Follow all the build-up and live minute-by-minute match commentary of the 2010 World Cup final between Holland and Spain at Soccer City Stadium in Johannesburg on Sunday July 11, 2010 (kick-off 19.30 BST).
22.44: Right, it's time for me to go home and go to bed.
If you're Spanish go out and celebrate - your team are world champions. If you're Dutch, go out and celebrate - your team had a great World Cup. This game may not go down in the annals as a great World Cup final but it was never short on action, and was played at a terrific pace. Both teams had chances to win it, but Spain took theirs and that's how it goes.
I hope you enjoyed the action and if you spotted my (temporary) deliberate mistake, drop me an email. See you in four years, I guess..
22.34: Thomas Mueller has won the Young Player of the World Cup and the Golden Boot for the tournament's top scorer (he was tied with several others but wins due to his superior assist rate).
From on Twitter: "Forlan wins Golden Ball with 23.4 per cent of vote. Sneijder (21.8) and then Villa (16.9)."
22.32: Spanish players larking about on the field with the World Cup trophy. They're loving it.
Meanwhile, I'm hearing that Diego Forlan has been awarded the Golden Ball for player of the tournament. I think I'm finally over Fulham's Europa League loss to Atletico now.
22.27: ITV going over the action just before Iniesta's goal. It looks like Elia may have been fouled just outside the box. Webb waved it away and then Spain went up the field to score. Fine margins..
22.19: The Prezes, Sepp and Jacob, hand the cup over to Iker Casillas and he gets the celebrations going by hoisting it up.
WRAP: Spain's positive approach to the game shone through in the end. They tried to win the match by playing football, and not by fouling. But heck, Holland had their chances to win, with Arjen Robben the guilty party on two occasions. Iniesta had the opportunity for glory and boy did he take it. Holland may feel sour about what they deemed to be an offence in the build-up to the goal but if you pick up eight yellows and a red in a match you're on shaky ground with that one.
22.07: Some records have been broken tonight. We already know about the cards record, which was emphatically beaten very early on. Spain have become the first team to lose their first game at the finals and go on to win the World Cup and New Zealand have ended the tournament as the only unbeaten team.
22.04: Howard Webb and his team are surrounded by the Dutch players after the final whistle but this is Spain's moment and the Dutch could do with showing some grace.
FULL-TIME: Holland 0 - Spain 1. SPAIN WIN THE WORLD CUP
120+1 min: Holland are giving it everything after the massive strop that followed the goal. Long throw from Robben but it's cleared. Torres pulls up with an injury on the chase and it looks like he's pulled something. Spain are now seconds away from winning the World Cup.
116 min: GOAL! Holland 0 - Spain 1 (Iniesta 116') Finally! It's a moment of glory for Spain! Torres tries to put a cross in, but it's blocked. The ball comes to Fabregas and he puts it on a plate for Iniesta, who fires it past Stekelenburg for what surely is the winner. The Dutch are furious though because they believe Elia was fouled further up the field.
114 min: Free-kick to Holland and Sneijder stands over it. It's pretty far out but the Dutchman looks very confident. And so he should! It gets a wicked deflection off the wall and bounces wide. Webb gives a goal-kick when a corner was glaringly obvious.
112 min: Robben kicks the ball away after he was called offside and the Spanish team are baying for a second yellow. Webb is having none of it, and rightly so.
108 min: RED CARD FOR HEITINGA. Iniesta is through on the Dutch defence but Heitinga cynically halts him. The defender picks up a second yellow and with that is sent off. It was coming really, and the only surprise is it was so late in the day.
106 min: Holland attack through Elia and he takes Ramos on but the ball beats the Dutch winger as he got to the byline. Looked a bit sluggish for a man who hasn't been on for long.
From on Twitter: "Please reassure me this is better than England v Algeria"
105 min: Sub: Torres for Villa
WRAP: More chances have come but there's been no cutting edge in front of goal. Fabregas has changed Spain since his introduction and had a part in a number of impressive attacks. With Torres about to come on for Spain you have to say the impetus is with them.
EXTRA-TIME HALF-TIME: Holland 0 - Spain 0
104 min: Sub: Braafheid for Van Bronckhorst.
The Dutch skipper has now played his last game of pro football. Great player.
103 min: Cesc is at it again, this time charging through the Dutch defence before snapping an effort just wide of Stekelenburg's left-hand post. What a story it would be if a Premier League player won the World Cup with a bit of skill?
100 min: Chance. Fabregas is having a stormer in extra-time and he is the architect of a move that ends in Navas shooting on goal. His effort is deflected wide by Gio, but could have ended up in the net. Wry smile by Stekelenburg.
98 min: Chance. Iniesta is put through by Fabregas.. And he has Villa to his left and Navas to his right.. Instead he chooses to jog into the area and get dispossessed. A shot or a pass was in order there, and that will go down as another waste from the pass master.
96 min: Chance. From a Dutch corner, Mathijsen has a free header but puts it over. It's all action at the moment.
95 min: Huge chance for Spain. Iniesta puts Fabregas through on goal with a perfect through-ball but Stekelenburg saves! That was very similar to Robben's one-on-one and probably should have been a goal.
92 min: Learned my lesson from Paraguay v Japan and took a pre-extra-time toilet break. We're back now and Spain are on the attack already! Massive penalty shout from Spain after Fabregas appears to be bundled by Heitinga! Webb waves away the penalty claims but it looks like the defender may have clipped him.
21.24: From Jonathan via email: "must be new kind of kick and rush where the ball is only marginally involved"
WRAP: That wasn't much of an improvement but there were big chances for Arjen Robben and David Villa that probably should have been buried. The niggle and general theme of cynicism is still present and there is the distinct possibility of a red card. What's the smart money on? A shoot-out.
FULL-TIME: HOLLAND 0 - SPAIN 0. EXTRA TIME COMING.
90+2 min: Sneijder ends a pacy Dutch counter-attack by blazing a 40m shot wide. You're better than that Wesley...
90+1 min: Three minutes of added time announced but we all know there's another 30 just around the corner.
87 min: Where has this half gone? Almost over and it's gone in a flash. Extra-time coming then...
From on Twitter: "Loud announcement of 84,490...think it's the crowd but could have been number of fouls in this shocking World Cup final"
85 min: I reckon Robben should have gone down when he was through on goal there. Oh well, there's a first time for everything!
Sub: Fabregas on for Alonso
82 min: Massive chance for Robben again. The winger leaves Puyol for dead, but the Spaniard does just enough to put him off his stride and Robben get past Casillas in the area. Robben complains to Webb about the contact and gets booked.
80 min: Chance. Iniesta weaves his way into the box with a lovely touch to get away from Heitinga, but he dawdles in the box and Sneijder, of all people, is back to make a perfectly-timed challenge before Iniesta can shoot.
78 min: Van Bommel's free pass continues. MVB fouls Iniesta but no card. In fact it's the Spaniard who should have been carded for retaliating with a shove off the ball. You've gotta admire the permed one for trying his luck and getting away with it.
76 min: Double chance for Spain. First Villa makes the 'keeper work with a strong effort, then from the resulting corner Sergio Ramos puts a free header over. That was a real waste from Ramos. That was a perfect corner and he timed his brilliantly.
75 min: Another tasty cross from Navas is wasted by Villa. Blazed high and wide but it would have been some strike it had gone on target given the height of the ball in.
73 min: Villa has a direct shot from a free-kick, but it's well over. That was ordinary.
72 min: This final is really alive now. The spicy challenges and bookings are still there, but there's the added element of attacking adventure and chances on goal. Oooh, what a treat.
From World Cup blogger on Twitter: "Jesus Navas has really added a bit of spark down the right wing. V. Bronckhorst can't stay with him. Dangerous service too."
70 min: Sub: Elia for Kuyt.
From Lwansa via email: "Please allow me to shame all those doomsayers’ South Africa has hosted the best world cup ever hosted by any country. It still confounds all those who had nothing to say about the capacity of South Africa hosting the world cup. To me SOUTH AFRICA IS THE WINNER OF THE 2010 WORLD CUP!!! VIVA VUVUZELAS"
69 min: HUGE CHANCE for Spain. Navas drives one across goal, Heitinga gets it all wrong and the goal is gaping for Villa! But no! Heitinga recovers to put in a great block!
66 min: Van Persie gets away from Capdevila, but is cynically tripped by the left-back. Yellow card, and a free-kick.
64 min: This is brilliant to watch now. Holland can sniff blood, but Spain are keeping their cool. Some good interplay between Xavi and Iniesta almost ends in a shooting chance but Stekelenburg gathers.
61 min: Huge chance for Holland. Has Iker Casillas kept Spain alive? Wesley Sneijder finds Arjen Robben through the middle with an incisive pass and Robben has a one-on-one with Iker Casillas. Robben tries to slide it past Casillas' right and the 'keeper goes the wrong way, but his trailing leg just sends the shot wide.
59 min: Sub: Jesus Navas on for Pedro.
57 min: Chance. Robben whips a free-kick in and Heitinga connects at the far post! But his header skids wide... Ah, the flag was up anyway. Looking at the replay Ramos was all over Heitinga there and if the Dutchman had made more of a meal of it there could have been a pen shout.
56 min: Heitinga clips Villa off the ball and gets a booking for his troubles. That's now the most yellow cards ever in a World Cup final. Us Englishman don't do things in halves, eh Howard?
54 min: Chance. Villa, Xavi and Capdevila over the free-kick. And Xavi takes it! And it's just wide! That rippled the back of the Holland net but never properly curled back in.
53 min: This is more like it. Ball moving quickly from both halves. But there it is... A foul and a yellow card. Gio Van Bronckhorst the recipient this time.
49 min: Gregory Van der Wiel does really well to get in the box and puts a peach of a cross in, but there's no-one there in an orange kit to connect.
See 19.22: of Jimmy Jump's attempt to put a hat on World Cup trophy earlier. He gets flattened.
48 min: Van Bommel and Alonso challenge for a 50/50 in the box and MVB shoulders Alonso into next week. Goal kick given. Yup.
47 min: Half-chance. Puyol meets the corner from Xavi and it lands near Capdevila. But the left-back can't connect. If that had sat up nicer it could have been a chance.
46 min: Some great skill from David Villa forces a corner. Xavi stands over it.
45 min: We're back.. Snap prediction: this game will be decided in 90 mins. Robben almost slides one through to Van Persie. Seeeee! They'll be chances...
20.29: Were those Van Bommel and De Jong challenges reds for you? I'd be inclined to say no. Heavy, but not reds.
20.25: From on Twitter: "Passing success rate so far - Spain 75%, Holland 55%. Oh dear, most frequent passing combination so far is Stekelenburg to Mathijsen......then Puyol to Xavi."
20.22: From Jim via email: "Oops! Methinks I have tuned into The World Diving Championship and Mr Webb is perhaps not so good a judge."
WRAP: Pass, move, pass, move, crunch, whistle, card. Get the picture? Spain are giving their passing game their best shot, but it's not operating at full capacity right now. To make matters worse for the Spanish cause, Holland are launching in to their challenges with vigour. Both Van Bommel and De Jong received yellows when a red wouldn't have been out of the question, yet it was the oranje who ended the half the stronger team, with Robben making Casillas work with a close-range drive.
HALF-TIME Holland 0 - Spain 0
45+1 min: Nothing came of that corner but there was definitely a flicker of doubt among the Spanish rearguard there. They have not conceded since the group stages, but looked shaky there.
45 min: We're ambling towards half-time but there has to be time for a foul before the whistle... Ahhh there it is, Robben brought down. Sneijder takes it long and Heitinga heads it across goal! No-one's there for Holland but the ball makes its way back to Robben who (predictably) cuts in on his left and tests Casillas with a low driven shot. Another corner.
42 min: It's brutal out there at the moment. And the latest heavy challenge from Sneijder results in a free-kick. Alonso has a crack! It's wide, but that was a decent-ish effort.
From on Twitter: "Is it me or is Webb's head particularly shiny tonight?"
40 min: Pedro's on the ball again, before he's brought down by Gio just inside the Spain half. Xavi on the ball now as he tries to re-set the Spanish passing machine.
37 min: Half-chance. Pedro tries one from long range but it skids wide. First time I've noticed him tonight.
36 min: Chance. Holland take a short corner, which Van Bommel squares across goal. Mathijsen is there, but he scoffs his shot!
35 min: If it stays like this Holland will be chuffed. The Spanish passing game isn't working at full throttle and Holland are getting some joy with their attacks.
From on Twitter: "Why isn't Morgan Freeman sat next to Mandela? Never see them in the same room.."
33 min: Was that a chance? Holland sportingly kick the ball back to Spain after a stoppage but the Jabulani being the Jabulani means it's almost an outrageous long shot. It bounced in the area and caught Casillas completely off-guard. He gets a finger on it for a corner, which Van Persie passes straight to the 'keeper.
31 min: Fouling has calmed down a bit and Spain have got more of a grasp on things now.. Pass, move, pass, move. The midfield are stringing some beautiful stuff together but it breaks down when it gets to Villa. Maybe they should play with six midfielders and no striker?
29 min: From on Twitter: "End to end fouls at the moment. De Jong could easily have gone for boot into Alonso's chest."
28 min: There's another easy yellow for Webb. De Jong and Alonso challenge for a bouncing ball and the Man City man's foot is raised, and goes straight into his opponent's chest. Studs were up. Owwww.
26 min: Holland have just knocked Spain off their stride a bit with some whole-hearted challenges. It depends who you support, but for the neutral I think that's a good thing.
From World Cup blogger on Twitter: "Important yellow card on v. Bommel. It won't stop him from tackling, but it may limit how many he can attempt before he exits."
24 min: Puyol and Robben contest a bouncing 50/50 ball the former comes off best. He then romps upfield with the ball before Van Bommel comes in hard again. Not a foul, but should he be risking challenges like that?
22 min: Alright Howard, steady on mate. He does his card trick again and this time it's for Ramos. At this rate there we may be a few men down by the final whistle.
21 min: It's happened! Mark van Bommel has been booked! Howard Webb, that king among men, shows no mercy after a sliding MVB special on Iniesta.
20 min: The corner comes to nothing, but Holland have certainly arrived at the party now.
From Terry via email: "Holland needs to shorten their passes in order to properly attack Spain's grid defense."
19 min: Holland are into the game now and Robben uses his pace to get past Alonso before forcing the Spaniard to concede a corner.
17 min: Sneijder shoots straight at Casillas from the resulting free-kick. Just a sign of defensive vulnerability from Spain? Nah, not really. Just a shoddy challenge.
16 min: The Englishman is busy again after Carles Puyol blatantly takes out Robben. Yellow for the man with the silly haircut.
14 min: Howard Webb shows his first card of the game after Van Persie went in way too strong on Capdevila.
12 min: I'm sure they practiced this alllll week, and I know we've all been talking about it ad naseum. But Holland can't get the ball off Spain at the moment.
11 min: Chance. Lovely ball put across the area to Villa on the left and he volleys it! The net ripples, but it's the side netting. Spain are the dominant force in this fixture so far.
10 min: Chance. Spain are passing... Ooh boy, are they passing. Another charge from Sergio Ramos sees the right back into the box and he crosses across goal...but Heitinga clears! Corner to Spain.
8 min: Xavi lofts an aerial-throughball over the Dutch defence for Villa but it's too heavy and Stekelenburg gathers.
6 min: All Spain so far, but Busquets gives it straight to Kuyt in front of goal! The big man shoots on sight but it's straight at Casillas. That was careless from the Barca midfielder.
4 min: Free-kick comes in and Ramos connects! But it's saved by Stekelenburg! Big chance, but a great save. The ball fell to Pique but it didn't sit up properly for a shot.
3 min: Ramos has bombed forward well on a couple of occasions and his latest excursion is ended by a foul from Van Bronckhorst. Decent attacking free-kick for Spain.
2 min: Spain are passing it among themselves. Right, I'll update in ten minutes when they stop..
1 min: Van Persie catches Busquets with a careless little foul. Is it going to be rough stuff all night from the beautiful oranje?
19.29: Let's do this... Almost time.
19.26: Spain's lyricless Marcha Real. Is over pretty quickly, but was most memorable for Carles Puyol twitching with nerves. If there were lyrics I reckon he would have blubbed. 3/5
19.25: The last Anthem Watch of the tournament. Holland and Het Wilhelmus up first. Some determined, rugby-style, pumping of the lungs. A good rendition of a song that ends with the lyric: "The king of Spain, I have always honoured." 4/5
19.22: The teams are out on the field and now have the honour of meeting two esteemed presidents, Sepp Blatter and Jacob Zuma. Also hearing that before all this a fan just tried to get on the field to get the trophy before getting royally duffed up.
19.17: We're so close now. Fabio Cannavaro is on the field to do the job he was destined to do at these finals: relinquish the World Cup.
From on Twitter: "Oh dear! Cannavaro brings World Cup onto pitch in "a special protective case designed by Louis Vuitton" Are u watching Jack Charlton?."
19.10: Lucas Radebe: "We have proved we can host the biggest tournament in sport. Sowetans are going to be celebrating this for months. Seeing Madiba meant a lot, the man deserves to be here on this day because he's made dreams come true for South Africans."
19.03: Hearing that Torres is now warming up, but in a sulky manner. He needs to get it together if he's called off the replacements bench.
From on Twitter: "Going for Netherlands. Head telling me Spain, but Inter beat Barca, so why not?"
18.58: Gareth Southgate texted one of tonight's linesmen and ex-Crystal Palace trainee, Darren Cann, to say "It's a long way from Mitcham (a Palace training ground)." Yes, Soccer City and Johannesburg are more glamorous than Mitcham. But do they have a Toby Carvery? Nup....
18.55: Is Fernando Torres having the sulk of the century following his omission? Or is he just unfit?
From on Twitter: "A forlorn Fernando Torres has just strolled down the tunnel in a tracksuit, and is playing no part in the warm-up, even with the subs."
18.52: ITV ask a sensible question: Will Howard Webb have the balls to show a card to Mark Van Bommel, if he carries on with his usual free-fouling nonsense? Personally, I find it pretty amusing to see a guy with a perm running around like a mad man tripping everyone up. Keep him on the field, Webby.
18.44: Andy Townsend giving his thoughts on apartheid on the ITV coverage. No, really.
18.43: Holland are numbered 1-11. The first time a team competing in the World Cup final has done this, apparently.
18.36: From Annemarie via email: "The vast majority of Germans support the Dutch, their arch-rivals. But I think Spain are going to win. Both sides would have deserved it. We'll soon find out."
18.32: Hearing all of the big names are at Soccer City.. Charlize Theron, Morgan Freeman, Gazza, Robert Mugbabe... One of those is a joke - email in your guesses...
18.27: From on Twitter: "Spain win 2-0.that's all I'm saying on the matter!"
18.22: Just seeing the pictures of Nelson Mandela's arrival onto the Soccer City pitch now. He was escorted across the pitch in a golf buggy, wrapped up to the nines and gave the whole stadium a massive smile and a wave. He got a huge reaction and looked to be really enjoying himself. Madiba is not well enough to hang around for the game but has given us our first moving moment of the evening.
18.18: From on Twitter: "Nelson Mandela on pitch in a buggy....magnificent Cossack hat....smiling away and waving. standing ovation."
18.17: The teams are in.... And as rumoured Fernando Torres has not regained his place in the Spain team. Pedro is there, so it's the same starting line-up that beat Germany. Holland welcome back Gregory van der Wiel and Nigel de Jong from suspension.
Holland: 1-Maarten Stekelenburg; 2-Gregory van der Wiel, 3-John Heitinga, 4-Joris Mathijsen, 5-Giovanni van Bronckhorst; 7-Dirk Kuyt, 6-Mark van Bommel, 10-Wesley Sneijder, 8-Nigel de Jong, 11-Arjen Robben; 9-Robin van Persie.
Spain: 1-Iker Casillas; 15-Sergio Ramos, 3-Gerard Pique, 5-Carles Puyol, 11-Joan Capdevila; 14-Xabi Alonso, 8-Xavi, 6-Andres Iniesta, 16-Sergio Busquets; 18-Pedro, 7-David Villa.
Referee: Howard Webb (England)
18.13: Hearing that Nelson Mandela has arrived at Soccer City. Looking like we'll see the great man in the next hour. Of course Telegraph Sport revealed this at lunchtime the former South African president's wife Graca Machel.
18.12: Twitter abuzz with the (as yet unconfirmed) rumours that Fernando Torres has not regained his place in the Spain line-up. So it looks like Pedro will be playing again, despite cocking up a two-on-one in the semi.
18.05: From on Twitter: "There are elephants on the pitch....(automated ones but impressive)....sadly no Torres on the pitch, according to Spanish sources. Pedro in."
18.03: Dancers are now standing on pan pipes that are playing a tune. A bit like the keyboard in Big, but worse.
18.00: Ladysmith Black Mambazo up now... All of a sudden I really want some Heinz produce.
17.58: Highlights of the knock-out games being projected on to the pitch now. Lingered on Germany v England a little too long for my liking. Watch it, Fifa...
17.55: The Blazin' Squad-esque Africa United performing now. First low point of the ceremony....
17.51: Now there's a newspaper being ripped open in the middle of the pitch. With some video content coming out of the centre. How about that for cross-platform integration?!
From on Twitter: "Knobs with vuvuzelas start blowing to fill up any empty space in the noise."
17.49: Here she is! It's Shakira! Yes, her abdominal muscles are on show and yes, she's giving Waka Waka some welly.
17.48: A South African rapper really going for it now in the middle. His dancers are then choreographed into the shape of a vuvuzela. Nice touch.
17.44: "Welcome back to Soccer City for the final of the 2010 Fifa World Cup," says the announcer. And now there's some cartoon planets being projected onto the pitch. Vuvuzelas and Jabulanis are orbiting these planets. Can any astronauts confirm if that's what it's like in space?
17.43: Ceremony about to begin. There's a pretty awesome light show on at the moment. The whole stadium is pitch dark apart from some huge blue lights and the flicker of cameras. Looks incredible.
17.41: All Fifa accredited journos are being asked to vote for their top three players of the tournament from Forlan, Gyan, Iniesta, Messi, Ozil, Robben, Schweiny, Sneijder, Villa, Xavi. No easy feat.. If I was asked to vote I'd probably go: Schweiny, Forlan, Ozil - you?
17.37: Closing ceremony nearing its start. Do we all remember the words to Waka Waka? Chorus is below. And I'm sure you'll agree its a song for the ages..
Tsamina mina
Zangalewa
Cuz this is Africa
Tsamina mina eh eh
Waka Waka eh eh
Tsamina mina zangalewa
Anawa aa
This time for Africa
17.29: Over on BBC News a Fifa cameraman is repeatedly flicking a clapper board that says 'See You In Rio'. No, really...
17.25: From on Twitter: "Katy Perry is at number one. Neither Spain nor Holland have ever won the World Cup when she has been number one. #fatuousomens"
17.23: Last time there was a World Cup final in South Africa, it was the cricket equivalent where favourites Australia beat India by a ton in a miserably-predictable contest. Of course the time before that, we had the 1995 Rugby World Cup final - now available on DVD and Blu-ray in the form of Invictus. That game was far from a classic, with the off-field significance of South Africa winning far outweighing anything else. Here's hoping tonight is memorable on all counts....
17.18: From on Twitter: "Warning to David Villa and Wesley Sneijder: The Golden Boot winner has been a World Cup winner on only five occasions."
17.10: Sky Sports News man praising the Spanish fans in Madrid for not drinking in the fan parks. Producer cuts to picture of shirtless Spaniard drinking red wine from a novelty-sized glass. Teamwork.
17.02: If our esteemed football correspondent, Henry Winter, is to be believed - and I can't think of a godly reason why he wouldn't be - then the closing ceremony is set to start in 45 minutes. I'm thinking Shakira, and plenty of lowest-common-denominator African imagery. No word yet whether the Jabulani or dung beetle will feature.
17.00: That's it from Kristian. Big thank you to that man for setting the scene so well.
I'm Nick Pearce and I'll be with you all evening for the biggie. Are you all sitting comfortably? Then I'll begin...
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Actual football preview stuff
Holland: Stekelenburg; Van der Wiel, Heitinga, Mathijsen, Van Bronckhorst (capt); Van Bommel, De Jong; Kuyt, Sneijder, Robben; Van Persie
Spain: Casillas (capt); Ramos, Puyol, Pique, Capdevila; Busquets, Alonso; Iniesta, Xavi, Pedro; Villa.
Referee: Howard Webb (Eng)
Assistants: Mike Mullarkey (Eng), Darren Cann (Eng). Fourth official: Yuichi Nishimura (Jpn)
Previous meetings
Played 8: Holland 4 wins, Draws 1, Spain 3 wins
1957: (Madrid, Friendly): Spain 5 Holland 1
1973: (Amsterdam, Friendly): Holland 3 Spain 2
1980: (Vigo, Friendly): Spain 1 Holland 0
1983: (Seville, ECQ): Spain 1 Holland 0
1983: (Rotterdam, ECQ): Holland 2 Spain 1
1987: (Barcelona, Friendly): Spain 1 Holland 1
2000: (Sevilla, Friendly): Spain 1 Holland 2
2001: (Rotterdam, Friendly): Holland 1 Spain 0
Facts
David Villa has scored six of Spain’s last eight goals at World Cup finals. And he is on 43 goals, just one goal away from joining Raul as Spain’s top scorer of all time.
Spain have been the good boys of the World Cup, receiving just three yellow cards, the fewest in this summer’s finals. Holland, by contrast, have had 15 bookings.
Xavi, of Spain, has created 25 goalscoring chances – an impressive eight more than any other player.
And if Spain win the World Cup they will become the first team ever to be World champions after losing their opening game.
Expect Spain to use Carlos Marchena at some stage. The veteran now holds the World record for consecutive appearances without loss, his latest against Germany in the semi-final being his 54th game without tasting defeat.
Interestingly, either Holland or Spain will make history. No European team has previously won the World Cup outside of Europe.
Holland are on a roll: The Oranje have won their last 14 games in the World Cup qualifiers and finals, an all-time record.