Germany became World Champions for the first time in Switzerland in 1954 in a fairytale final that started the German World Cup legend.

Miracle of Bern

Everyone expected Hungary to wipe the floor with Germany again and it looked to be a dead cert when they rapidly went two goals ahead. However, in remarkable scenes, the "Miracle of Bern" revealed itself to the stunned crowd. Within a ten-minute spell, the Germans had equalized through goals by Max Morlock and Helmut Rahn and had rocked the Hungarians.

The game was deadlocked until the final six minutes. After a tense moment when the Hungarians hit the post, Rahn made history by scoring the winner for West Germany after the Hungarian keeper had slipped on the turf. West Germany were World Champions for the first time.