Spain lost their opening match to Switzerland and nearly went home. Instead, they won every subsequent game seven consecutive 1-0 victories in a row from the group stage onward. Their possession-based tiki-taka frustrated opponents into submission. Xavi and Iniesta controlled every match. Villa scored five goals. The football was not always exciting, but it was utterly dominant.

The Netherlands abandoned their principles and played brutally De Jong's karate kick on Xabi Alonso should have been a red card. The match was tight and tense. Howard Webb showed 14 yellow cards. Then, in the 116th minute, Cesc Fàbregas played the ball to Iniesta on the edge of the box. One touch, one shot, one goal. Spain 1, Netherlands 0. Iniesta removed his shirt to reveal a tribute to Dani Jarque, his friend who had died the previous year. The quietest explosion in football history.

South Africa became the first African nation to host the World Cup. Spain had dominated Euro 2008 with tiki-taka but had never won a World Cup despite decades of brilliant players. Brazil and Argentina were considered favourites. The vuvuzela, a plastic horn, was about to become the tournament's inescapable soundtrack.

Sixteen years had passed since the end of apartheid. Nelson Mandela, frail but determined, would be present at the opening ceremony. The global financial crisis of 2008 was still reshaping economies. Unemployment and austerity gripped much of Europe and North America.

Johannesburg (two venues), Cape Town, Durban, Port Elizabeth, Pretoria, Bloemfontein, Polokwane, Rustenburg, and Nelspruit hosted matches. Johannesburg, the economic capital, was the tournament's hub. Cape Town offered Table Mountain as a backdrop. Teams were based across the country, with training facilities upgraded specifically for the tournament. The Gautrain, a new rapid rail link, connected Johannesburg's airport to the city centre for the first time.

South Africa invested $3.5 billion in transport and infrastructure, including new airports, roads, and the Gautrain. The tournament employed over 130,000 people directly. International tourism during the event exceeded expectations, with 310,000 foreign visitors. Host cities in less-developed regions like Polokwane and Nelspruit received investment they had never seen. The long-term legacy was mixed: some stadiums became maintenance burdens, but the transport and telecommunications infrastructure permanently improved quality of life.

Andrés Iniesta scored the winning goal in the final, the culmination of Spain's tiki-taka revolution. Diego Forlán won the Golden Ball as the tournament's best player, his long-range strikes for Uruguay a throwback to a more direct era. Thomas Müller, 20, scored five goals with an uncanny positional intelligence. David Villa was Spain's most reliable finisher.

Iniesta's extra-time winner chest control, half-volley past Stekelenburg released a nation's decades of underachievement. Luis Suárez's deliberate handball on the line against Ghana, saving Uruguay and breaking African hearts, was the tournament's most controversial act. Tshabalala's opening goal of the tournament, for South Africa against Mexico, produced the loudest roar the World Cup has ever heard. The Jabulani ball swerved unpredictably, infuriating goalkeepers worldwide.