Mario Goetze was the hero of the World Cup finals this morning in Brazil when he scored the winning goal in extra time, giving Germany a 1-0 victory over Argentina.
This marks the end of Germany’s 24-year wait for another World Cup title. Way to go, #teamGER!
Goetze, 22, controlled a cross with his chest in the 113th minute and in one fluid motion, he volleyed the ball past goalkeeper Sergio Romero and inside the far post.
This is Germany’s fourth World Cup title.
At the final whistle, the German players fell into a pile in the middle of the pitch for a celebration. Their coach, Joachim Loew broke into huge smiles as they congratulated one another for their hard effort.
Argentina had not been in the final since 1990 and has now been beaten by Germany in the previous three World Cups.
The Germans were clearly up against Messi, the four-time world player of the year who has set a number of scoring records in leading Barcelona to every major club title, but in the biggest game of his career, Messi came up short.
During the game, he had one good chance to score just after the halftime break, but it was a difficult angle.
He then had a final chance to score during a free kick in the 120th minute, but it went well high.
Although Argentina didn’t bag the World Cup trophy, Messi accepted the Golden Ball award for the tournament’s best player, carrying his entire team to the World Cup finals.
Germany’s goalkeeper Manuel Neuer on the other hand, accepted the Golden Glove award for the tournament’s best goalkeeper.
Shortly after that, the German team made its way up the stairs for captain Philipp Lahm to raise the much awaited 18-carat-gold trophy as confetti rained down and fireworks exploded.
During the closing ceremony, Shakira shook things up and brought along her biggest fan – her son!
The 37-year-old Columbian singer performed her World Cup song, “La La La (Brazil 2014)” wearing a red, sequinned strappy dress adorned with feathers and tassels.
Throughout the closing ceremony, Shakira carried her 1-year-old son, Milan, whose father is Shakira’s boyfriend, Spanish player Gerard Pique, in her arms and smiled with joy as she walked and danced with him on stage.
After her performance, Wyclef Jean, Carlos Santana and Brazilian singer Alexandre Pires sang the official World Cup anthem, “Dar um Jeito (We Will Find A Way).”
Stars spotted at the final match included Rihanna, Ashton Kutcher, David Beckham and his sons, and Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bündchen, who unveiled the World Cup trophy, enclosed in a Louis Vuitton case, before both teams began the match.
Kudos to both teams as they have had their share of chances, particularly in the first half of the game.
