MUNICH, 10 June 2006 — The 18th World Cup got off to a thrilling start as hosts Germany defeated Costa Rica 4-2 under clear blue skies yesterday in the highest-scoring opening match in the history of the tournament.
Although deprived of captain Michael Ballack through injury, the Germans triumphed in front of 66,000 fans at Munich’s futuristic Allianz Arena, with around a billion more watching on television around the world.
The game passed off with no major security problems, to the relief of organizers. Some 250,000 police officers are tasked with protecting the finals from hooliganism and terrorism.
Yesterday’s Group A game was the first of 64 matches spread around 12 host cities in the month-long tournament, culminating in the final at Berlin’s Olympiastadion on July 9. Germany coach Juergen Klinsmann, under immense pressure from a host nation of 80 million which takes its football seriously, pronounced himself satisfied with his team’s start.
“We can take a lot of positive things out of today,” he said. “This is fun.”
In Igelsenkirchen, Ecuador produced the first shock of the World Cup in the tournament’s second match when they beat Poland 2-0 with goals in each half by Carlos Tenorio and Agustin Delgado in Group A yesterday.
After Tenorio scored in the 24th minute Ecuador, ranked fourth among the South American qualifiers and competing in the finals for the second time, had to show terrific defensive fortitude to hold off the Poles in the second half.
Delgado then settled it with 10 minutes remaining to put Ecuador alongside Germany at the top of the group on three points after the hosts beat Costa Rica 4-2 in the tournament’s exciting opening match earlier on Friday in Munich.
It was only Ecuador’s second competitive win away from the rarefied atmosphere of Quito since the last World Cup but if they repeat it against Costa Rica next week they could reach the second round even if they lose to Germany in their final game. For Poland it was a repeat of four years ago when they opened with a 2-0 defeat by hosts South Korea and failed to progress to the last 16. They seem set for another early flight home having failed to score in their opener for the fifth time. It was not a situation that looked likely in the first 20 minutes as the Poles looked confident and controlled.
However, as they failed to trouble goalkeeper Christian Mora, Ecuador grew in confidence and got their reward with a well-created goal in the 24th minute.
Ahead of the opening match, a spectacle of dancers in lederhosen and straw-skirts banged on drums and rang giant cow bells under clear blue skies as an emotional crowd waved flags from the 32 participating countries.
“This is the most beautiful game in the world and I am here at the very start of it,” said German fan Klaus Breitmann, draped in his national flag and wearing a black-red-gold wig.
“This is the biggest party in the world and I am invited.” Audience figures for the whole tournament, the world’s most watched sporting event, are expected to reach nearly 30 billion.
German and Costa Rican colors dominated central Munich before the first game to the sound of festive football tunes, as fans tucked into Bavarian wurst and beer in the sunshine.
Police said the day had passed off without incident.“It could not have been any quieter,” a spokeswoman said.
The match broke the record for the most goals scored in the opening match of a finals tournament set in the inaugural competition in 1930 when France beat Mexico 4-1.
Germany scored in the sixth minute when fullback Philipp Lahm, after wrong-footing a defender, curled in a magnificent shot from the edge of the box. Paulo Wanchope equalized before three-times former champions Germany regained the lead in the 17th minute through striker Miroslav Klose on his 28th birthday.
Klose got his second goal in the 61st minute before Wanchope scored again to set up a thrilling finish. Torsten Frings made the game safe for Germany with a spectacular long-range shot in the 87th minute.
