World Cup Final - Who is Going to Make it?

The last goal of all the 736 players will be held on June 9th: the final of the World Cup 2006. There is nothing comparable to the World Cup title. Any title won with a club team does not hardly have this impact on a player's reputation nor his career. You might look at Germany's Thomas Häßler who did not win a single national championship during his long career. Despite this fact he is regarded as one of the greatest players of his time: because he won the World Cup in Italy in 1990.

Many heroes have been created during World Cup finals, in 1986 it was Diego Maradona, in 1958 Pelé whose star had just arisen. In 1990 Franz Beckenbauer became the second person in the world to win a final same as a player and as a coach. Only once the World Cup final had to find its winner via penalty shootout, in the US in 1994 that was, with an incosolable Roberto Baggio missing the crucial penalty. And in 1998 Zinedine Zidane led France to the title with two headers against Brazil, with this day still being the climax of his career.

This summer, 32 teams are struggling to be one of the two teams that make up the final of the World Cup. It will take place in Berlin's Olympiastadion, with a capacity of 66,021 seats one of the largest stadiums of Germany. Besides its unique overall appearance it possesses an eye-catching blue track around the pitch, since blue is the colour of home club Hertha BSC.

Even if there are teams starting at the World Cup who hardly have a chance to reach the final, they’re all there to stay as long as possible. And then, on June 9th 2006, maybe at 21.45h CET or after an eventual penalty shootout a bit later, the new World Cup champion will lift the World Cup into the Berlin night sky. Meet the cup and the world again at the next World Cup tournament in South Africa in 2010.