2026 FIFA World Cup Countdown - Mario Gotze Wins it For Germany

24 Days to Go - Gotze's Immortal Winner

On one fateful evening in Rio de Janeiro, decades of pain on the global stage after one moment of magic from a German substitute.

With the 2014 World Cup final between Argentina and Germany sat in a deadlock after nearly two hours of tense action on the 13th of July, Germany turned to the bench in search of a breakthrough. Their choice, young Bayern Munich attacking midfielder Mario Gotze, was the man who applied a finish of breathtaking quality for Die Mannschaft that would go on to see them crowned champions of one of the most fondly-remembered World Cups in history.

The 2014 World Cup Final

Led by Joachim Low, Germany arrived in Brazil as one of the early favourites before a ball was kicked with their innate blend of incredible young players and experienced, hardened winners built around a Bayern Munich core, the most dominant Bundesliga team in history. They blitzed past Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal in the group stage with a 4-0 win whilst defeating Ghana and drawing with the USA, before edging their way through nervous clashes with Algeria and France to meet hosts Brazil in the semis. In that game, they would put on one of the most jaw-dropping displays in history with a 7-1 win, blitzing the host nation and reaching the World Cup final.

🗓️🇩🇪 #OnThisDay in 2014: Mario Gotze took the ball down on his chest and volleyed Germany to World Cup glory...@MarioGoetze | @DFB_Team pic.twitter.com/qTln4UAYa8

— The Sportsman (@TheSportsman) July 13, 2020

Argentina, meanwhile, were led by Lionel Messi and also had the employ of a number of world class talents like Javier Mascherano, Gonzalo Higuain and Angel Di Maria. They scraped and scuffed their own path to the World Cup final with a string of tense wins and penalty shoot-outs.

The final was as tense as it could be, and nowhere near as open as Argentina's next World Cup final in 2022. Higuain wasted a brilliant chance in the first half whilst Messi curled another past the post, all whilst fatigue and nerves began to set in on both players as the game entered extra time. With 11 minutes remaining of the game, Low turned to his bench in search of an answer. His selection was to remove Miroslav Klose, the newly-crowned all-time top scorer at the World Cup, for the peripheral figure of Gotze.

Gotze Wins the Day

The moment was crafted between a pair of German subs. Andre Schurrle, another option brought in from the sidelines, found rare space down the left flank and sent a right-footed cross into the area with fantastic precision. Gotze, breaking into the area with a perfectly timed run, brought the ball down onto his chest mid-sprint, took a split-second to compose himself at the height of pressure, and sent a low volley into the far corner with his left foot. Sergio Romero flailed towards it, but couldn't keep it out as the net bulged with the only goal of the game as the stadium erupted with German elation. Gotze sprinted away into a famous celebration as the bench spilled out onto the field.

🇩🇪

- Thomas Muller ❌

- Julian Draxler ❌

- Mats Hummels ❌

- Jerome Boateng ❌

- Sami Khedira ❌

- Mario Gotze ❌

Only 3 players from Germany's 2014 World Cup squad have been selected for the 2020 Euro qualifiers. #GERSER pic.twitter.com/2R5JgSai2A

— The Sportsman (@TheSportsman) March 20, 2019

Argentina, knocked cold by the fantastic late goal, never found the response. Many will remember the famous Peter Drury call behind a last desperate free-kick effort from Messi that flew uncharacteristically high and wide of the mark - "Oh, it's gone away".

The final whistle blew, and Germany were crowned world champions for the first time since 1990, and won their first as a re-united nation. Gotze, the young man at Bayern Munich, stamped his name in history as a hero of German football with his winning goal from the bench - this marked the only time that a World Cup final has been decided by a strike from a substitute.

A Generational Winner

Gotze's golden goal completed the German turnaround of disappointment in their most recent global outings. They were cruelly defeated by Brazil in their last final in South Korea, and made it to the semi-finals for the next two tournaments on home soil in 2006 and in South Africa for 2010. On this famous night in Brazil, however, they would not be denied any longer.

Twelve years removed from that famous moment, the 2026 iteration of the World Cup is drawing closer from North America. Even now, Gotze's masterclass in finishing under pressure from 2014 stays in-place as one of the most iconic images in the modern history of the tournament. The slightest infraction and the shortest of seconds can hold all the difference between heartbreak and winning the World Cup, and the young star of Bayern Munich had encapsulated that notion in the blink of an eye.

The game has seen few strikes land under that sort of pressure. Randal Kolo Muani will forever kick himself for the chance that escaped him in 2022, which almost saved the day for France with the scores level of a final with Argentina that would see Lez Bleus lose. New stars will come forward in the United States, Mexico and Canada this summer, but the chances are that none of them will write their name in history quite as boldly as Mario Gotze in 2014.