 7 July 2000, which Germany won over South Africa.

Voting results[3]
Country Round 1 Round 2 Round 3
Germany 10 11 12
South Africa 6 11 11
England 5 2 –
Morocco 3 – –

Bribery and corruption allegations

Accusations of bribery and corruption had marred the success of Germany's bid from the very beginning. On the very day of the vote, a hoax bribery affair was made public, leading to calls for a re-vote.[4] On the night before the vote, German satirical magazine Titanic sent letters to FIFA representatives, offering joke gifts like cuckoo clocks and Black Forest ham in exchange for their vote for Germany. Oceania delegate Charlie Dempsey, who had initially backed England, had then been instructed to support South Africa following England's elimination. He abstained, citing "intolerable pressure" on the eve of the vote.[5] Had Dempsey voted as originally instructed, the vote would have resulted with a 12–12 tie, and FIFA president Sepp Blatter, who favoured the South African bid,[6] would have had to cast the deciding vote.[7]

More irregularities surfaced soon after, including, in the months leading up to the decision, the sudden interest of German politicians and major businesses in the four Asian countries whose delegates were decisive for the vote.[8] Just a week before the vote, the German government under Chancellor Gerhard Schröder lifted their arms embargo on Saudi Arabia and agreed to send grenade launchers to the country. DaimlerChrysler invested several hundred million euros in Hyundai, where one of the sons of the company's founder was a member of FIFA's executive committee. Both Volkswagen and Bayer announced investments in Thailand and South Korea, whose respective delegates Worawi Makudi and Chung Mong-joon were possible voters for Germany.[8][9] Makudi additionally received a payment by a company of German media mogul Leo Kirch, who also paid millions for usually worthless TV rights for friendly matches of the Germany team and FC Bayern Munich.[8][9]

On 16 October 2015, German news magazine Der Spiegel alleged that a slush fund with money from then-Adidas CEO Robert Louis-Dreyfus was used to influence the vote of four Asian members of the FIFA executive committee.[10] The sum of €6.7 million was later demanded back by Dreyfus. In order to retrieve the money, the Organising Committee paid an equivalent sum to the FIFA, allegedly as a German share for the cost of a closing ceremony, which never materialized.[8] Wolfgang Niersbach, president of the German Football Association (DFB), denied the allegations on 17 October 2015, saying that "the World Cup was not bought" and that he could "absolutely and categorically rule out the existence of a slush fund". The DFB announced they would consider seeking legal action against Der Spiegel.[11] During a press conference on 22 October 2015, Niersbach repeated his stance, emphasising that the €6.7 million was used in 2002 to secure a subsidy by FIFA.[12] According to Niersbach, the payment had been agreed upon during a meeting between Franz Beckenbauer and FIFA president Blatter, with the money being provided by Dreyfus. On the same day, FIFA contradicted Niersbach's statement, saying: "By our current state of knowledge, no such payment of 10 million francs was registered by FIFA in 2002."[13] The following day, former DFB president Theo Zwanziger publicly accused Niersbach of lying, saying: "It is evident that there was a slush fund for the German World Cup application". According to Zwanziger, the €6.7 million went to Mohamed Bin Hammam, who at the time was supporting Blatter's campaign for president against Issa Hayatou.[14]

On 22 March 2016 it was announced that the FIFA Ethics Committee was opening proceedings into the bid.[15][16][17]

Discover more about Host selection related topics

FIFA World Cup hosts

FIFA World Cup hosts

Eighteen countries have been FIFA World Cup hosts in the competition's twenty-one tournaments since the inaugural World Cup in 1930. The organization at first awarded hosting to countries at meetings of FIFA's congress. The choice of location was controversial in the earliest tournaments, given the three-week boat journey between South America and Europe, the two centers of strength in football at the time.

Black Forest ham

Black Forest ham

Black Forest ham is a variety of dry-cured smoked ham produced in the Black Forest region of Germany.

Charlie Dempsey

Charlie Dempsey

Charles John Dempsey was a Scottish-born New Zealand association football administrator.

Sepp Blatter

Sepp Blatter

Joseph "Sepp" Blatter is a Swiss former football administrator who served as the eighth President of FIFA from 1998 to 2015. He has been banned from participating in FIFA activities since 2015 as a result of the FIFA corruption case made public that year, and will remain banned until 2027.

Chancellor of Germany

Chancellor of Germany

The chancellor of Germany, officially the federal chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, is the head of the federal government of Germany and the commander in chief of the German Armed Forces during wartime. The chancellor is the chief executive of the Federal Cabinet and heads the executive branch. The chancellor is elected by the Bundestag on the proposal of the federal president and without debate.

Gerhard Schröder

Gerhard Schröder

Gerhard Fritz Kurt "Gerd" Schröder is a German lobbyist and former politician, who served as the chancellor of Germany from 1998 to 2005. From 1999 to 2004, he was also the Leader of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). As chancellor, he led a coalition government of the SPD and Alliance 90/The Greens. Since leaving public office, Schröder has worked for Russian state-owned energy companies, including Nord Stream AG, Rosneft, and Gazprom.

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in the Middle East. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about 2,150,000 km2 (830,000 sq mi), making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the Arab world, and the largest in Western Asia and the Middle East. It is bordered by the Red Sea to the west; Jordan, Iraq, and Kuwait to the north; the Persian Gulf, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates to the east; Oman to the southeast; and Yemen to the south. Bahrain is an island country off its east coast. The Gulf of Aqaba in the northwest separates Saudi Arabia from Egypt and Israel. Saudi Arabia is the only country with a coastline along both the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf, and most of its terrain consists of arid desert, lowland, steppe, and mountains. Its capital and largest city is Riyadh. The country is home to Mecca and Medina, the two holiest cities in Islam.

Hyundai Motor Group

Hyundai Motor Group

The Hyundai Motor Group is a South Korean chaebol headquartered in Seoul, South Korea.

Bayer

Bayer

Bayer AG is a German multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company and one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. Headquartered in Leverkusen, Bayer's areas of business include pharmaceuticals; consumer healthcare products, agricultural chemicals, seeds and biotechnology products. The company is a component of the EURO STOXX 50 stock market index.

Chung Mong-joon

Chung Mong-joon

Chung Mong-joon or Chung Mong Joon is a South Korean businessman and politician. He is the sixth son of Chung Ju-yung, founder of Hyundai, the second-largest South Korean chaebol before its breakup in 2003. He remains the controlling shareholder of a Hyundai offshoot, Hyundai Heavy Industries Group, parent of the world's largest shipbuilding company. He is also the chairman of the board of the University of Ulsan and Ulsan College in Ulsan, South Korea. He is the founder and the honorary chairman of The Asan Institute for Policy Studies. He was Honorary Vice-President of FIFA and president of the South Korean football association.

Leo Kirch

Leo Kirch

Leo Kirch was a German media entrepreneur who founded the Kirch Group.

Germany national football team

Germany national football team

The Germany national football team represents Germany in men's international football and played its first match in 1908. The team is governed by the German Football Association, founded in 1900. Between 1949 and 1990, separate German national teams were recognised by FIFA due to Allied occupation and division: the DFB's team representing the Federal Republic of Germany, the Saarland team representing the Saar Protectorate (1950–1956) and the East Germany team representing the German Democratic Republic (1952–1990). The latter two were absorbed along with their records; the present team represents the reunified Federal Republic. The official name and code "Germany FR (FRG)" was shortened to "Germany (GER)" following reunification in 1990.

Qualification

Main article: 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification

198 teams attempted to qualify for the 2006 World Cup.[18] Germany, the host nation, was granted automatic qualification, with the remaining 31 finals places divided among the continental confederations. Thirteen places were contested by UEFA teams (Europe), five by CAF teams (Africa), four by CONMEBOL teams (South America), four by AFC teams (Asia), and three by CONCACAF teams (North and Central America and Caribbean). The remaining two places were decided by playoffs between AFC and CONCACAF and between CONMEBOL and OFC (Oceania).

Eight nations qualified for the finals for the first time: Angola, Czech Republic, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Ukraine, and Serbia and Montenegro. Czech Republic and Ukraine were making their first appearance as independent nations, but had previously been represented as part of Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union respectively; Serbia and Montenegro had competed as Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1998, as well as making up part of Yugoslav teams from 1930 to 1990. As of 2022, this was the last time Togo, Angola, Czech Republic, Ukraine and Trinidad and Tobago qualified for a FIFA World Cup finals, and the last time Uruguay failed to qualify.

Australia qualified for the first time since 1974. Among the teams who failed to qualify were 2002 third-placed team Turkey, quarter-finalists Senegal, Euro 2004 winners Greece and 2006 Africa Cup of Nations winners Egypt. Additionally, Belgium failed to qualify for the first time since 1978 and Cameroon failed to qualify for the first time since 1986. The other notable qualifying streaks broken were for Nigeria, who had made the previous three tournaments, and Denmark and South Africa, who had both qualified for the previous two. France had their first successful qualifying campaign since 1986, as they did not qualify for the 1990 and 1994 World Cups, in 1998 they were automatically qualified as hosts and in 2002 as defending champions.

For the first time since the 1982 World Cup, all six confederations were represented at the finals tournament.

The State Union of Serbia and Montenegro dissolved prior to the start of the World Cup, on 3 June 2006, with Serbia and Montenegro becoming independent countries; their team competed at the World Cup unaffected. Their involvement in the competition became similar to the Commonwealth of Independent States that appeared at UEFA Euro 1992, a team formed to take the Soviet Union's place following dissolution, that multiple sovereign states had been represented in the finals of a major footballing tournament by a single team and the only occurrence in the World Cup finals to date. The highest ranked team not to qualify was Denmark (ranked 11th), while the lowest ranked team that did qualify was Togo (ranked 61st).

List of qualified teams

The following 32 teams, shown with final pre-tournament rankings,[19] qualified for the finals tournament:

Discover more about Qualification related topics

2006 FIFA World Cup qualification

2006 FIFA World Cup qualification

The 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification competition was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA confederations. Each confederation – the AFC (Asia), CAF (Africa), CONCACAF, CONMEBOL, OFC (Oceania), and UEFA (Europe) – was allocated a certain number of the 32 places at the tournament. A total of 197 teams entered the qualification process for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. In 2001 FIFA ended automatic qualification of the reigning champion, so that 2002 champions Brazil became first to participate in the qualifying tournament. The hosts (Germany) retained their automatic spot.

Confederation of African Football

Confederation of African Football

The Confederation of African Football, or CAF for short, is the administrative and controlling body for association football, futsal and beach soccer in Africa. It was established on 8 February 1957 at the Grand Hotel in Khartoum, Sudan by the national football associations of Egypt, Ethiopia, South Africa and Sudan, following formal discussions between the aforementioned associations at the FIFA Congress held on 7 June 1956 at Avenida Hotel in Lisbon, Portugal.

CONMEBOL

CONMEBOL

The South American Football Confederation is the continental governing body of football in South America and it is one of FIFA's six continental confederations. The oldest continental confederation in the world, its headquarters are located in Luque, Paraguay, near Asunción. CONMEBOL is responsible for the organization and governance of South American football's major international tournaments. With 10 member soccer associations, it has the fewest members of all the confederations in FIFA.

Asian Football Confederation

Asian Football Confederation

The Asian Football Confederation is the governing body of association football, beach football, and futsal in some countries/territories in Asia and Oceania. It has 47 member countries most of which are located in Asia. Australia, formerly in OFC, joined AFC in 2006. Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, both territories of the United States, are also AFC members that are geographically in Oceania. The Asian Ladies Football Confederation (ALFC) was the section of AFC who managed women's association football in Asia. The group was independently founded in April 1968 in a meeting involving Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore. In 1986 ALFC merged with AFC.

CONCACAF

CONCACAF

The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football, abbreviated as CONCACAF, is one of FIFA's six continental governing bodies for association football. Its 41 member associations represent countries and territories mainly in North America, including the Caribbean and Central America, and, for geopolitical reasons, three nations from the Guianas subregion of South America—Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. The CONCACAF's primary functions are to organize competitions for national teams and clubs, and to conduct the World Cup and Women's World Cup qualifying tournaments.

Oceania Football Confederation

Oceania Football Confederation

The Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) is one of the six continental confederations of international association football. The OFC has 13 members, 11 of which are full members and two which are associate members not affiliated with FIFA. It promotes the game in Oceania and allows the member nations to qualify for the FIFA World Cup.

Angola national football team

Angola national football team

The Angola national football team represents Angola in men's international football and is controlled by the Angolan Football Federation. Nicknames Palancas Negras, the team is a member of both FIFA and the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

Czech Republic national football team

Czech Republic national football team

The Czech Republic national football team, recognised by FIFA as Czechia, represents the Czech Republic in international football. The team is controlled by the Football Association of the Czech Republic (FAČR). Historically, the team participated in FIFA and UEFA competitions as Bohemia and Czechoslovakia.

Ghana national football team

Ghana national football team

The Ghana national football team represents Ghana in men's international football, doing it since 1957. The team consists of twenty players including the technical team. The team is nicknamed the Black Stars after the Black Star of Africa in the flag of Ghana. It is governed by the Ghana Football Association (GFA) the governing body for football in Ghana and the oldest football association in Africa. Prior to 1957, the team played as the Gold Coast. The team is a member of both FIFA and CAF.

Ivory Coast national football team

Ivory Coast national football team

The Ivory Coast national football team represents Ivory Coast in men's international football. Nicknamed the Elephants, the team is managed by the Ivorian Football Federation (FIF). Until 2005, their greatest accomplishment was winning the 1992 African Cup of Nations against Ghana on penalties at the Stade Léopold Sédar Senghor in Dakar, Senegal. Their second success came in 2015, again defeating Ghana on penalties in Bata, Equatorial Guinea. The team represents both FIFA and Confederation of African Football (CAF).

Serbia and Montenegro national football team

Serbia and Montenegro national football team

The Serbia and Montenegro national football team was a national football team that represented the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro. It was controlled by the Football Association of Serbia and Montenegro. For 11 years, it was known as the FR Yugoslavia national football team when the state was called the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, until February 2003, when the name of the country was changed to Serbia and Montenegro. In 2006, Montenegro declared its independence from Serbia, with the result that the country's football team was renamed as the Serbia national football team on 28 June 2006 with the Montenegro national football team created to represent the renewed state of Montenegro.

Czechoslovakia

Czechoslovakia

Czechoslovakia was a landlocked state in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland became part of Germany, while the country lost further territories to Hungary and Poland. Between 1939 and 1945, the state ceased to exist, as Slovakia proclaimed its independence and the remaining territories in the east became part of Hungary, while in the remainder of the Czech Lands, the German Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia was proclaimed. In 1939, after the outbreak of World War II, former Czechoslovak President Edvard Beneš formed a government-in-exile and sought recognition from the Allies.

Venues

In 2006, Germany had a plethora of football stadia that satisfied FIFA's minimum capacity of 40,000 seats for World Cup matches. The outdated and still-standing Olympiastadion in Munich (69,250), the venue for the 1974 final match was not used for the tournament, even though FIFA's regulations allow one city to use two stadia. Düsseldorf's LTU Arena (51,500), Bremen's Weserstadion (43,000) and Mönchengladbach's Borussia-Park (46,249) were also not used.

Twelve stadia were selected to host the World Cup matches. During the tournament, many of them were known by different names, as FIFA prohibits sponsorship of stadia unless the stadium sponsors are also official FIFA sponsors.[20] For example, the Allianz Arena in Munich was known during the competition as FIFA World Cup Stadium, Munich (German: FIFA WM-Stadion München), and even the letters of the company Allianz were removed or covered.[20] Some of the stadia also had a lower capacity for the World Cup, as FIFA regulations ban standing room; nonetheless, this was accommodated as several stadia had a UEFA five-star ranking. The stadia in Berlin, Munich, Dortmund and Stuttgart hosted six matches each, while the other eight stadia hosted five matches each.

  • A cross denotes an indoor stadium.
Berlin Munich, Bavaria Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg
Olympiastadion Allianz Arena
(FIFA World Cup Stadium, Munich) 		Signal Iduna Park
(FIFA World Cup Stadium, Dortmund) 		Gottlieb-Daimler-Stadion
52°30′53″N 13°14′22″E / 52.51472°N 13.23944°E / 52.51472; 13.23944 (Olympiastadion (Berlin)) 48°13′7.59″N 11°37′29.11″E / 48.2187750°N 11.6247528°E / 48.2187750; 11.6247528 (Allianz Arena) 51°29′33.25″N 7°27′6.63″E / 51.4925694°N 7.4518417°E / 51.4925694; 7.4518417 (Signal Iduna Park) 48°47′32.17″N 9°13′55.31″E / 48.7922694°N 9.2320306°E / 48.7922694; 9.2320306 (Mercedes-Benz Arena)
Capacity: 72,000[21] Capacity: 66,000[22] Capacity: 65,000[23] Capacity: 52,000[24]
Stade Olympique Berlin Ext.JPG München - Allianz-Arena (Luftbild).jpg Signal iduna park stadium dortmund 6.jpg Stuttgart stadium.jpg
Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia
Hamburg
Arena AufSchalkedagger
(FIFA World Cup Stadium, Gelsenkirchen) 		AOL Arena
(FIFA World Cup Stadium, Hamburg)
51°33′16.21″N 7°4′3.32″E / 51.5545028°N 7.0675889°E / 51.5545028; 7.0675889 (Arena AufSchalke) 53°35′13.77″N 9°53′55.02″E / 53.5871583°N 9.8986167°E / 53.5871583; 9.8986167 (AOL Arena)
Capacity: 52,000[25] Capacity: 50,000[26]
Arena auf schalke veltins arena gelsenkirchen 1.jpg RK 1009 9831 Volksparkstadion.jpg
Frankfurt, Hesse Kaiserslautern, Rhineland-Palatinate
Commerzbank-Arenadagger
(FIFA World Cup Stadium, Frankfurt) 		Fritz-Walter-Stadion
50°4′6.86″N 8°38′43.65″E / 50.0685722°N 8.6454583°E / 50.0685722; 8.6454583 (Commerzbank Arena) 49°26′4.96″N 7°46′35.24″E / 49.4347111°N 7.7764556°E / 49.4347111; 7.7764556 (Fritz-Walter-Stadion)
Capacity: 48,000[27] Capacity: 46,000[28]
Aerial view of Commerzbank-Arena.jpg Betzenberg luftaufnahme.jpg
Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia Hanover, Lower Saxony Leipzig, Saxony Nuremberg, Bavaria
RheinEnergieStadion
(FIFA World Cup Stadium, Cologne) 		AWD-Arena
(FIFA World Cup Stadium, Hanover) 		Zentralstadion easyCredit-Stadion
(Frankenstadion)
50°56′0.59″N 6°52′29.99″E / 50.9334972°N 6.8749972°E / 50.9334972; 6.8749972 (RheinEnergie Stadion) 52°21′36.24″N 9°43′52.31″E / 52.3600667°N 9.7311972°E / 52.3600667; 9.7311972 (AWD-Arena) 51°20′44.86″N 12°20′53.59″E / 51.3457944°N 12.3482194°E / 51.3457944; 12.3482194 (Zentralstadion) 49°25′34″N 11°7′33″E / 49.42611°N 11.12583°E / 49.42611; 11.12583 (EasyCredit-Stadion)
Capacity: 45,000[29] Capacity: 43,000[30] Capacity: 43,000[31] Capacity: 41,000[32]
Rhein Energie Stadion Luftbild - aerial (20152327046).jpg HDI-Arena 5612.JPG Leipzig stadium.jpg Morlockstadion Arena Nbg Juli 2021.jpg

Team base camps

Base camps were used by the 32 national squads to stay and train before and during the World Cup tournament. FIFA announced the base camps for each participating team.[33]

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Düsseldorf

Düsseldorf

Düsseldorf is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in the state and the seventh-largest city in Germany, with a population of 644,280.

Bremen

Bremen

Bremen, officially the City Municipality of Bremen, is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, a two-city-state consisting of the cities of Bremen and Bremerhaven. With about 570,000 inhabitants, the Hanseatic city is the 11th largest city of Germany and the second largest city in Northern Germany after Hamburg.

Mönchengladbach

Mönchengladbach

Mönchengladbach is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located west of the Rhine, halfway between Düsseldorf and the Dutch border.

Borussia-Park

Borussia-Park

Borussia-Park is a football stadium in Mönchengladbach, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany which serves as the home stadium of Bundesliga club Borussia Mönchengladbach. It replaced the smaller Bökelbergstadion, which no longer satisfied modern safety standards and international requirements, in July 2004.

Naming rights

Naming rights

Naming rights are a financial transaction and form of advertising or memorialization whereby a corporation, person, or other entity purchases the right to name a facility, object, location, program, or event, typically for a defined period of time. For properties such as multi-purpose arenas, performing arts venues, or sports fields, the term ranges from three to 20 years. Longer terms are more common for higher profile venues such as professional sports facilities.

Allianz Arena

Allianz Arena

Allianz Arena is a football stadium in Munich, Bavaria, Germany with a 70,000 seating capacity for international matches and 75,000 for domestic matches. Widely known for its exterior of inflated ETFE plastic panels, it is the first stadium in the world with a full colour changing exterior. Located at 25 Werner-Heisenberg-Allee at the northern edge of Munich's Schwabing-Freimann borough on the Fröttmaning Heath, it is the second-largest arena in Germany behind Westfalenstadion in Dortmund.

Allianz

Allianz

Allianz is a European multinational financial services company headquartered in Munich, Germany. Its core businesses are insurance and asset management.

Berlin

Berlin

Berlin is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constituent states, Berlin is surrounded by the State of Brandenburg and contiguous with Potsdam, Brandenburg's capital. Berlin's urban area, which has a population of around 4.5 million, is the second most populous urban area in Germany after the Ruhr. The Berlin-Brandenburg capital region has around 6.2 million inhabitants and is Germany's third-largest metropolitan region after the Rhine-Ruhr and Rhine-Main regions.

Munich

Munich

Munich is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Hamburg, and thus the largest which does not constitute its own state, as well as the 11th-largest city in the European Union. The city's metropolitan region is home to 6 million people. Straddling the banks of the River Isar north of the Bavarian Alps, Munich is the seat of the Bavarian administrative region of Upper Bavaria, while being the most densely populated municipality in Germany with 4,500 people per km2. Munich is the second-largest city in the Bavarian dialect area, after the Austrian capital of Vienna.

Bavaria

Bavaria

Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of 70,550.19 km2 (27,239.58 sq mi), Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total land area of Germany. With over 13 million inhabitants, it is the second largest German state in terms of population only to North Rhine-Westphalia, but due to its large size its population density is below the German average. Bavaria's main cities are Munich, Nuremberg, and Augsburg.

Dortmund

Dortmund

Dortmund is the third-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne and Düsseldorf, and the eighth-largest city in Germany, with a population of 588,250 inhabitants as of 2021. It is the largest city of the Ruhr, Germany's largest urban area with some 5.1 million inhabitants, as well as the largest city of Westphalia. On the Emscher and Ruhr rivers, it lies in the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Region and is considered the administrative, commercial, and cultural center of the eastern Ruhr. Dortmund is the second-largest city in the Low German dialect area after Hamburg.

Baden-Württemberg

Baden-Württemberg

Baden-Württemberg, commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants as of 2019 across a total area of nearly 35,752 km2 (13,804 sq mi), it is the third-largest German state by both area and population. As a federated state, Baden-Württemberg is a partly-sovereign parliamentary republic. The largest city in Baden-Württemberg is the state capital of Stuttgart, followed by Mannheim and Karlsruhe. Other major cities are Freiburg im Breisgau, Heidelberg, Heilbronn, Pforzheim, Reutlingen, Tübingen, and Ulm.

Match officials

Confederation Referee Assistants
AFC Toru Kamikawa (Japan) Yoshikazu Hiroshima (Japan)
Kim Dae-Young (South Korea)
Shamsul Maidin (Singapore) Prachya Permpanich (Thailand)
Eisa Ghoulom (United Arab Emirates)
CAF Coffi Codjia (Benin) Aboudou Aderodjou (Benin)
Célestin Ntagungira (Rwanda)
Essam Abdel-Fatah (Egypt) Dramane Dante (Mali)
Mamadou N'Doye (Senegal)
CONCACAF Benito Archundia (Mexico) José Ramírez (Mexico)
Héctor Vergara (Canada)
Marco Rodríguez (Mexico) José Luis Camargo (Mexico)
Leonel Leal (Costa Rica)
CONMEBOL Horacio Elizondo (Argentina) Darío García (Argentina)
Rodolfo Otero (Argentina)
Carlos Simon (Brazil) Aristeu Tavares (Brazil)
Ednílson Corona (Brazil)
Óscar Ruiz (Colombia) José Navia (Colombia)
Fernando Tamayo (Ecuador)
Carlos Amarilla (Paraguay) Amelio Andino (Paraguay)
Manuel Bernal (Paraguay)
Jorge Larrionda (Uruguay) Wálter Rial (Uruguay)
Pablo Fandiño (Uruguay)
OFC Mark Shield (Australia) Nathan Gibson (Australia)
Ben Wilson (Australia)
UEFA Frank De Bleeckere (Belgium) Peter Hermans (Belgium)
Walter Vromans (Belgium)
Graham Poll (England) Philip Sharp (England)
Glenn Turner (England)
Éric Poulat (France) Lionel Dagorne (France)
Vincent Texier (France)
Markus Merk (Germany) Jan-Hendrik Salver (Germany)
Christian Schräer (Germany)
Roberto Rosetti (Italy) Alessandro Stagnelli (Italy)
Cristiano Copelli (Italy)
Valentin Ivanov (Russia) Nikolay Golubev (Russia)
Evgueni Volnin (Russia)
Ľuboš Micheľ (Slovakia) Roman Slyško (Slovakia)
Martin Balko (Slovakia)
Luis Medina Cantalejo (Spain) Victoriano Giráldez Carrasco (Spain)
Pedro Medina Hernández (Spain)
Massimo Busacca (Switzerland) Francesco Buragina (Switzerland)
Matthias Arnet (Switzerland)

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Asian Football Confederation

Asian Football Confederation

The Asian Football Confederation is the governing body of association football, beach football, and futsal in some countries/territories in Asia and Oceania. It has 47 member countries most of which are located in Asia. Australia, formerly in OFC, joined AFC in 2006. Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, both territories of the United States, are also AFC members that are geographically in Oceania. The Asian Ladies Football Confederation (ALFC) was the section of AFC who managed women's association football in Asia. The group was independently founded in April 1968 in a meeting involving Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore. In 1986 ALFC merged with AFC.

Japan Football Association

Japan Football Association

The Japan Football Association (JFA) is the governing body responsible for the administration of football, futsal, beach soccer and efootball in Japan. It is responsible for the national team, as well as club competitions.

Korea Football Association

Korea Football Association

The Korea Football Association is the governing body of football and futsal within South Korea. It sanctions professional, semi-professional and amateur football in South Korea. Founded in 1933, the governing body became affiliated with FIFA twenty years later in 1948, and the Asian Football Confederation in 1954.

Football Association of Singapore

Football Association of Singapore

The Football Association of Singapore (FAS) is the governing body responsible for the administration of football in Singapore. Established in 1892 as the Singapore Football Association (SFA), it is the oldest football association in all of Asia. The FAS is also one of the founding members of both the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF). It has been affiliated with FIFA since 1952.

Football Association of Thailand

Football Association of Thailand

The Football Association of Thailand under Patronage of His Majesty the King, or FA Thailand for short, is the governing body of association football, futsal and beach soccer in Thailand. It was founded on 25 April 1916. The association joined FIFA on 23 June 1925 and AFC in 1954.

Confederation of African Football

Confederation of African Football

The Confederation of African Football, or CAF for short, is the administrative and controlling body for association football, futsal and beach soccer in Africa. It was established on 8 February 1957 at the Grand Hotel in Khartoum, Sudan by the national football associations of Egypt, Ethiopia, South Africa and Sudan, following formal discussions between the aforementioned associations at the FIFA Congress held on 7 June 1956 at Avenida Hotel in Lisbon, Portugal.

Coffi Codjia

Coffi Codjia

Coffi Codjia is a Beninese football referee.

Benin Football Federation

Benin Football Federation

The Benin Football Federation is the governing body of association football in Benin. It was founded in 1960, affiliated to CAF in 1963 and to FIFA in 1964. It organizes the national football leagues, including the Benin Premier League, and the national team.

Essam Abdel-Fatah

Essam Abdel-Fatah

Essam Abdel-Fatah is an Egyptian football (soccer) referee. Abd El Fatah has been a referee since 2001; his first international game was between Morocco and Sierra Leone in 2003. He was the referee for the match between Australia and Japan in the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

Egyptian Football Association

Egyptian Football Association

The Egyptian Football Association (Arabic: الاتحاد المصري لكرة القدم is the governing body of football in Egypt. A member of FIFA since 1923 and a founding member of CAF, the EFA has jurisdiction for the Egyptian football league system and is in charge of the men's and women's national teams. The EFA headquarters is located in Gezira, Cairo. The EFA organizes the semi-professional Egyptian Second Division alongside the lower regional leagues in the third and fourth level of the league system.

CONCACAF

CONCACAF

The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football, abbreviated as CONCACAF, is one of FIFA's six continental governing bodies for association football. Its 41 member associations represent countries and territories mainly in North America, including the Caribbean and Central America, and, for geopolitical reasons, three nations from the Guianas subregion of South America—Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. The CONCACAF's primary functions are to organize competitions for national teams and clubs, and to conduct the World Cup and Women's World Cup qualifying tournaments.

Benito Archundia

Benito Archundia

Benito Armando Archundia Téllez is a Mexican former football referee. He is known in Mexico as Armando Archundia, but appears as Benito Archundia in FIFA records. He has been a professional referee since 1985 and has had his FIFA referee permission since 1993. His first fixture as an international referee was the 1994 match between USA and Greece.

Squads

Further information: 2006 FIFA World Cup squads

Squads for the 2006 World Cup consisted of 23 players, as in the previous tournament in 2002. Each participating national association had to confirm its 23-player squad by 15 May 2006.[35]

Groups

Seeds

Further information: 2006 FIFA World Cup seeding

The eight seeded teams for the tournament were announced on 6 December 2005 and placed into Pot A for the draw. Pot B contained the unseeded qualifiers from South America, Africa and Oceania; Pot C contained eight of the nine remaining European teams, excluding Serbia and Montenegro. Pot D contained unseeded teams from the CONCACAF region and Asia. To ensure that no group contained three European teams, Serbia and Montenegro was placed in a special pot, as they were the lowest ranked qualified team from Europe on the latest FIFA World Ranking; while it was deemed of less importance they had been seeded higher than Switzerland and Ukraine by the 2006 World Cup seeding tool.[36] Serbia and Montenegro was drawn first, then their group was drawn from the three seeded non-European nations, Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico.

FIFA predetermined that, hosts, Germany would be placed in Group A, thus being assured of the venues of their group matches in advance of the draw. They also announced, in advance, that Brazil (the defending champion) would be allocated to Group F.

Pot A
Team Points Rank
 Germany[a] 49.3 4
 Brazil 63.7 1
 England 50.7 2
 Spain 50.0 3
 Mexico 47.3 5
 France 46.0 6
 Italy 44.3 7
 Argentina 44.0 8
Pot B
Team Points Rank
 Paraguay 31.3 15
 Tunisia 19.0 22
 Ecuador 16.0 23
 Ivory Coast 7.0 27
 Australia 4.3 28
 Ghana 3.3 30
 Angola 2.0 31
 Togo 1.3 32
Pot C
Team Points Rank
 Netherlands 38.3 10
 Sweden 33.7 13
 Croatia 33.0 14
 Czech Republic 29.0 16
 Portugal 28.7 17
 Poland 20.3 20
 Switzerland 8.7 25
 Ukraine 7.0 26
Pot D
Team Points Rank
 United States 42.7 9
 South Korea 37.3 11
 Japan 36.0 12
 Costa Rica 22.7 18
 Saudi Arabia 20.7 19
 Iran 19.3 21
 Trinidad and Tobago 4.3 29
Special Pot
Team Points Rank
 Serbia and Montenegro 15.7 24

The group stage draw was held in Leipzig on 9 December 2005, and the group assignments and order of matches were determined. After the draw was completed, commentators remarked that Group C appeared to be the group of death, while others suggested Group E.[37][38] Argentina and the Netherlands both qualified with a game to spare with wins over Ivory Coast and Serbia and Montenegro respectively.

Group system

The first round, or group stage, saw the thirty-two teams divided into eight groups of four teams. Each group was a round-robin of three games, where each team played one match against each of the other teams in the same group. Teams were awarded three points for a win, one point for a draw and none for a defeat. The teams coming first and second in each group qualified for the Round of 16.

Ranking criteria

If teams were level on points, they were ranked on the following criteria in order:

  1. Greatest total goal difference in the three group matches
  2. Greatest number of goals scored in the three group matches
  3. If teams remained level after those criteria, a mini-group would be formed from those teams, who would be ranked on:
    1. Most points earned in matches against other teams in the tie
    2. Greatest goal difference in matches against other teams in the tie
    3. Greatest number of goals scored in matches against other teams in the tie
  4. If teams remained level after all these criteria, FIFA would hold a drawing of lots

In the original version of the rules for the finals tournament, the ranking criteria were in a different order, with head-to-head results taking precedence over total goal difference. The rules were changed to the above in advance of the tournament, but older versions were still available on the FIFA and UEFA websites, causing some confusion among those trying to identify the correct criteria.[39] In any event, the finals tournament saw only two pairs of teams level on points: Argentina and the Netherlands at 7 points in Group C; Tunisia and Saudi Arabia at 1 point in Group H. Both of these ties were resolved on total goal difference. Also, in both cases the teams had tied their match, so the order of ranking criteria made no difference.

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2006 FIFA World Cup seeding

2006 FIFA World Cup seeding

To calculate the seeding for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, FIFA used the FIFA World Rankings in combination with performances of national teams in the two previous World Cups.

CONCACAF

CONCACAF

The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football, abbreviated as CONCACAF, is one of FIFA's six continental governing bodies for association football. Its 41 member associations represent countries and territories mainly in North America, including the Caribbean and Central America, and, for geopolitical reasons, three nations from the Guianas subregion of South America—Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. The CONCACAF's primary functions are to organize competitions for national teams and clubs, and to conduct the World Cup and Women's World Cup qualifying tournaments.

Argentina national football team

Argentina national football team

The Argentina national football team represents Argentina in men's international football and is administered by the Argentine Football Association, the governing body for football in Argentina.

Brazil national football team

Brazil national football team

The Brazil national football team, nicknamed Seleção Canarinha, represents Brazil in men's international football and is administered by the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF), the governing body for football in Brazil. They have been a member of FIFA since 1923 and a member of CONMEBOL since 1916.

Mexico national football team

Mexico national football team

The Mexico national football team represents Mexico in international football and is governed by the Mexican Football Federation. It competes as a member of CONCACAF.

Germany national football team

Germany national football team

The Germany national football team represents Germany in men's international football and played its first match in 1908. The team is governed by the German Football Association, founded in 1900. Between 1949 and 1990, separate German national teams were recognised by FIFA due to Allied occupation and division: the DFB's team representing the Federal Republic of Germany, the Saarland team representing the Saar Protectorate (1950–1956) and the East Germany team representing the German Democratic Republic (1952–1990). The latter two were absorbed along with their records; the present team represents the reunified Federal Republic. The official name and code "Germany FR (FRG)" was shortened to "Germany (GER)" following reunification in 1990.

England national football team

England national football team

The England national football team has represented England in international football since the first international match in 1872. It is controlled by The Football Association (FA), the governing body for football in England, which is affiliated with UEFA and comes under the global jurisdiction of world football's governing body FIFA. England competes in the three major international tournament contested by European nations: the FIFA World Cup, the UEFA European Championship, and the UEFA Nations League.

France national football team

France national football team

The France national football team represents France in men's international football matches. It is governed by the French Football Federation, the governing body for football in France. It is a member of UEFA in Europe and FIFA in global competitions. The team's colors and imagery reference two national symbols: the French red-white-blue tricolour and Gallic rooster. The team is colloquially known as Les Bleus. They play home matches at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis and train at INF Clairefontaine in Clairefontaine-en-Yvelines.

Italy national football team

Italy national football team

The Italy national football team has represented Italy in international football since its first match in 1910. The national team is controlled by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), the governing body for football in Italy, which is a co-founder and member of UEFA. Italy's home matches are played at various stadiums throughout Italy, and its primary training ground and technical headquarters, Centro Tecnico Federale di Coverciano, is located in Florence. Italy are the reigning European champions, having won UEFA Euro 2020.

Paraguay national football team

Paraguay national football team

The Paraguay national football team represents Paraguay in men's international football competitions, and are controlled by the Paraguayan Football Association. Paraguay is a member of CONMEBOL. Their nickname is the Albirroja, or red and white. The Albirroja has qualified for eight FIFA World Cup competitions, with their best performance coming in 2010 when they reached the quarter-finals. A regular participant at the Copa América, Paraguay have been crowned champions of the competition on two occasions. Paraguay's highest FIFA World Rankings was 8th and their lowest was 103. Paraguay was awarded second place with Best Move of the Year in 1996 for their rise in the FIFA Rankings.

Ecuador national football team

Ecuador national football team

The Ecuador national football team represents Ecuador in men's international football and is controlled by the Ecuadorian Football Federation (FEF). They joined FIFA in 1926 and CONMEBOL a year later.

Ivory Coast national football team

Ivory Coast national football team

The Ivory Coast national football team represents Ivory Coast in men's international football. Nicknamed the Elephants, the team is managed by the Ivorian Football Federation (FIF). Until 2005, their greatest accomplishment was winning the 1992 African Cup of Nations against Ghana on penalties at the Stade Léopold Sédar Senghor in Dakar, Senegal. Their second success came in 2015, again defeating Ghana on penalties in Bata, Equatorial Guinea. The team represents both FIFA and Confederation of African Football (CAF).

Finals tournament

2006 FIFA World Cup opening ceremony in Munich
2006 FIFA World Cup opening ceremony in Munich

The finals tournament of the 2006 World Cup began on 9 June. The 32 teams were divided into eight groups of four teams each, within which the teams competed in a round-robin tournament to determine which two of those four teams would advance to the sixteen-team knock-out stage, which started on 24 June. In total, 64 games were played.

Hosting

Although Germany failed to win the Cup, the tournament was considered a great success for Germany in general. Germany also experienced a sudden increase in patriotic spirit with flags waving, traditionally frowned upon by German society since World War II whenever the German team played.[40] For the closing ceremonies, Matthias Keller composed a work performed simultaneously by the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, the Bavarian State Orchestra and the Bavarian Radio Orchestra with conductors Christian Thielemann, Zubin Mehta and Mariss Jansons, and soloists Diana Damrau, Plácido Domingo and Lang Lang.

Traditional powers dominate

Despite early success by Australia, Ecuador and Ghana, the tournament marked a return to dominance of traditional football powers. Four years after the 2002 tournament, in which teams from North America (the United States), Africa (Senegal) and Asia (South Korea) made it deep into the knockout stages and Turkey finished third, all eight seeded teams progressed to the knockout stages and none of the quarter-finalists were from outside Europe or South America. Six former champions took part in the quarter-finals, with Ukraine and Euro 2004 runners-up Portugal as the only relative outsiders.[41] Argentina and Brazil were eliminated in the quarter-finals, leaving an all-European final four for only the fourth time (after the 1934, 1966 and 1982 tournaments).

Scoring

Despite the early goals that flooded the group stages, the knock-out phase had a much lower goals per match ratio. A prime example of the dearth of goals was Portugal, which only scored in the 23rd minute of the round of 16, and did not score again until the 88th minute of the third place play-off. No player managed to score a hat-trick in this tournament. Italy, Germany, Argentina, Brazil and France were the only teams to score more than one goal in a knockout match. Germany was one of the exceptions, tending to play an attacking style of football throughout the knock-out stage, which was reflected by the fact that they scored the most goals (14), with players from all three outfield positions (defence, midfield and forward) making the scoresheet.

Germany's Miroslav Klose scored five goals to claim the Golden Boot, the lowest total to win the prize since 1962. No other player scored more than three goals. No player from the winning Italian squad scored more than two goals, though ten players had scored for the team, tying France's record in 1982 for the most goalscorers from any one team.

For the first time ever in the FIFA World Cup, the first and last goals of the tournament were scored by defenders. German left-back Philipp Lahm scored the opener against Costa Rica after only 5 minutes of the opening match. In the final, Italian centre-back Marco Materazzi out-jumped Patrick Vieira and headed in the last goal of the 2006 World Cup. In addition, Fabio Grosso clinched the cup for Italy with the decisive spot kick in the penalty shootout.

Unprecedented number of cards

The tournament had a record number of yellow and red cards, breaking the previous record set by the 1998 World Cup. Players received a record-breaking 345 yellow cards and 28 red cards, with Russian referee Valentin Ivanov handing out 16 yellow and 4 red cards in the round of 16 match between Portugal and the Netherlands in a match known as the Battle of Nuremberg. Portugal had two players suspended for each of the quarter-final and semi-final matches respectively. FIFA President Sepp Blatter hinted that he may allow some rule changes for future tournaments so that earlier accumulated bookings will not force players to miss the final, should their teams make it that far. The tournament also saw English referee Graham Poll mistakenly hand out three yellow cards to Croatia's Josip Šimunić in their match against Australia.

The high number of yellow and red cards shown also prompted discussion about the tournament's referees. FIFA officials and President Sepp Blatter received criticism for allegedly making rules too rigid and taking discretion away from referees.[42]

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Matthias Keller (musician)

Matthias Keller (musician)

Matthias Keller is a German composer, music critic, organist, conductor, and radio producer. For many years he has been a juror for the Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik. He has been commissioned to compose or arrange works for the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Capella Istropolitana, the Dallas Chamber Orchestra, the Munich Symphony Orchestra, the Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie, and the Polish Chamber Philharmonic among others. He notably composed the music for the closing ceremonies of the 2006 FIFA World Cup which was performed simultaneously by the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, the Bavarian State Orchestra and the Bavarian Radio Orchestra with conductors Christian Thielemann, Zubin Mehta, and Mariss Jansons, and soloists Diana Damrau, Plácido Domingo and Lang Lang.

Bavarian State Orchestra

Bavarian State Orchestra

The Bavarian State Orchestra is the orchestra of the Bavarian State Opera in Munich, Germany. It has given its own series of concerts, the Akademiekonzerte, since 1811.

Christian Thielemann

Christian Thielemann

Christian Thielemann is a German conductor. He is currently chief conductor of the Staatskapelle Dresden. He was artistic director of the Salzburg Easter Festival from 2013 to 2022.

Mariss Jansons

Mariss Jansons

Mariss Ivars Georgs Jansons was a Latvian conductor best known for his interpretations of Mahler, Strauss and Russian composers such as Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff and Shostakovich. During his lifetime he was often cited as among the world's leading conductors; in a 2015 Bachtrack poll, he was ranked by music critics as the world's third best living conductor. Jansons was long associated with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra as music director.

Diana Damrau

Diana Damrau

Diana Damrau is a German soprano who achieved international fame for her performances, primarily in opera, but also in concert and lieder. She has been successful in coloratura soprano roles since her early career, and gradually proceeded into heavier roles 19th-century Italian bel canto repertoire. Her signature roles include the Queen of the Night in The Magic Flute, Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos, Lucia in Lucia di Lammermoor, and Violetta in La traviata.

Plácido Domingo

Plácido Domingo

José Plácido Domingo Embil is a Spanish opera singer, conductor, and arts administrator. He has recorded over a hundred complete operas and is well known for his versatility, regularly performing in Italian, French, German, Spanish, English and Russian in the most prestigious opera houses in the world. Although primarily a lirico-spinto tenor for most of his career, especially popular for his Cavaradossi, Hoffmann, Don José and Canio, he quickly moved into more dramatic roles, becoming the most acclaimed Otello of his generation. In the early 2010s, he transitioned from the tenor repertory into exclusively baritone parts, most notably Simon Boccanegra. As of 2020, he has performed 151 different roles.

Lang Lang

Lang Lang

Lang Lang is a Chinese pianist who has performed with leading orchestras in China, North America, Europe, and elsewhere. Active since the 1990s, he was the first Chinese pianist to be engaged by the Berlin Philharmonic, the Vienna Philharmonic and some top American orchestras. A Chicago Tribune music critic called him "the biggest, most exciting young keyboard talent I have encountered in many a year of attending piano recitals". Lang is considered by many as one of the most accomplished classical musicians of modern time.

Australia men's national soccer team

Australia men's national soccer team

The Australia men's national soccer team represents Australia in international men's soccer. Officially nicknamed the Socceroos, the team is controlled by the governing body for soccer in Australia, Football Australia, which is affiliated with the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the regional ASEAN Football Federation (AFF).

Ecuador national football team

Ecuador national football team

The Ecuador national football team represents Ecuador in men's international football and is controlled by the Ecuadorian Football Federation (FEF). They joined FIFA in 1926 and CONMEBOL a year later.

Ghana national football team

Ghana national football team

The Ghana national football team represents Ghana in men's international football, doing it since 1957. The team consists of twenty players including the technical team. The team is nicknamed the Black Stars after the Black Star of Africa in the flag of Ghana. It is governed by the Ghana Football Association (GFA) the governing body for football in Ghana and the oldest football association in Africa. Prior to 1957, the team played as the Gold Coast. The team is a member of both FIFA and CAF.

2002 FIFA World Cup

2002 FIFA World Cup

The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial football world championship for men's national teams organized by FIFA. It was held from 31 May to 30 June 2002 at sites in South Korea and Japan, with its final match hosted by Japan at International Stadium in Yokohama.

Portugal national football team

Portugal national football team

The Portugal national football team has represented Portugal in international men's football competition since 1921. The national team is controlled by the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF), the governing body for football in Portugal. Portugal's home matches are played at various stadiums throughout Portugal, and its primary training ground and technical headquarters, Cidade do Futebol, is located in Oeiras. The head coach of the team is Roberto Martínez, who replaced Fernando Santos in January 2023 following his stepping down after the 2022 World Cup, and the captain is Cristiano Ronaldo, who also holds the team records for most caps and most goals.

Group stage

.mw-parser-output .div-col{margin-top:0.3em;column-width:30em}.mw-parser-output .div-col-small{font-size:90%}.mw-parser-output .div-col-rules{column-rule:1px solid #aaa}.mw-parser-output .div-col dl,.mw-parser-output .div-col ol,.mw-parser-output .div-col ul{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .div-col li,.mw-parser-output .div-col dd{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}   Champion   Runner-up   Third place   Fourth place   Quarter-finals   Round of 16   Group stage
  Champion
  Runner-up
  Third place
  Fourth place
  Quarter-finals
  Round of 16
  Group stage

All times are Central European Summer Time (UTC+2).

In the following tables:

  • Pld = total games played
  • W = total games won
  • D = total games drawn (tied)
  • L = total games lost
  • GF = total goals scored (goals for)
  • GA = total goals conceded (goals against)
  • GD = goal difference (GF−GA)
  • Pts = total points accumulated

Group A

Main article: 2006 FIFA World Cup Group A

In the opening match of the tournament, Germany and Costa Rica played a game which ended 4–2 for the host in the highest scoring opening match in the tournament's history. Germany went on to win the Group A after edging Poland and breezing past Ecuador 3–0. Despite the defeat, Ecuador had already joined the host in the Round of 16 having beaten Poland and Costa Rica 2–0 and 3–0, respectively.

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Germany (H) 3 3 0 0 8 2 +6 9 Advance to knockout stage
2  Ecuador 3 2 0 1 5 3 +2 6
3  Poland 3 1 0 2 2 4 −2 3
4  Costa Rica 3 0 0 3 3 9 −6 0
Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Tie-breaking criteria
(H) Host
Germany 4–2 Costa Rica
  • Lahm 6'
  • Klose 17', 61'
  • Frings 87'
 Report
Attendance: 66,000
Poland 0–2 Ecuador
Report
Attendance: 52,000
Referee: Toru Kamikawa (Japan)
Germany 1–0 Poland
 Report
Attendance: 65,000
Ecuador 3–0 Costa Rica
 Report
Attendance: 50,000
Referee: Coffi Codjia (Benin)
Ecuador 0–3 Germany
Report
Attendance: 72,000
Costa Rica 1–2 Poland
 Report
Attendance: 43,000

Group B

Main article: 2006 FIFA World Cup Group B

In Group B, England and Sweden pushed Paraguay into third place after narrow victories over the South Americans. Trinidad and Tobago earned some international respect after a draw with Sweden in their opening game and managing to hold England scoreless for 83 minutes, until goals from Peter Crouch and Steven Gerrard sealed a 2–0 win for the Three Lions. Sweden qualified for the knockout rounds after drawing 2–2 with England to maintain their 38-year unbeaten record against them.

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  England 3 2 1 0 5 2 +3 7 Advance to knockout stage
2  Sweden 3 1 2 0 3 2 +1 5
3  Paraguay 3 1 0 2 2 2 0 3
4  Trinidad and Tobago 3 0 1 2 0 4 −4 1
Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Tie-breaking criteria
England 1–0 Paraguay
 Report
Attendance: 48,000
Trinidad and Tobago 0–0 Sweden
Report
Attendance: 62,959
England 2–0 Trinidad and Tobago
 Report
Attendance: 41,000
Referee: Toru Kamikawa (Japan)
Sweden 1–0 Paraguay
 Report
Attendance: 72,000
Sweden 2–2 England
 Report
Attendance: 45,000
Paraguay 2–0 Trinidad and Tobago
 Report
Attendance: 46,000

Group C

Main article: 2006 FIFA World Cup Group C

Both Argentina and Netherlands qualified from Group C with a game remaining. Argentina topped the group on goal difference, having hammered Serbia and Montenegro 6–0 and beaten Ivory Coast 2–1. The Dutch picked up 1–0 and 2–1 victories over Serbia and Montenegro and Ivory Coast, respectively. Ivory Coast defeated Serbia and Montenegro 3–2 in their final game, in Serbia and Montenegro's last international as the country had dissolved 18 days earlier.

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Argentina 3 2 1 0 8 1 +7 7 Advance to knockout stage
2  Netherlands 3 2 1 0 3 1 +2 7
3  Ivory Coast 3 1 0 2 5 6 −1 3
4  Montenegro 3 0 0 3 2 10 −8 0
Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Tie-breaking criteria
Argentina 2–1 Ivory Coast
 Report
Attendance: 49,480
Serbia and Montenegro 0–1 Netherlands
Report
Attendance: 43,000
Referee: Markus Merk (Germany)
Argentina 6–0 Serbia and Montenegro
 Report
Attendance: 52,000
Netherlands 2–1 Ivory Coast
 Report
Attendance: 52,000
Netherlands 0–0 Argentina
Report
Attendance: 48,000
Ivory Coast 3–2 Serbia and Montenegro
 Report
Attendance: 66,000

Group D

Main article: 2006 FIFA World Cup Group D

Portugal coasted through in Group D, picking up the maximum number of points, with Mexico qualifying in second. Iran missed chances against Mexico in their opening 1–3 defeat and were eliminated in their match against Portugal. They fought hard against the Portuguese, but lost 2–0. Their last game against Angola ended in 1–1 draw. The Africans had a respectable first World Cup tournament after earning draws with Mexico (0–0) and Iran.

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Portugal 3 3 0 0 5 1 +4 9 Advance to knockout stage
2  Mexico 3 1 1 1 4 3 +1 4
3  Angola 3 0 2 1 1 2 −1 2
4  Iran 3 0 1 2 2 6 −4 1
Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Tie-breaking criteria
Mexico 3–1 Iran
 Report
Attendance: 41,000
Angola 0–1 Portugal
Report
Attendance: 45,000
Mexico 0–0 Angola
Report
Attendance: 43,000
Portugal 2–0 Iran
 Report
Attendance: 48,000
Referee: Éric Poulat (France)
Portugal 2–1 Mexico
 Report
Attendance: 52,000
Iran 1–1 Angola
 Report
Attendance: 38,000

Group E

Main article: 2006 FIFA World Cup Group E

In Group E, Italy went through to the Round of 16 conceding just one goal (an own goal) by Cristian Zaccardo in the group phase against the United States. The US bowed out of the tournament after disappointing results against the Czech Republic and Ghana, 0–3 and 1–2, respectively, despite a 1–1 draw (finishing with 9 vs 10 men) against Italy. Tournament debutant Ghana joined Italy in the round of 16, following victories over the Czech Republic and the United States. Daniele De Rossi was suspended for 4 games following his sending-off against the United States.

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Italy 3 2 1 0 5 1 +4 7 Advance to knockout stage
2  Ghana 3 2 0 1 4 3 +1 6
3  Czech Republic 3 1 0 2 3 4 −1 3
4  United States 3 0 1 2 2 6 −4 1
Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Tie-breaking criteria
United States 0–3 Czech Republic
Report
Attendance: 52,000
Italy 2–0 Ghana
 Report
Attendance: 43,000
Referee: Carlos Simon (Brazil)
Czech Republic 0–2 Ghana
Report
Attendance: 45,000
Italy 1–1 United States
 Report
Attendance: 46,000
Czech Republic 0–2 Italy
Report
Attendance: 50,000
Ghana 2–1 United States
 Report
Attendance: 41,000
Referee: Markus Merk (Germany)

Group F

Main article: 2006 FIFA World Cup Group F

Group F included the reigning World Champions Brazil, Croatia, Japan, and Australia. Playing in their first World Cup for 32 years, Australia came from behind to defeat Japan 3–1, and, despite losing 0–2 to Brazil, a 2–2 draw with Croatia was enough to give the Australians a place in the Round of 16 in a game where two players were sent-off for second bookings and one, erroneously, for a third booking by English referee Graham Poll. The Brazilians won all three games to qualify first in the group. Their 1–0 win against Croatia was through a goal late in the first-half by Kaká. Croatia and Japan went out of the tournament without a single win.

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Brazil 3 3 0 0 7 1 +6 9 Advance to knockout stage
2  Australia 3 1 1 1 5 5 0 4
3  Croatia 3 0 2 1 2 3 −1 2
4  Japan 3 0 1 2 2 7 −5 1
Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Tie-breaking criteria
Australia 3–1 Japan
 Report
Attendance: 46,000
Brazil 1–0 Croatia
 Report
Attendance: 72,000
Japan 0–0 Croatia
Report
Attendance: 41,000
Brazil 2–0 Australia
 Report
Attendance: 66,000
Referee: Markus Merk (Germany)
Japan 1–4 Brazil
 Report
Attendance: 65,000
Referee: Éric Poulat (France)
Croatia 2–2 Australia
 Report
Attendance: 52,000
Referee: Graham Poll (England)

Group G

Main article: 2006 FIFA World Cup Group G

France only managed a scoreless draw against Switzerland and a 1–1 draw against South Korea. With captain Zinedine Zidane suspended, their 2–0 win against Togo was enough for them to advance to the knockout round. They were joined by the group winners, Switzerland, who defeated South Korea 2–0, and did not concede a goal in the tournament. South Korea won their first World Cup finals match outside their own country in defeating Togo, but four points were not enough to see them through to the round of 16 (the only team for which this was the case), while Togo exited without a point.

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Switzerland 3 2 1 0 4 0 +4 7 Advance to knockout stage
2  France 3 1 2 0 3 1 +2 5
3  South Korea 3 1 1 1 3 4 −1 4
4  Togo 3 0 0 3 1 6 −5 0
Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Tie-breaking criteria
South Korea 2–1 Togo
 Report
Attendance: 48,000
Referee: Graham Poll (England)
France 0–0 Switzerland
Report
Attendance: 52,000
France 1–1 South Korea
 Report
Attendance: 43,000
Togo 0–2 Switzerland
Report
Attendance: 65,000
Togo 0–2 France
Report
Attendance: 45,000
Switzerland 2–0 South Korea
 Report
Attendance: 43,000

Group H

Main article: 2006 FIFA World Cup Group H

Spain dominated Group H, picking up the maximum number of points, scoring 8 goals, and conceding only 1. Ukraine, despite being beaten 4–0 by Spain in their first World Cup game, took advantage of the weaker opponents to beat Saudi Arabia 4–0 and scrape past Tunisia 1–0 thanks to a 70th-minute penalty by Andriy Shevchenko, to reach the Round of 16. Saudi Arabia and Tunisia went out of the tournament having 1 point each, thanks to a 2–2 draw against each other.

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Spain 3 3 0 0 8 1 +7 9 Advance to knockout stage
2  Ukraine 3 2 0 1 5 4 +1 6
3  Tunisia 3 0 1 2 3 6 −3 1
4  Saudi Arabia 3 0 1 2 2 7 −5 1
Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Tie-breaking criteria
Spain 4–0 Ukraine
 Report
Attendance: 43,000
Tunisia 2–2 Saudi Arabia
 Report
Attendance: 66,000
Saudi Arabia 0–4 Ukraine
Report
Attendance: 50,000
Referee: Graham Poll (England)
Spain 3–1 Tunisia
 Report
Attendance: 52,000
Referee: Carlos Simon (Brazil)
Saudi Arabia 0–1 Spain
Report
Attendance: 46,000
Referee: Coffi Codjia (Benin)
Ukraine 1–0 Tunisia
 Report
Attendance: 72,000

Discover more about Group stage related topics

Central European Summer Time

Central European Summer Time

Central European Summer Time (CEST), sometimes referred to as Central European Daylight Time (CEDT), is the standard clock time observed during the period of summer daylight-saving in those European countries which observe Central European Time during the other part of the year. It corresponds to UTC+02:00, which makes it the same as Eastern European Time, Central Africa Time, South African Standard Time, Egypt Standard Time and Kaliningrad Time in Russia.

2006 FIFA World Cup Group A

2006 FIFA World Cup Group A

Group A of the 2006 FIFA World Cup was one of eight groups in the opening round of the tournament. The group featured four teams, competition hosts Germany, Costa Rica, Poland and Ecuador. Play began on 9 June with the opening game of the tournament between Germany and Costa Rica, with the former securing a 4–2 victory in the highest scoring opening game in World Cup history since the competition introduced a single game opener. Later the same day, Poland and Ecuador faced each other, with Ecuador winning 2–0. On 14 June, Germany secured their second victory of the competition, defeating Poland 1–0 following Oliver Neuville's injury time goal. The following day, Ecuador defeated Costa Rica 3–0 to guarantee both they and Germany would advance to the round of 16.

Costa Rica national football team

Costa Rica national football team

The Costa Rica national football team represents Costa Rica in men's international football. The national team is administered by the Costa Rican Football Federation (FEDEFUTBOL), the governing body for football in Costa Rica. It has been a member of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) since 1927, the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) since 1961, and a member of the Central American Football Union (UNCAF) since 1990.

Poland national football team

Poland national football team

The Poland national football team has represented Poland in men's international tournaments football competitions since their first match in 1921. The team is controlled by the Polish Football Association (PZPN), the governing body for football in Poland.

Ecuador national football team

Ecuador national football team

The Ecuador national football team represents Ecuador in men's international football and is controlled by the Ecuadorian Football Federation (FEF). They joined FIFA in 1926 and CONMEBOL a year later.

Germany national football team

Germany national football team

The Germany national football team represents Germany in men's international football and played its first match in 1908. The team is governed by the German Football Association, founded in 1900. Between 1949 and 1990, separate German national teams were recognised by FIFA due to Allied occupation and division: the DFB's team representing the Federal Republic of Germany, the Saarland team representing the Saar Protectorate (1950–1956) and the East Germany team representing the German Democratic Republic (1952–1990). The latter two were absorbed along with their records; the present team represents the reunified Federal Republic. The official name and code "Germany FR (FRG)" was shortened to "Germany (GER)" following reunification in 1990.

Philipp Lahm

Philipp Lahm

Philipp Lahm is a German former professional footballer who played as a full-back. Considered by many to be one of the greatest full-backs of all time, Lahm was the longtime captain of Bayern Munich, having led them to numerous honours including the 2013 UEFA Champions League as part of the Treble. He is also a former captain of his national team, which he led to win the 2014 FIFA World Cup, before retiring from international football.

Miroslav Klose

Miroslav Klose

Miroslav Josef Klose is a German professional football manager and former player. A striker, Klose is the all-time top scorer for Germany and holds the record for the most goals scored in the FIFA World Cup.

Paulo Wanchope

Paulo Wanchope

Paulo César Wanchope Watson, more commonly known as Paulo Wanchope, is a Costa Rican football coach and former professional footballer

Allianz Arena

Allianz Arena

Allianz Arena is a football stadium in Munich, Bavaria, Germany with a 70,000 seating capacity for international matches and 75,000 for domestic matches. Widely known for its exterior of inflated ETFE plastic panels, it is the first stadium in the world with a full colour changing exterior. Located at 25 Werner-Heisenberg-Allee at the northern edge of Munich's Schwabing-Freimann borough on the Fröttmaning Heath, it is the second-largest arena in Germany behind Westfalenstadion in Dortmund.

Munich

Munich

Munich is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Hamburg, and thus the largest which does not constitute its own state, as well as the 11th-largest city in the European Union. The city's metropolitan region is home to 6 million people. Straddling the banks of the River Isar north of the Bavarian Alps, Munich is the seat of the Bavarian administrative region of Upper Bavaria, while being the most densely populated municipality in Germany with 4,500 people per km2. Munich is the second-largest city in the Bavarian dialect area, after the Austrian capital of Vienna.

Horacio Elizondo

Horacio Elizondo

Horacio Marcelo Elizondo is an Argentine former international football referee best known for his officiation throughout the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Having achieved all his goals in refereeing, Elizondo retired after the December 2006 match between Boca Juniors and Lanús, 2 years before the compulsory retirement age of 45.

Knockout stage

Main article: 2006 FIFA World Cup knockout stage

The knockout stage involved the sixteen teams that qualified from the group stage of the tournament. There were four rounds of matches, with each round eliminating half of the teams entering that round. The successive rounds were: round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals, and final. There was also a play-off to decide third/fourth place. For each game in the knockout stage, a draw was followed by thirty minutes of extra time (two 15-minute halves); if scores were still level there would be a penalty shoot-out (at least five penalties each, and more if necessary) to determine who progressed to the next round. Scores after extra time are indicated by (aet), and penalty shoot-outs are indicated by (pen.).

 
Round of 16Quarter-finalsSemi-finalsFinal
 
              
 
24 June – Munich
 
 
 Germany2
 
30 June – Berlin
 
 Sweden0
 
 Germany (p)1 (4)
 
24 June – Leipzig
 
 Argentina1 (2)
 
 Argentina (a.e.t.)2
 
4 July – Dortmund
 
 Mexico1
 
 Germany0
 
26 June – Kaiserslautern
 
 Italy (a.e.t.)2
 
 Italy1
 
30 June – Hamburg
 
 Australia0
 
 Italy3
 
26 June – Cologne
 
 Ukraine0
 
 Switzerland0 (0)
 
9 July – Berlin
 
 Ukraine (p)0 (3)
 
 Italy (p)1 (5)
 
25 June – Stuttgart
 
 France1 (3)
 
 England1
 
1 July – Gelsenkirchen
 
 Ecuador0
 
 England0 (1)
 
25 June – Nuremberg
 
 Portugal (p)0 (3)
 
 Portugal1
 
5 July – Munich
 
 Netherlands0
 
 Portugal0
 
27 June – Dortmund
 
 France1 Third place
 
 Brazil3
 
1 July – Frankfurt8 July – Stuttgart
 
 Ghana0
 
 Brazil0 Germany3
 
27 June – Hanover
 
 France1  Portugal1
 
 Spain1
 
 
 France3
 

Round of 16

In the second round, conceding two early goals in the first twelve minutes to Germany effectively ended the Swedes' hopes of progressing to the quarter-finals. Argentina struggled to get past Mexico until a Maxi Rodríguez goal in extra time put the Albiceleste in the quarter-finals. Australia's journey ended when Italians were awarded a controversial penalty, scored by Francesco Totti, deep into the remaining seconds of the match. The Italians had spent much of the game with only ten men on the field, following an equally controversial red card shown to centre back Marco Materazzi. In a 0–0 match, described in The Guardian as "the dullest game in World Cup history",[43] Switzerland failed to convert any of their three penalties in the penalty shoot-out against Ukraine to see them exit the competition with an unwanted new record in becoming the first team in a World Cup to fail to convert any penalties in a shootout. Their elimination also meant that they became the first nation to be eliminated from the World Cup without conceding any goals (and indeed the only nation ever to participate in a World Cup finals tournament without conceding a goal). No two teams from the same group qualified for the quarters, all eight teams were from different groups.

England struggled against Ecuador but won 1–0 thanks to a David Beckham free kick. Brazil won 3–0 against Ghana, in a game which included Ronaldo's record 15th World Cup goal. Der Spiegel reported that the match may have been influenced by an Asian betting syndicate.[44] Portugal defeated the Netherlands 1–0. The only goal came courtesy of a Maniche strike in an acrimonious match, which marked a new World Cup record with 16 yellow cards (Portugal: 9, the Netherlands: 7) and 4 players being sent off for a second bookable offence. France came from behind to defeat Spain 3–1 thanks to goals from Franck Ribéry, Patrick Vieira, and Zinedine Zidane.

Germany 2–0 Sweden
 Report
Attendance: 66,000
Referee: Carlos Simon (Brazil)
Argentina 2–1 (a.e.t.) Mexico
 Report
Attendance: 43,000
England 1–0 Ecuador
 Report
Attendance: 52,000
Portugal 1–0 Netherlands
 Report
Attendance: 41,000
Italy 1–0 Australia
 Report
Attendance: 46,000
Switzerland 0–0 (a.e.t.) Ukraine
Report
Penalties
 0–3
Attendance: 45,000
Brazil 3–0 Ghana
 Report
Attendance: 65,000
Spain 1–3 France
 Report
Attendance: 43,000

Quarter-finals

Germany and Argentina ended 1–1 after extra time; the hosts edged out the Argentinians 4–2 on penalties to go through to the semifinals (this was the first time Argentina had lost a World Cup penalty shootout: up until this match, Argentina and Germany had each participated in three penalty shootouts, winning all of them).

In Gelsenkirchen, England faced Portugal in a repeat of their Euro 2004 quarter-final. This time Wayne Rooney was sent off, and Portugal again won on penalties, 3–1 after a 0–0 draw to reach their first World Cup semi-final since the days of Eusébio 40 years earlier. This gave manager Luiz Felipe Scolari his third consecutive tournament quarter-final win over Sven-Göran Eriksson's England, first with Brazil en route to their 2002 World Cup win, then with Portugal in 2004 and 2006.

Italy defeated quarter-final debutants Ukraine 3–0. France eliminated Brazil 1–0 to advance into the semi-finals. Brazil only managed one shot on goal, while Zinedine Zidane's dribbling earned him Man of the Match and his free-kick to Thierry Henry resulted in the winning goal.

Germany 1–1 (a.e.t.) Argentina
 Report
Penalties
 4–2
Attendance: 72,000
Italy 3–0 Ukraine
 Report
Attendance: 50,000
England 0–0 (a.e.t.) Portugal
Report
Penalties
 1–3
Attendance: 52,000
Brazil 0–1 France
Report
Attendance: 48,000

Semi-finals

With Argentina and Brazil eliminated in the quarter-finals, an all-European semi-final line up was completed for only the fourth time (after the 1934, 1966 and 1982 tournaments).

The semi-final between Germany and Italy produced an extra time period that went scoreless until the 118th minute, when Italy scored twice through Fabio Grosso and Alessandro Del Piero, putting an end to Germany's undefeated record in Dortmund.

In the second semi-final, Portugal lost to France 1–0 in Munich. In a repeat of the Euro 1984 and Euro 2000 semi-finals, Portugal were defeated by France, with the decisive goal being a penalty scored by France captain Zinedine Zidane.

Germany 0–2 (a.e.t.) Italy
Report
Attendance: 65,000
Portugal 0–1 France
Report
Attendance: 66,000

Third place play-off

The hosts got three goals in 20 minutes in the second half with the help of 21-year-old left midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger. His first goal beat the Portuguese goalkeeper Ricardo with pace over his head. Only 4 minutes later, Schweinsteiger's free kick 30 metres from the left of the penalty box, driven low across goal, was connected with Petit's knee to become an own goal for Portugal. The German did not stop, and netted his second goal, which swerved away to the keeper's left, in the 78th minute.

Portugal were strong in possession but lacked punch in attack; unable to convert 57% possession into goals. Pauleta had two clear chances from 15 metres, but both times hit tame shots that did not trouble keeper Oliver Kahn, who was playing in his last match for the German national team. Portugal got a consolation goal with the help of substitute Luís Figo (also playing the final international game of his career), who almost immediately provided the precise distribution needed to unlock the German defence. A cross from the right wing on 88 minutes found fellow substitute Nuno Gomes at the far post, who dived in for the goal. The game ended 3–1, a result which gave the tournament hosts the bronze medals and left Portugal in fourth place.

Germany 3–1 Portugal
 Report
Attendance: 52,000
Referee: Toru Kamikawa (Japan)

Final

Main article: 2006 FIFA World Cup final

The final started with each side scoring within the first 20 minutes. Zinedine Zidane opened the scoring by converting a controversial seventh-minute penalty kick,[45] which glanced off the underside of the crossbar and bounced beyond the goal line before it spun back up, hit the crossbar again and rebounded out of the goal.[46] Marco Materazzi then levelled the scores in the 19th minute following an Andrea Pirlo corner. Both teams had chances to score the winning goal in normal time: Luca Toni hit the crossbar in the 35th minute for Italy (he later had a header disallowed for offside), while France were not awarded a possible second penalty in the 53rd minute when Florent Malouda went down in the box after a tackle from Gianluca Zambrotta.

At the end of the regulation 90 minutes, the score was still level at 1–1, and the match went into extra time. Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon made a potentially game-saving save in extra time when he tipped a Zidane header over the crossbar. Further controversy ensued near the end of extra time, when Zidane head-butted Materazzi in the chest in an off-the-ball incident and was sent off. Extra time produced no further goals and a penalty shootout followed, which Italy won 5–3. France's David Trezeguet, the man who scored the golden goal against Italy in Euro 2000, was the only player not to score his penalty; his spot kick hit the crossbar, landed on the goal line, and went out. It was the first all-European final since Italy's triumph over West Germany in the 1982 World Cup, and the second final, after 1994, to be decided on penalties. It was also Italy's first world title in 24 years, and their fourth overall, making them the second most successful World Cup team ever. The victory also helped Italy top the FIFA World Rankings in February 2007 for the first time since November 1993.

Italy 1–1 (a.e.t.) France
 Report
Penalties
 5–3
Attendance: 69,000

Discover more about Knockout stage related topics

2006 FIFA World Cup knockout stage

2006 FIFA World Cup knockout stage

The knockout stage was the second and final stage of the 2006 FIFA World Cup, following the group stage. The top two teams from each group advance to the knockout stage to compete in a single-elimination style tournament. A match was played between the two losing teams of the semi-finals to determine which team finished in third place.

Single-elimination tournament

Single-elimination tournament

A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final match-up, whose winner becomes the tournament champion. Each match-up may be a single match or several, for example two-legged ties in European sports or best-of series in American pro sports. Defeated competitors may play no further part after losing, or may participate in "consolation" or "classification" matches against other losers to determine the lower final rankings; for example, a third place playoff between losing semi-finalists. In a shootout poker tournament, there are more than two players competing at each table, and sometimes more than one progressing to the next round. Some competitions are held with a pure single-elimination tournament system. Others have many phases, with the last being a single-elimination final stage, often called playoffs.

Penalty shoot-out (association football)

Penalty shoot-out (association football)

A penalty shoot-out is a tie-breaking method in association football to determine which team is awarded victory in a match that cannot end in a draw, when the score is tied after the normal time as well as extra time have expired. In a penalty shoot-out, each team takes turns shooting at goal from the penalty mark, with the goal defended only by the opposing team's goalkeeper. Each team has five shots which must be taken by different kickers; the team that makes more successful kicks is declared the victor. Shoot-outs finish as soon as one team has an insurmountable lead. If scores are level after five pairs of shots, the shootout progresses into additional "sudden-death" rounds. Balls successfully kicked into the goal during a shoot-out do not count as goals for the individual kickers or the team, and are tallied separately from the goals scored during normal play. Although the procedure for each individual kick in the shoot-out resembles that of a penalty kick, there are some differences. Most notably, neither the kicker nor any player other than the goalkeeper may play the ball again once it has been kicked.

Allianz Arena

Allianz Arena

Allianz Arena is a football stadium in Munich, Bavaria, Germany with a 70,000 seating capacity for international matches and 75,000 for domestic matches. Widely known for its exterior of inflated ETFE plastic panels, it is the first stadium in the world with a full colour changing exterior. Located at 25 Werner-Heisenberg-Allee at the northern edge of Munich's Schwabing-Freimann borough on the Fröttmaning Heath, it is the second-largest arena in Germany behind Westfalenstadion in Dortmund.

Germany national football team

Germany national football team

The Germany national football team represents Germany in men's international football and played its first match in 1908. The team is governed by the German Football Association, founded in 1900. Between 1949 and 1990, separate German national teams were recognised by FIFA due to Allied occupation and division: the DFB's team representing the Federal Republic of Germany, the Saarland team representing the Saar Protectorate (1950–1956) and the East Germany team representing the German Democratic Republic (1952–1990). The latter two were absorbed along with their records; the present team represents the reunified Federal Republic. The official name and code "Germany FR (FRG)" was shortened to "Germany (GER)" following reunification in 1990.

Olympiastadion (Berlin)

Olympiastadion (Berlin)

The Olympiastadion is a sports stadium at Olympiapark Berlin in Berlin, Germany. It was originally built by Werner March for the 1936 Summer Olympics. During the Olympics, the record attendance was thought to be over 100,000. Today the stadium is part of the Olympiapark Berlin.

Sweden national football team

Sweden national football team

The Sweden national football team represents Sweden in men's international football and it is controlled by the Swedish Football Association, the governing body of football in Sweden. Sweden's home ground is Friends Arena in Solna and the team is coached by Janne Andersson. From 1945 to late 1950s, they were considered one of the greatest teams in Europe.

Red Bull Arena (Leipzig)

Red Bull Arena (Leipzig)

Red Bull Arena, is a football facility located in Leipzig, Saxony, Germany. It is the largest football stadium in eastern Germany, and has also hosted music concerts as well as football.

Argentina national football team

Argentina national football team

The Argentina national football team represents Argentina in men's international football and is administered by the Argentine Football Association, the governing body for football in Argentina.

Mexico national football team

Mexico national football team

The Mexico national football team represents Mexico in international football and is governed by the Mexican Football Federation. It competes as a member of CONCACAF.

Fritz-Walter-Stadion

Fritz-Walter-Stadion

Fritz-Walter-Stadion is the home stadium of 1. FC Kaiserslautern and is located in the city of Kaiserslautern, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It was one of the stadia used in the 2006 FIFA World Cup. It is named after Fritz Walter (1920–2002), who played for the Kaiserslautern club throughout his career and was captain of the Germany national football team that won the 1954 FIFA World Cup in the "Miracle of Bern". The stadium was built on the Betzenberg hill, hence its nickname "Betze", and was opened in 1920.

Italy national football team

Italy national football team

The Italy national football team has represented Italy in international football since its first match in 1910. The national team is controlled by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), the governing body for football in Italy, which is a co-founder and member of UEFA. Italy's home matches are played at various stadiums throughout Italy, and its primary training ground and technical headquarters, Centro Tecnico Federale di Coverciano, is located in Florence. Italy are the reigning European champions, having won UEFA Euro 2020.

Statistics

Goalscorers

Miroslav Klose received the Golden Boot for scoring five goals in the World Cup. In total, 147 goals were scored by 110 players, with four of them credited as own goals.

5 goals

3 goals

2 goals

1 goal

1 own goal

Awards

Golden Boot Winner Golden Ball Winner Yashin Award Best Young Player FIFA Fair Play Trophy Most Entertaining Team
Germany Miroslav Klose France Zinedine Zidane Italy Gianluigi Buffon Germany Lukas Podolski  Brazil
 Spain 		 Portugal

FIFA's Technical Study Group (TSG) also granted a Man of the Match award to one player in each match. Italy's Andrea Pirlo won the most Man of the Match awards with three in total. Miroslav Klose, Agustín Delgado, Arjen Robben, Zé Roberto, Alexander Frei, Michael Ballack and Patrick Vieira each received two awards.

All-star team

The All-star team is a squad consisting of the 23 most impressive players at the 2006 World Cup, as selected by FIFA's Technical Study Group. The team was chosen from a shortlist of over 50 players, and was selected based on performances from the second round onwards.[47][48]

Goalkeepers Defenders Midfielders Forwards

Italy Gianluigi Buffon
Germany Jens Lehmann
Portugal Ricardo

Argentina Roberto Ayala
England John Terry
France Lilian Thuram
Germany Philipp Lahm
Italy Fabio Cannavaro
Italy Gianluca Zambrotta
Portugal Ricardo Carvalho

Brazil Zé Roberto
France Patrick Vieira
France Zinedine Zidane
Germany Michael Ballack
Italy Andrea Pirlo
Italy Gennaro Gattuso
Italy Francesco Totti
Portugal Luís Figo
Portugal Maniche

Argentina Hernán Crespo
France Thierry Henry
Germany Miroslav Klose
Italy Luca Toni

Prize money

A total of CHF332 million was awarded to the 32 teams participating in the tournament. Each team who entered the competition received CHF2 million, with the biggest prize being CHF24.5 million, awarded to the winner of the tournament.[49] Below is a complete list of the prize money allocated:[49][50]

Final standings

All 32 teams are ranked based on criteria which have been used by FIFA.[51] A penalty shoot-out counts as a draw for both teams.

R Team G P W D L GF GA GD Pts.
1  Italy E 7 5 2 0 12 2 +10 17
2  France G 7 4 3 0 9 3 +6 15
3  Germany A 7 5 1 1 14 6 +8 16
4  Portugal D 7 4 1 2 7 5 +2 13
Eliminated in the quarter-finals
5  Brazil F 5 4 0 1 10 2 +8 12
6  Argentina C 5 3 2 0 11 3 +8 11
7  England B 5 3 2 0 6 2 +4 11
8  Ukraine H 5 2 1 2 5 7 −2 7
Eliminated in the round of 16
9  Spain H 4 3 0 1 9 4 +5 9
10  Switzerland G 4 2 2 0 4 0 +4 8
11  Netherlands C 4 2 1 1 3 2 +1 7
12  Ecuador A 4 2 0 2 5 4 +1 6
13  Ghana E 4 2 0 2 4 6 −2 6
14  Sweden B 4 1 2 1 3 4 −1 5
15  Mexico D 4 1 1 2 5 5 0 4
16  Australia F 4 1 1 2 5 6 −1 4
Eliminated in the group stage
17  South Korea G 3 1 1 1 3 4 −1 4
18  Paraguay B 3 1 0 2 2 2 0 3
19  Ivory Coast C 3 1 0 2 5 6 −1 3
20  Czech Republic E 3 1 0 2 3 4 −1 3
21  Poland A 3 1 0 2 2 4 −2 3
22  Croatia F 3 0 2 1 2 3 −1 2
23  Angola D 3 0 2 1 1 2 −1 2
24  Tunisia H 3 0 1 2 3 6 −3 1
25  Iran D 3 0 1 2 2 6 −4 1
 United States E 3 0 1 2 2 6 −4 1
27  Trinidad and Tobago B 3 0 1 2 0 4 −4 1
28  Japan F 3 0 1 2 2 7 −5 1
 Saudi Arabia H 3 0 1 2 2 7 −5 1
30  Togo G 3 0 0 3 1 6 −5 0
31  Costa Rica A 3 0 0 3 3 9 −6 0
32  Serbia and Montenegro C 3 0 0 3 2 10 −8 0

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Miroslav Klose

Miroslav Klose

Miroslav Josef Klose is a German professional football manager and former player. A striker, Klose is the all-time top scorer for Germany and holds the record for the most goals scored in the FIFA World Cup.

Germany

Germany

Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second-most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated between the Baltic and North seas to the north, and the Alps to the south; it covers an area of 357,022 square kilometres (137,847 sq mi), with a population of over 84 million within its 16 constituent states. Germany borders Denmark to the north, Poland and the Czech Republic to the east, Austria and Switzerland to the south, and France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands to the west. The nation's capital and most populous city is Berlin and its main financial centre is Frankfurt; the largest urban area is the Ruhr.

Brazil

Brazil

Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America and in Latin America. At 8.5 million square kilometers (3,300,000 sq mi) and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area and the seventh most populous. Its capital is Brasília, and its most populous city is São Paulo. The federation is composed of the union of the 26 states and the Federal District. It is the only country in the Americas to have Portuguese as an official language. It is one of the most multicultural and ethnically diverse nations, due to over a century of mass immigration from around the world, and the most populous Roman Catholic-majority country.

Ronaldo (Brazilian footballer)

Ronaldo (Brazilian footballer)

Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima, commonly known as Ronaldo or Ronaldo Nazário, is a Brazilian business owner and president of La Liga club Real Valladolid, owner of Brasileiro Série A club Cruzeiro, and a former professional footballer who played as a striker. Nicknamed O Fenômeno and R9, he is widely considered one of the greatest players of all time. As a multi-functional striker who brought a new dimension to the position, Ronaldo has been an influence for a generation of strikers that have followed. His individual accolades include being named FIFA World Player of the Year three times and winning two Ballon d'Or awards.

Argentina

Argentina

Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of 2,780,400 km2 (1,073,500 sq mi), making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourth-largest country in the Americas, and the eighth-largest country in the world. It shares the bulk of the Southern Cone with Chile to the west, and is also bordered by Bolivia and Paraguay to the north, Brazil to the northeast, Uruguay and the South Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Drake Passage to the south. Argentina is a federal state subdivided into twenty-three provinces, and one autonomous city, which is the federal capital and largest city of the nation, Buenos Aires. The provinces and the capital have their own constitutions, but exist under a federal system. Argentina claims sovereignty over the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, and a part of Antarctica.

Hernán Crespo

Hernán Crespo

Hernán Jorge Crespo is an Argentine professional football coach and former player. He is the current manager of Qatari club Al-Duhail.

Maxi Rodríguez

Maxi Rodríguez

Maximiliano "Maxi" Rubén Rodríguez is an Argentine former footballer. Nicknamed La Fiera, he was commonly used as a winger on both flanks but could also operate as an attacking midfielder.

France

France

France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. It also includes overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans, giving it one of the largest discontiguous exclusive economic zones in the world. Its metropolitan area extends from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean and from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea; overseas territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the North Atlantic, the French West Indies, and many islands in Oceania and the Indian Ocean. Its eighteen integral regions span a combined area of 643,801 km2 (248,573 sq mi) and had a total population of over 68 million as of January 2023. France is a unitary semi-presidential republic with its capital in Paris, the country's largest city and main cultural and commercial centre; other major urban areas include Marseille, Lyon, Toulouse, Lille, Bordeaux, and Nice.

Lukas Podolski

Lukas Podolski

Lukas Josef Podolski is a German professional footballer who plays as a forward for Ekstraklasa club Górnik Zabrze. Known for his powerful and accurate left foot, he is known for his explosive shot, technique and probing attacks from the left side.

Spain

Spain

Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country primarily located in southwestern Europe with parts of territory in the Atlantic Ocean and across the Mediterranean Sea. The largest part of Spain is situated on the Iberian Peninsula; its territory also includes the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean, the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean Sea, and the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla in Africa. The country's mainland is bordered to the south by Gibraltar; to the south and east by the Mediterranean Sea; to the north by France, Andorra and the Bay of Biscay; and to the west by Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean. With an area of 505,990 km2 (195,360 sq mi), Spain is the second-largest country in the European Union (EU) and, with a population exceeding 47.4 million, the fourth-most populous EU member state. Spain's capital and largest city is Madrid; other major urban areas include Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, Zaragoza, Málaga, Murcia, Palma de Mallorca, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, and Bilbao.

Fernando Torres

Fernando Torres

Fernando José Torres Sanz is a Spanish football manager and former player who played as a striker. He is the current manager of Atlético Madrid Juvenil A. Due to his consistent goalscoring rate as a young player, Torres came to be nicknamed El Niño. In his prime, he was praised for his pace, accurate finishing, and proficiency in heading. In 2008, he finished third for the Ballon d'Or and in 2008 and 2009 he was named in the FIFA World XI.

David Villa

David Villa

David Villa Sánchez is a Spanish retired professional footballer who played as a striker. Villa is regarded by pundits as one of the best forwards of his generation, and one of the best Spanish strikers of all time. He is currently working as the Technical Advisor and Head of Global Football Operations of the Indian Super League club Odisha FC.

Fan Fests

Tunisian supporters watching their match against Ukraine at the Fan Fest in Stuttgart
Tunisian supporters watching their match against Ukraine at the Fan Fest in Stuttgart

In preparation for the tournament, FIFA and the Organising Committee sought a way to accommodate people planning to visit. The experience of past World Cups and public viewing was conceptualized in 4-week-long events for football supporters to meet, board, interact, partake in cultural activities and watch all 64 matches on giant video walls. Since 2004, the details on costs, logistics, safety issues, marketing and broadcasting rights were jointly hammered out by FIFA and the host cities.[52] These public viewing events, known as "Fan Fests" (German: Fanmeile), served an idea to provide football supporters without tickets a legitimate opportunity to partake in the World Cup. Unlike the past tournaments where ticket-less fans were treated as security risks, the World Cup in Germany welcomed all supporters, thus generating positive atmosphere even before the tournament began. Even though security planners and media were sceptical and cautious on the matter of public viewing, the scepticism was cast aside with the beginning of the World Cup.[53]

Fan Fests for the World Cup were set up in 12 host cities and attracted 21 million visitors over the duration of tournament according to German National Tourist Board (FIFA claimed there were over 18 million visitors).[54][55] The Berlin Fan Fest was located at the pedestrianised Straße des 17. Juni, between Brandenburg Gate and the Victory Column, with 14 consecutive video walls attracted 9 million fans over the duration of World Cup with nearly a million supporters in each match that Germany played. For the first time in German history, an event scored more visitors than Oktoberfest.[56] The Cologne Fan Fest scored 3 million visitors, followed by 1.9 million in Frankfurt, 1.5 million in Stuttgart, 1.46 million in Hamburg, 1 million in Dortmund and Munich, 500 thousand in Nuremberg and Hannover, 471 thousand in Leipzig, 350 thousand in Gelsenkirchen and 205 thousand in Kaiserslautern. Those numbers exceeded all expectations and some of the Host Cities had to expand the Fan Fest areas in the middle of the World Cup.[57] The most popular Fan Fests were located in the inner city areas, making the approach to keep the city centre generally "fan-free" applied by the authorities of Nuremberg ineffective as many football supporters preferred to stay in the picturesque city centre.[53] According to surveys conducted during the 2006 FIFA World Cup at the Berlin, Frankfurt and Munich Fan Fests, 28% of visitors travelled over 100 kilometres to attend to event and up to 84% came there together with friends. Around 21% of foreigners interviewed at Fan Fests visited Germany to see the World Cup without tickets to any match.[58][59] Media coverage of events had an additional positive effect as pictures of fans celebrating in front of giant screens attracted even more visitors from neighbouring European countries that spontaneously decided to take part in celebrations at Fan Fests.[53]

Despite minor inconsistencies in planning and execution, the Fan Fest concept was so successful in fact, numerous people later claimed personal responsibility for the invention.[53] The visitors' expectations regarding Fan Fests were fulfilled. During the World Cup, Fan Fests served as modern market squares where communication and interaction strengthen the feeling of community. Out-of-home media reception made the emotional aspect of escape from everyday life more intense for participants. Pictures of football supporters celebrating in front of video walls became a typical illustration of atmosphere in the country, while "Fanmeile" was later picked up as the German Word of the Year.[60] In 2007, FIFA and the 12 host cities received the German Marketing Prize for Sports for the innovative nature and marketing concept of Fan Fests.[61] FIFA and the Host Cities succeeded in creating and comfortable environment for foreign fans as 95% of them surveyed at Fan Fests agreed that it was an unequivocal declaration of international nature of World Cup and not a mere event for Germans.[58] A thought-out implementation of public viewing at such a large-scale football event as the 2006 World Cup became set a precedent. Immediately after the World Cup, FIFA announced that it registered the trademark for Fan Fests, taking over the organisation and marketing and making Fan Fests an integral part of future World Cups.[62]

Locations

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2006 FIFA World Cup Organizing Committee

2006 FIFA World Cup Organizing Committee

The 2006 FIFA World Cup Organizing Committee organized the World Cup in Germany. President of OK was Franz Beckenbauer, who also acted as the official representative and chairman of the German World Cup bid.

German language

German language

German, or more precisely High German, is a West Germanic language mainly spoken in Western Europe and Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Italian province of South Tyrol. It is also a co-official language of Luxembourg and Belgium, as well as a recognized national language in Namibia. Outside Germany, it is also spoken by German communities in France (Bas-Rhin), Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary (Sopron).

German National Tourist Board

German National Tourist Board

The German National Tourist Board is a national marketing organisation and has worked with the Federal Government of Germany to promote tourism in and to Germany. It represents Germany throughout the world as a destination for holidays, business travel and visits to friends and family.

Berlin

Berlin

Berlin is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constituent states, Berlin is surrounded by the State of Brandenburg and contiguous with Potsdam, Brandenburg's capital. Berlin's urban area, which has a population of around 4.5 million, is the second most populous urban area in Germany after the Ruhr. The Berlin-Brandenburg capital region has around 6.2 million inhabitants and is Germany's third-largest metropolitan region after the Rhine-Ruhr and Rhine-Main regions.

Brandenburg Gate

Brandenburg Gate

The Brandenburg Gate is an 18th-century neoclassical monument in Berlin, built on the orders of Prussian king Frederick William II after restoring the Orangist power by suppressing the Dutch popular unrest. One of the best-known landmarks of Germany, it was built on the site of a former city gate that marked the start of the road from Berlin to the town of Brandenburg an der Havel, which used to be the capital of the Margraviate of Brandenburg.

Berlin Victory Column

Berlin Victory Column

The Victory Column is a monument in Berlin, Germany. Designed by Heinrich Strack after 1864 to commemorate the Prussian victory in the Second Schleswig War, by the time it was inaugurated on 2 September 1873, Prussia had also defeated Austria and its German allies in the Austro-Prussian War (1866) and France in the Franco-Prussian War (1870–71), giving the statue a new purpose. Different from the original plans, these later victories in the unification wars inspired the addition of the bronze sculpture of Victoria, the Roman goddess of victory, 8.3 metres (27 ft) high, designed by Friedrich Drake.

Cologne

Cologne

Cologne is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 million people in the urban region. Centered on the left (west) bank of the Rhine, Cologne is about 35 km (22 mi) southeast of NRW's state capital Düsseldorf and 25 km (16 mi) northwest of Bonn, the former capital of West Germany.

Frankfurt

Frankfurt

Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main, is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its namesake Main River, it forms a continuous conurbation with the neighboring city of Offenbach am Main and its urban area has a population of over 2.3 million. The city is the heart of the larger Rhine-Main metropolitan region, which has a population of more than 5.8 million and is Germany's second-largest metropolitan region after the Rhine-Ruhr region. Frankfurt's central business district, the Bankenviertel, lies about 90 km (56 mi) northwest of the geographic center of the EU at Gadheim in Lower Franconia. Like France and Franconia, the city is named after the Franks. Frankfurt is the largest city in the Rhine Franconian dialect area.

Hamburg

Hamburg

Hamburg, officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg, is the second-largest city in Germany after Berlin, as well as the overall 7th largest city and largest non-capital city in the European Union with a population of over 1.85 million. Hamburg is 941 km2 in area. Hamburg's urban area has a population of around 2.5 million and is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region, which has a population of over 5.1 million people in total. The city lies on the River Elbe and two of its tributaries, the River Alster and the River Bille. One of Germany's 16 federated states, Hamburg is surrounded by Schleswig-Holstein to the north and Lower Saxony to the south.

Dortmund

Dortmund

Dortmund is the third-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne and Düsseldorf, and the eighth-largest city in Germany, with a population of 588,250 inhabitants as of 2021. It is the largest city of the Ruhr, Germany's largest urban area with some 5.1 million inhabitants, as well as the largest city of Westphalia. On the Emscher and Ruhr rivers, it lies in the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Region and is considered the administrative, commercial, and cultural center of the eastern Ruhr. Dortmund is the second-largest city in the Low German dialect area after Hamburg.

Leipzig

Leipzig

Leipzig is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 624,689 inhabitants as of 2022 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as well as the second most populous city in the area of the former East Germany after (East) Berlin. Together with Halle (Saale), the city forms the polycentric Leipzig-Halle Conurbation. Between the two cities lies Leipzig/Halle Airport.

Gelsenkirchen

Gelsenkirchen

Gelsenkirchen is the 25th most populous city of Germany and the 11th most populous in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia with 262,528 (2016) inhabitants. On the Emscher River, it lies at the centre of the Ruhr, the largest urban area of Germany, of which it is the fifth largest city after Dortmund, Essen, Duisburg and Bochum. The Ruhr is located in the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Region, one of Europe's largest urban areas. Gelsenkirchen is the fifth largest city of Westphalia after Dortmund, Bochum, Bielefeld and Münster, and it is one of the southernmost cities in the Low German dialect area. The city is home to the football club Schalke 04, which is named after Gelsenkirchen-Schalke. The club's current stadium Veltins-Arena, however, is located in Gelsenkirchen-Erle.

Marketing

Sponsorship

The sponsors of the 2006 World Cup consisted of 15 FIFA Partners.[75]

FIFA partners FIFA partners FIFA partners

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Adidas

Adidas

Adidas AG is a German multinational corporation, founded and headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, that designs and manufactures shoes, clothing and accessories. It is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe, and the second largest in the world, after Nike. It is the holding company for the Adidas Group, which consists 8.33% stake of the football club Bayern München, and Runtastic, an Austrian fitness technology company. Adidas's revenue for 2018 was listed at €21.915 billion.

Avaya

Avaya

Avaya Holdings Corporation, often shortened to Avaya, is an American multinational technology company headquartered in Morristown, New Jersey, that provides cloud communications and workstream collaboration services. The company's platform includes unified communications (UCaaS), contact center other services. The company provides services to 220,000 customer locations in 190 countries.

The Coca-Cola Company

The Coca-Cola Company

The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational corporation founded in 1892, best known as the producer of Coca-Cola. The drink industry company also manufactures, sells, and markets other non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups, and alcoholic beverages. The company's stock is listed on the NYSE and is part of the DJIA and the S&P 500 and S&P 100 indexes.

Continental AG

Continental AG

Continental AG, commonly known as Continental or colloquially as Conti, is a German multinational automotive parts manufacturing company specializing in tires, brake systems, interior electronics, automotive safety, powertrain and chassis components, tachographs, and other parts for the automotive and transportation industries. Continental is structured into six divisions: Chassis and Safety, Powertrain, Interior, Tires, ContiTech, ADAS. It is headquartered in Hanover, Lower Saxony. Continental is the world's fourth-largest tire manufacturer.

Deutsche Telekom

Deutsche Telekom

Deutsche Telekom AG is a German telecommunications company that is headquartered in Bonn and is the largest telecommunications provider in Europe by revenue. Deutsche Telekom was formed in 1995 when Deutsche Bundespost was privatized. Since then, Deutsche Telekom has featured among Fortune 500 companies, with its latest ranking at number 62. The company operates several subsidiaries worldwide, including the mobile communications brand T-Mobile.

Emirates (airline)

Emirates (airline)

Emirates is one of two flag carriers of the United Arab Emirates. Based in Garhoud, Dubai, the airline is a subsidiary of The Emirates Group, which is owned by the government of Dubai's Investment Corporation of Dubai. As of 2019, it was also the largest airline in the Middle East, operating over 3,600 flights per week from its hub at Terminal 3 of Dubai International Airport. It operates to more than 150 cities in 80 countries across all continents through its fleet of nearly 300 aircraft. Cargo activities are undertaken by Emirates SkyCargo.

Fujifilm

Fujifilm

Fujifilm Holdings Corporation , trading as Fujifilm , or simply Fuji, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, operating in the realms of photography, optics, office and medical electronics, biotechnology, and chemicals.

Gillette

Gillette

Gillette is an American brand of safety razors and other personal care products including shaving supplies, owned by the multi-national corporation Procter & Gamble (P&G). Based in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, it was owned by The Gillette Company, a supplier of products under various brands until that company merged into P&G in 2005. The Gillette Company was founded by King C. Gillette in 1901 as a safety razor manufacturer.

Hyundai Motor Company

Hyundai Motor Company

Hyundai Motor Company, often abbreviated to Hyundai Motors and commonly known as Hyundai, is a South Korean multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Seoul, South Korea, and founded in 1967. Currently, the company owns 33.88 percent of Kia Corporation, and also fully owns two marques including its luxury cars subsidiary, Genesis Motor, and an electric vehicle sub-brand, Ioniq. Those three brands altogether comprise the Hyundai Motor Group.

McDonald's

McDonald's

McDonald's Corporation is an American multinational fast food chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechristened their business as a hamburger stand, and later turned the company into a franchise, with the Golden Arches logo being introduced in 1953 at a location in Phoenix, Arizona. In 1955, Ray Kroc, a businessman, joined the company as a franchise agent and proceeded to purchase the chain from the McDonald brothers. McDonald's had its previous headquarters in Oak Brook, Illinois, but moved its global headquarters to Chicago in June 2018.

Philips

Philips

Koninklijke Philips N.V., commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters is still in Eindhoven. Philips was formerly one of the largest electronics companies in the world, but is currently focused on the area of health technology, having divested its other divisions.

Toshiba

Toshiba

Toshiba Corporation , commonly known as Toshiba and stylized as TOSHIBA, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Its diversified products and services include power, industrial and social infrastructure systems, elevators and escalators, electronic components, semiconductors, hard disk drives (HDD), printers, batteries, lighting, as well as IT solutions such as quantum cryptography which has been in development at Cambridge Research Laboratory, Toshiba Europe, located in the United Kingdom, now being commercialised. It was one of the biggest manufacturers of personal computers, consumer electronics, home appliances, and medical equipment. As a semiconductor company and the inventor of flash memory, Toshiba had been one of the top 10 in the chip industry until its flash memory unit was spun off as Toshiba Memory, later Kioxia, in the late 2010s.

Symbols

Mascot

Main article: Goleo and Pille

The official mascot of this World Cup was "Goleo VI"[99]

Match ball

Main article: Adidas Teamgeist

The official match ball was "Teamgeist", manufactured by Adidas.[100]

Music

Main article: Voices from the FIFA World Cup

The official song was "The Time of Our Lives".[101] The official anthem was "Zeit dass sich was dreht (Celebrate The Day)".

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Goleo and Pille

Goleo and Pille

Goleo VI, commonly known as Goleo, and Pille, were the official mascots for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany. Goleo takes the form of a lion, and is never found far from his sidekick, Pille, a talking football.

List of FIFA World Cup official mascots

List of FIFA World Cup official mascots

FIFA World Cup official mascots are a series of unique characters for each event. The trend began with the 1966 FIFA World Cup having World Cup Willie, one of the first mascots to be associated with a major sporting competition. The mascot designs represent a characteristic of the host country, such as flora, fauna, or costume. The design is frequently one or more anthropomorphic characters targeted at children and coinciding with cartoon shows and merchandise.

Adidas Teamgeist

Adidas Teamgeist

The Adidas +Teamgeist is a football made by Adidas and developed jointly with Molten Corporation. It was the official match ball for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany. The plus sign in its name was introduced for trademark purposes, since the regular German word Teamgeist, meaning "team spirit", could not be trademarked.

List of FIFA World Cup official match balls

List of FIFA World Cup official match balls

This is a list of the official match balls for the FIFA World Cup finals tournaments.

Adidas

Adidas

Adidas AG is a German multinational corporation, founded and headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, that designs and manufactures shoes, clothing and accessories. It is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe, and the second largest in the world, after Nike. It is the holding company for the Adidas Group, which consists 8.33% stake of the football club Bayern München, and Runtastic, an Austrian fitness technology company. Adidas's revenue for 2018 was listed at €21.915 billion.

Voices from the FIFA World Cup

Voices from the FIFA World Cup

Voices from the FIFA World Cup is a compilation album with various artists, released in 2006 by Sony BMG. This album is the official music album of the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany

List of FIFA World Cup songs and anthems

List of FIFA World Cup songs and anthems

FIFA World Cup songs and anthems are tunes and songs adopted officially by FIFA, to be used prior to the World Cup event and to accompany the championships during the event. They are also used in advertising campaigns for the World Cup. They are used as theme music in TV broadcast and also used in advertising campaigns for the World Cup. Some songs and anthems are more popular and famous than official songs and anthems.

The Time of Our Lives (Il Divo and Toni Braxton song)

The Time of Our Lives (Il Divo and Toni Braxton song)

"The Time of Our Lives" is a song recorded by multinational operatic pop quartet Il Divo and American singer Toni Braxton to serve as the official song of the 2006 FIFA World Cup held in Germany. Written by Jörgen Elofsson and produced by Steve Mac, the song appears on the compilation album Voices from the FIFA World Cup (2006) and on the 2006 European reissue of Braxton's fifth studio album, Libra.

Celebrate the Day

Celebrate the Day

Celebrate the Day is a single by Herbert Grönemeyer featuring duo Amadou et Mariam that was served as the official anthem of the 2006 FIFA World Cup held in Germany. Next to English version, Grönemeyer also recorded a German-language version called Zeit, dass sich was dreht with a slightly different text and meaning. The song appears on the CD Zeit, dass sich was dreht.

Evaluation of Germany as host nation

Fans in celebratory motorcade
Fans in celebratory motorcade
Celebrating fans in Olympiapark in Munich during the opening match between Germany and Costa Rica
Celebrating fans in Olympiapark in Munich during the opening match between Germany and Costa Rica

FIFA president Sepp Blatter stated the organization of the tournament was the best in history and that Germany had a welcoming public.[102] Through the many fanfests and large-screen broadcasts the feeling of a four-week national festival developed, in which much of the population took part.

During the first weeks of the tournament, there was concerned discussion about the wide display of the German national flag and the German national colours on houses, vehicles and clothing.[103] Numerous national and international observers from media, society and politics considered that this signified not only great support for the German football team, but even a "new patriotism". This continued a development already observed during the 2002 FIFA World Cup.[104] A study by the University of Marburg suggested a slight rise in national pride.[105] However, sporadic attempts of far right organisations to use the tournament as a platform for their propaganda remained unsuccessful.[106]

As the German national football team contributed to arousing this previously undeclared enthusiasm and euphoria in Germany over a period of weeks, the then German President Horst Köhler presented the national players on 14 August 2006 with the Silbernes Lorbeerblatt (Silver Laurel Leaf), the highest sports award in Germany. The team's trainer, Jürgen Klinsmann, in February 2007 was furthermore awarded the Bundesverdienstkreuz, not least for his reformed methods of modern training and playing methods, in which he persevered despite harsh criticism. Nevertheless, Klinsmann announced after the tournament that he would not extend his contract as trainer of the national team, since he felt completely burned-out and wished to spend more time with his family in California. The German Football Association (DFB) on the same day named as Klinsmann's successor his assistant trainer Joachim Löw, since in the opinion of the DFB leadership he would best continue Klinsmann's work and training methods.

According to a representative survey taken in Trier by the European Tourism Institute (ETI), 96% of the German population considered that Germany was a good host during the World Cup. Additionally 93% of those interviewed found the international football fans to be agreeable.[107]

Discover more about Evaluation of Germany as host nation related topics

Motorcade

Motorcade

A motorcade, or autocade, is a procession of vehicles.

Olympiapark (Munich)

Olympiapark (Munich)

The Olympiapark in Munich, Germany, is an Olympic Park which was constructed for the 1972 Summer Olympics. Located in the Oberwiesenfeld neighborhood of Munich, the Park continues to serve as a venue for cultural, social, and religious events, such as events of worship. It includes a contemporary carillon. The Park is administered by Olympiapark München GmbH, a holding company fully owned by the state capital of Munich.

Costa Rica

Costa Rica

Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, and maritime border with Ecuador to the south of Cocos Island. It has a population of around five million in a land area of 51,060 km2 (19,710 sq mi). An estimated 333,980 people live in the capital and largest city, San José, with around two million people in the surrounding metropolitan area.

Flag of Germany

Flag of Germany

The national flag of Germany is a tricolour consisting of three equal horizontal bands displaying the national colours of Germany: black, red, and gold. The flag was first sighted in 1848 in the German Confederation. It was officially adopted as the national flag of the German Reich from 1919 to 1933, and has been in use since its reintroduction in Federal Republic of Germany in 1949.

National colours of Germany

National colours of Germany

The national colours of the Federal Republic of Germany are officially black, red, and gold, defined with the adoption of the West German flag as a tricolour with these colours in 1949. As Germany was divided into West Germany and East Germany beginning in 1949 and continuing through 1990, both Germanies retained the black, red, and gold colors on each respective flag. After German reunification in 1990, West and East Germany adopted the West German flag as the flag of the reunited Germany, therefore maintaining black, red, and gold as Germany's colors.

2002 FIFA World Cup

2002 FIFA World Cup

The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial football world championship for men's national teams organized by FIFA. It was held from 31 May to 30 June 2002 at sites in South Korea and Japan, with its final match hosted by Japan at International Stadium in Yokohama.

Horst Köhler

Horst Köhler

Horst Köhler is a German politician who served as President of Germany from 2004 to 2010. As the candidate of the two Christian Democratic sister parties, the CDU and the CSU, as well as the liberal FDP, Köhler was elected to his first five-year term by the Federal Convention on 23 May 2004 and was subsequently inaugurated on 1 July 2004. He was reelected to a second term on 23 May 2009. Just a year later, on 31 May 2010, he resigned from his office in a controversy over a comment on the role of the German Bundeswehr in light of a visit to the troops in Afghanistan. During his tenure as president, whose office is mostly concerned with ceremonial matters, Köhler was a highly popular politician, with approval rates above those of both Chancellor Gerhard Schröder and later Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Jürgen Klinsmann

Jürgen Klinsmann

Jürgen Klinsmann is a German professional football manager and former player who is currently manager of the South Korea national football team. Klinsmann played for several prominent clubs in Europe including VfB Stuttgart, Inter Milan, Monaco, Tottenham Hotspur, and Bayern Munich. He was part of the West German team that won the 1990 FIFA World Cup and the unified German team that won the UEFA Euro 1996. As a manager, he managed the German national team to a third-place finish at the 2006 FIFA World Cup and was subsequently coach of a number of other teams including, notably, Bundesliga club Bayern Munich and the United States national team.

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany

The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany is the only federal decoration of Germany. It is awarded for special achievements in political, economic, cultural, intellectual or honorary fields. It was created by the first President of the Federal Republic of Germany, Theodor Heuss, on 7 September 1951. Colloquially, the decorations of the different classes of the Order are also known as the Federal Cross of Merit.

California

California

California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2 million residents across a total area of approximately 163,696 square miles (423,970 km2), it is the most populous U.S. state and the third-largest by area. It is also the most populated subnational entity in North America and the 34th most populous in the world. The Greater Los Angeles and San Francisco Bay areas are the nation's second and fifth most populous urban regions respectively, with the former having more than 18.7 million residents and the latter having over 9.6 million. Sacramento is the state's capital, while Los Angeles is the most populous city in the state and the second most populous city in the country. San Francisco is the second most densely populated major city in the country. Los Angeles County is the country's most populous, while San Bernardino County is the largest county by area in the country. California borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, the Mexican state of Baja California to the south; and it has a coastline along the Pacific Ocean to the west.

German Football Association

German Football Association

The German Football Association is the governing body of football, futsal, and beach soccer in Germany. A founding member of both FIFA and UEFA, the DFB has jurisdiction for the German football league system and is in charge of the men's and women's national teams. The DFB headquarters are in Frankfurt am Main. Sole members of the DFB are the German Football League, organising the professional Bundesliga and the 2. Bundesliga, along with five regional and 21 state associations, organising the semi-professional and amateur levels. The 21 state associations of the DFB have a combined number of more than 25,000 clubs with more than 6.8 million members, making the DFB the single largest sports federation in the world.

Joachim Löw

Joachim Löw

Joachim Löw is a German football coach and former player. He was the manager of the Germany national team from 2006 until 2021. During his tenure as manager, he led Germany to victory at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil and the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup in Russia. In March 2021, Löw announced that he would resign from his position after the delayed Euro 2020.

Source: "2006 FIFA World Cup", Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, (2023, March 28th), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_FIFA_World_Cup.

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Further Reading

1958 FIFA World Cup

1982 FIFA World Cup

1986 FIFA World Cup

1990 FIFA World Cup

2010 FIFA World Cup

UEFA Euro 2000

UEFA Euro 2008

2005 FIFA Confederations Cup

2011 FIFA Women's World Cup

Australia at the FIFA World Cup

2016 UEFA European Under-19 Championship

Switzerland at the FIFA World Cup

2017 UEFA European Under-17 Championship

United States at the FIFA Women's World Cup
See also
Footnotes
  1. ^ As hosts, Germany were automatically assigned to the first position in Group A.
References
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External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to 2006 FIFA World Cup.
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