Germany Wins World Cup Over Argentina With Late-Game Goal

In a tense match that saw a lot of action but no score for more than 90 minutes of play, Germany was finally victorious over Argentina to take home the 2014 World Cup title on Sunday with a 1-0 win.

The win makes Germany four-time World Cup champions and the honor of being the first European team to win the title on South American soil.

In a game that at times seemed more like a rugby match or WWE bout — with head injuries, flying knees and even an eye rake — both teams displayed hardy defenses and a hungry offense.

Two early opportunities from Argentina's Gonzalo Higuain failed to put them on scoreboard. One sailed wide, but the other found the back of the net only for Higuain to be called offsides. His celebration was short lived.

Argentina's captain Lionel Messi also sent a first half shot within inches of finding net.

Germany's Benedikt Höwedes bounced a header off of the post toward the end of the first half, but the game remained scoreless.

And that's how it stayed for the second half and the first part of extra time; both teams fighting hard to gain ground as time ticked away.

It seemed like the game was headed toward a penalty shootout, as several games of this World Cup did, until Germany's Mario Goetze, in the 113th minute of time, chested down an André Schürrle cross before volleying it past Argentina goalie Sergio Romero to win and take home the victory.