The 2010 World Cup was held in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July, the first edition staged on the African continent. Spain won its first title after Andrés Iniesta scored the only goal of the final against the Netherlands in extra time. Germany finished third and Uruguay fourth, while several group-stage results changed the expected knockout field.
Spain lost its opening match to Switzerland but then won six consecutive games. Its three knockout matches before the final all ended 1–0, with David Villa scoring against Portugal and Paraguay before Carles Puyol headed the semifinal winner against Germany. The Netherlands reached the final unbeaten after defeating Brazil and Uruguay, while Germany produced high-scoring victories over England and Argentina.
South Africa 2010 gave the host continent its first men's World Cup and produced a first champion from outside the traditional title-winning group. Spain connected its European Championship success with a World Cup through positional control, midfield overloads and patient pressure. The tournament also featured Uruguay's return to the semifinals, Ghana's dramatic quarterfinal exit and Thomas Müller's breakthrough Golden Boot campaign.
Spain recovered from defeat by Switzerland and used the passing relationships between Xavi, Andrés Iniesta, Sergio Busquets and Xabi Alonso to control central areas. David Villa supplied five goals during the route to the semifinal.
Iniesta scored in the 116th minute of the final, while Iker Casillas made decisive saves to preserve Spain's fourth consecutive knockout clean sheet.
Explore Spain World Cup teams →The Netherlands won every match before the final. Wesley Sneijder scored five goals, Arjen Robben stretched defences and the team recovered to eliminate Brazil in the quarterfinal.
The final remained scoreless until late extra time, when Iniesta's finish ended the Netherlands' third World Cup final without a title.
Germany scored four goals against both England and Argentina during a fast, direct knockout run. Thomas Müller, Mesut Özil, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Miroslav Klose gave the team several routes through transition.
Spain controlled the semifinal, but Germany defeated Uruguay 3–2 to finish third for the second consecutive tournament.
Explore Germany World Cup teams →Uruguay won its group without conceding and then defeated South Korea and Ghana. The quarterfinal against Ghana ended with a penalty shootout after a dramatic final minute of extra time.
Diego Forlán scored five goals and received the Golden Ball, helping Uruguay achieve its best finish since 1970.
Explore Uruguay World Cup teams →Ghana defeated the United States in extra time and became the third African nation to reach a World Cup quarterfinal.
Asamoah Gyan hit the crossbar with a last-minute extra-time penalty against Uruguay before Ghana lost the shootout.
South Africa opened the tournament with a draw against Mexico and ended with a 2–1 victory over France. Four points were not enough to advance on goal difference.
The host became the first World Cup host nation to exit in the group stage, despite finishing level on points with Mexico.
Spain recovered from an opening loss, defending champion Italy finished last in its group, and France also exited early. Ghana was the only African team to advance.
Germany defeated England 4–1, Argentina beat Mexico 3–1 and Ghana eliminated the United States after extra time.
The Netherlands came back to beat Brazil, Uruguay advanced against Ghana on penalties, Germany scored four against Argentina and Spain edged Paraguay 1–0.
The Netherlands beat Uruguay 3–2 and Spain defeated Germany through Puyol's header. Iniesta's extra-time goal then gave Spain a 1–0 final victory.
Iniesta connected midfield and attack throughout the tournament and scored the extra-time goal that won the final.
Villa scored five goals, including the winners against Portugal and Paraguay, and carried much of Spain's knockout scoring load.
Forlán scored five goals from different areas, created chances between the lines and received the Golden Ball.
Sneijder scored five goals, including both in the quarterfinal victory over Brazil, and controlled the Netherlands' central attacking transitions.
Müller scored five goals and won the Golden Boot through the assist tiebreaker during his first World Cup.
Casillas captained the champions, saved a penalty against Paraguay and stopped a major one-on-one chance from Arjen Robben in the final.
The tournament had 19 participants. The current 7a0 data set contains 19 selected squads, each with real player names, shirt numbers, positions, ratings and legend markers.
The list above describes current game coverage, not the complete tournament field shown in the group section.
The edition remains part of World Cup history for several connected reasons:
Spain defeated the Netherlands 1–0 after extra time and won its first World Cup title.
Andrés Iniesta scored in the 116th minute at Soccer City in Johannesburg.
Thomas Müller won the Golden Boot with five goals, finishing ahead of other five-goal players through the assist tiebreaker.
Spain, the Netherlands, Germany and Uruguay reached the final four.
The current synchronized game data contains nineteen selected squads from the tournament.
Editorial review: 7a0.online
Last reviewed: 2026-07-25
Tournament facts are checked against the cited records. Game ratings, position eligibility and tactical descriptions remain independent 7a0 editorial values.
Compare Spain's midfield control with the attacking strengths of the Netherlands, Germany, Uruguay and other available teams.
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