Wikipedia:Today's featured article/December 18, 2022

The 2014 FIFA World Cup Final was the final match of the 2014 World Cup. The match between Germany and Argentina was played at the Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on 13 July 2014. With the match goalless after 90 minutes, it went to extra time, in the second period of which Germany broke the deadlock. Mario Götze, who had come on as a substitute shortly before the end of normal time, received André Schürrle's cross from the left on his chest before volleying a left-footed shot (pictured) into the net to secure a 1–0 victory for Germany. Their win was their fourth World Cup title and the first since German reunification, as well as the first World Cup win by a European team in the Americas. Götze was named the man of the match, and Argentina's Lionel Messi was awarded the Golden Ball as FIFA's outstanding player of the tournament. Joachim Löw, Germany's manager, labelled his side's win as the culmination of a project that had begun ten years previously under his predecessor Jürgen Klinsmann.