TOURNAMENT LEGACY

France won their first World Cup title, defeating Brazil 3-0 in the final at the Stade de France. The tournament marked the expansion to 32 teams, introducing a new format with 8 groups of 4 followed by a knockout stage. Key moments included Zinedine Zidane's two goals in the final, Croatia's impressive debut as an independent nation (finishing third), and David Beckham's red card in England's knockout loss to Argentina. The tournament saw a high-scoring semi-final between France and Croatia (2-1) and Brazil's 4-2 win over the Netherlands in the other semi-final. This was the first World Cup to use the golden goal rule in knockout stages. The Golden Ball was awarded to Ronaldo (Brazil), while Davor Šuker (Croatia) won the Golden Boot with 6 goals. The mascot was 'Footix', a rooster wearing the French tricolor, symbolizing the national symbol of France.