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Uruguay's Diego Forlan won the best player of the tournament award on Sunday after lighting up the World Cup with some wonderful goals that helped his team become South America's only semi-finalist. The blond-locked striker won legions of admirers -- not least among South African women -- for his fantastic play on the pitch and courteous attitude off it where he always made time to sign autographs and chat with fans or journalists. Forlan took 23.4 percent in the "Golden Ball" poll organised by world soccer body FIFA and voted for by journalists. Dutch playmaker Wesley Sneijder was second with 21.8 percent and Spain's David Villa third on 16.9 percent. All three got five goals, making them joint top scorers along with Germany's Thomas Mueller. Mueller took the "Golden Boot" award given to the top scorer, using assists and number of minutes played as a tie-breaker. The German was also named Best Young Player. As well as winning the World Cup, Spain al

With the teams facing a penalty shootout after an often ill-tempered game of few clear chances, Iniesta collected a sliding pass into the area from substitute Cesc Fabregas and smashed the ball across goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg and in at the far post. The goal clinched Spain's fourth straight 1-0 victory in South Africa and made the team only the third to be world and European champion at the same time. This really is quite a cup,'' Spain goalkeeper Iker Casillas said. ``The European Championship was the most important moment of our lives, but today is much bigger than anything else.'' At the final whistle, the Spanish players hurried to swap their blue shirts for their more familiar red colors in time to collect the trophy. They donned shirts decorated with a single gold star to mark their triumph, becoming the eighth nation to receive the honor in the tournament's 80-year history. ``I can't quite believe it yet,'' said Iniesta, who was voted

Too bad it was only for third place. Sami Khedira scored in the 82nd minute to give Germany a 3-2 victory and third place for the second straight World Cup. But the Germans had to survive a final-second free kick by Uruguay star striker Diego Forlan from just outside the penalty area. It ricocheted off the crossbar, and the whistle sounded. Rain-soaked players shook hands and awaited a medals ceremony that was not nearly what they wanted. The Netherlands and Spain will play for the championship on Sunday in Johannesburg. Germany coach Joachim Loew, his voice still hoarse from the flu, said his team was going home ''with a very good feeling.'' ''We achieved more than we perhaps expected,'' Loew said. Khedira's header after the Uruguay defense failed to clear a corner kick by Mesut Oezil ended Uruguay's hopes of beating Germany for the first time in 82 years. ''We had hoped for more, and we did everything for it,'' Khedira sa

Octopus Oracle Paul has predicted that Spain will beat Holland and win the FIFA World Cup 2010. Paul's pick was carried live Friday on TV stations around Europe. The world-famous octopus could be seen sitting on a tank marked with a Spanish flag for only a few minutes before grabbing out a mussel and devouring it, while completely ignoring the Dutch tank — indicating a Spanish victory in Sunday's final match in the World Cup. Paul correctly predicted Germany's wins over Argentina, England, Australia and Ghana and the country's loss to Spain and Serbia. He also predicted that Germany will win over Uruguay in Saturday's match for third and fourth place.

And now the Spanish have the biggest prize of all within their sights. Spain will play for the World Cup title for the very first time, thanks to Carles Puyol's goal on a powerful header in the second half Wednesday night. The 1-0 victory was the exact same score as the European Championship final two years ago, which Spain won to end a 44-year major title drought. But while the European title is nice, nothing compares to being the world champ. ''This is one of the greatest moments for Spain, for us to be in the final of the World Cup, it's history,'' said David Villa, who remains tied with the Netherlands Wesley Sneijder for tournament scoring leader at five goals. ''And we want to make more history in the final.'' Somebody is sure to. Spain will play the Netherlands in Sunday's final at Soccer City in Johannesburg, ensuring a first-time champion. The Dutch, who beat Uruguay on Tuesday night, have lost in their only two trips to the fin

Beating the Germans in the Euro 2008 final did much to shed Spain's reputation as an international underachiever, but Germany will be eager to avenge that loss Wednesday night in Durban as it seeks a spot in a record eighth World Cup final. Spain's soccer history had, until recently, been defined by its failures on the sport's biggest stages. It hadn't advanced past the World Cup quarterfinals since the knockout stage began in 1954, and it entered Euro 2008 without a continental title since 1964. That changed thanks to Fernando Torres' goal, which helped Spain knock off Germany 1-0 in the Euro final and vault to the top of the FIFA rankings. It entered this World Cup ranked No. 2, and Saturday's 1-0 win over Paraguay sent the country to the tournament's final four for the first time since 1950. "We beat Germany two years ago and I don't think they are happy to meet us again," said striker David Villa, whose goal Saturday was his tournament-high

Cape Town — Though simply saying "The Dutch" will bring a smile to the lips of many a lifelong soccer fan, the reality is that the Dutch have made a national rule of faltering in the decisive phases of the World Cup. They have been perennial fan favorites with their orange colors and their flashy players and their legacy with the catchy name: Total Football. But for all the Ruud Gullits and Marco van Bastens and Dennis Bergkamps they have fielded through the years, they have not been in a World Cup final since 1978. That paradoxical state of affairs ended Tuesday night with a 3-2 victory over Uruguay in a South African city the Dutch helped build. It ended with a three-minute flurry of ball movement and scoring in the second half in which this Dutch team's stars lived up to their name recognition: with the playmaker Wesley Sneijder manufacturing a goal in the 70th minute with a firm shot through heavy traffic and with left wing Dirk Kuyt setting up the next goal in the 7

The two countries now find themselves one win away from soccer's grandest stage as they collide Tuesday at Cape Town. With as much talent as mercurial temperament, the Netherlands have shown flashes of friction en route to its first semifinal since 1998. However, the Dutch also showed a great deal of mettle in rallying to a 2-1 victory Friday. The Oranje regrouped after conceding an early goal and pressed forward purposefully in the second half. Wesley Sneijder scored both goals, including the winner in the 68th minute as the diminutive midfielder headed home a flicked-on corner kick. As impressive as the victory was, coach Bert van Marwijk knows the Dutch still need two more wins for their long sought-after first World Cup title. "We have witnessed it before in the past,'' he said. "Think about two years ago in Austria and Switzerland. We beat Italy and France and everybody already thought we would become European champions. ''But we didn't even survi

''Knowing Diego, it is difficult for me to think he wants to step down after failing in his objective to win the Cup,'' assistant coach Alejandro Mancuso said in a radio interview on Monday. ''We can't throw away all the good work we've done.'' Mancuso added that the coaching staff also wanted Maradona to continue. Maradona has not made his plans clear following Argentina's second straight loss to Germany in a World Cup quarterfinal on Saturday, but talked of ''the end of a cycle'' when the squad returned home from South Africa. Cronica newspaper on Monday quoted Maradona as saying: ''I gave all I had. Now I want to enjoy my family. Don't worry, I'm not depressed.'' Argentine Football Association senior official Luis Segura said Maradona's contract has a clause that triggers an automatic extension through to the Copa America, which Argentina hosts next year. ''The one who will have to decide

For the second consecutive major tournament, after the CAF Africa Cup of Nations earlier this year, Ghana have exceeded expectations, and they now stand on the brink of making African football history. The Black Stars, playing in just their second FIFA World Cup ™ after Germany 2006, are a win over Uruguay away from becoming the first African team to reach the semi-finals of the tournament. In January they went to the final of the continental championship despite using a team largely built around players from last year's FIFA U-20 World Cup winning squad after a devastating run of injuries cost them half of the regular team. Again in the run-up to South Africa , many wrote off the side after the loss of midfield talisman Michael Essien to injury, but coach Milovan Rajevac has still managed to build a unit that is solid, difficult to beat and good on the ball without being overly fussy. Along the way he has won plaudits for his tactics and team-building, and Ghana ha

Date Teams Time (GMT) Stadium Group Stage June 11 Fri South Africa vs Mexico (A) 14:00 Soccer City , Johannesburg Uruguay vs France (A) 18:30 Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town June 12 Sat South Korea vs Greece (B) 11:30 Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth Argentina vs Nigeria (B) 14:00 Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg England vs United States (C) 18:30 Royal Bafokeng Stadium, Rustenburg June 13 Sun Algeria vs Slovenia (C) 11:30 Peter Mokaba Stadium, Polokwane Serbia vs Ghana (D) 14:00 Loftus Versfeld Stadium, Pretoria Germany vs Australia (D) 18:30 Moses Mabhida Stadium, Durban June 14 Mon Netherlands vs Denmark (E) 11:30 Soccer City , Johannesburg Japan vs Cameroon (E) 14:00 Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein Italy vs Paraguay (F) 18:30 Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town June 15 Tue New Zealand vs Slovakia (F) 11:30 Royal Bafoken