The FIFA World Cup is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The championship has been awarded every four years since 1930, except in 1942 and 1946, when it was not held because of World War II.

The World Cup final is the last match of the competition, played by the only two teams remaining in contention, and the result determines which country is declared the world champion. It is a one-off match decided in regulation time. In case of a draw, extra time is used. If scores are then still level, a penalty shoot-out determines the winner, under the rules in force since 1986; prior to that, finals still tied after extra time would have been replayed, though this never proved necessary. The golden goal rule would have applied during extra time in 1998 and 2002, but was not put in practice either. The only exception to this type of format was the 1950 World Cup, which featured a final round-robin group of four teams; the decisive match of that group is often regarded as the de facto final of that tournament, including by FIFA itself.

The team that wins the final receives the FIFA World Cup Trophy, and its name is engraved on the bottom side of the trophy. Of 84 nations that have appeared in the tournament, 13 have made it to the final, and 8 have won. Brazil, the only team that has participated in every World Cup, is also the most successful team in the competition, having won five titles and finished second twice. Italy and Germany have four titles each, with Germany having reached more finals than any other team, eight. Argentina has won three titles, Uruguay, France and Spain have two each, and England has one. Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Sweden, the Netherlands and Croatia have played in the final without winning. Only teams from Europe (UEFA) and South America (CONMEBOL) have ever competed in the final. Spain defeated Argentina in the latest final, staged at the United States' MetLife Stadium in 2026.

List of final matches

+Key to the list Match went to extra time* Match was won on a penalty shoot-out

+List of FIFA World Cup finals Year Winners Score Runners-up Venue Location Attendance Ref. 1930 4–2 68,346 1934 2–1 55,000 1938 4–2 45,000 1950 2–1 Maracanã Stadium 173,850 1954 3–2 Wankdorf Stadium 62,500 1958 5–2 49,737 1962 3–1 68,679 1966 4–2 Wembley Stadium 96,924 1970 4–1 107,412 1974 2–1 Olympiastadion 78,200 1978 3–1 71,483 1982 3–1 90,000 1986 3–2 114,600 1990 1–0 73,603 1994 0–0* Rose Bowl 94,194 1998 3–0 80,000 2002 2–0 International Stadium 69,029 2006 1–1* Olympiastadion 69,000 2010 1–0 Soccer City 84,490 2014 1–0 74,738 2018 4–2 Luzhniki Stadium 78,011 2022 3–3* Lusail Stadium 88,966 2026 1–0 MetLife Stadium 80,663

Results

+ Results by nation Team Winners Runners-up Total finals Years won Years runners-up 5 2 7 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, 2002 1950, 1998 4 4 8 1954, 1974, 1990, 2014 1966, 1982, 1986, 2002 4 2 6 1934, 1938, 1982, 2006 1970, 1994 3 4 7 1978, 1986, 2022 1930, 1990, 2014, 2026 2 2 4 1998, 2018 2006, 2022 2 0 2 1930, 1950 — 2 0 2 2010, 2026 — 1 0 1 1966 — 0 3 3 — 1974, 1978, 2010 0 2 2 — 1934, 1962 0 2 2 — 1938, 1954 0 1 1 — 1958 0 1 1 — 2018

+ Results by confederation Confederation Appearances Winners Runners-up UEFA 30 13 17 CONMEBOL 16 10 6

See also List of FIFA World Cup final goalscorers List of FIFA Confederations Cup finals List of FIFA World Cup final stadiums List of FIFA Club World Cup finals

Notes

References

Sources

External links FIFA World Cup at FIFA.com