The 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup was held in Russia from June 17 until July 2 in four cities: Sochi, Kazan, St. Petersburg and Moscow. Besides the host country, the tournament involved Germany (2014 World Cup winner), Australia (Asian Cup winner), Chile (American Cup winner), Mexico (CONCACAF Gold Cup holder), Portugal (European champion), Cameroon (Africa Cup of Nations winner) and New Zealand (OFC Nations Cup winner).
On July 2, St. Petersburg hosted the closing ceremony of the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup, which was followed by the final match between Chile (American Cup winner) and Germany (2014 World Cup winner).
The closing ceremony of the tournament began with a show that sent the audience back in time to 1897 when the first football match was played in Russia.
The entire ceremony was inspired by the idea of a carnival procession, when one act is quickly followed up by another.
The spectacular show included a mix of classic and modern dance, pantomime, circus acts and hip hop and involved almost 1,500 people: performers, musicians and dancers from different cities.
The ceremony also honored previous winners of the tournament. Each country – Denmark, Argentina, Brazil (four-time winner), France (two-time winner) and Mexico – was represented by a special piece performed by the dancers.
FIFA legend and two-time FIFA World Cup winner Brazilian footballer Ronaldo was the star of the ceremony. He brought the coveted winners’ trophy out into the stadium and placed it on the pedestal.
A total of 6,000 volunteers took part in preparing and staging the Confederations Cup in Russia.
Photo: Zabivaka the Wolf, an official mascot of the 2018 FIFA World Cup and the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup, during the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup closing ceremony in St. Petersburg.
Photo: Zabivaka the Wolf, an official mascot of the 2018 FIFA World Cup and the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup, during the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup closing ceremony in St. Petersburg.
After the ceremony, the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup final match between Chile and Germany started.
Photo (from left): Germany's Leon Goretzka, Chile's goalie Claudio Bravo and Chile's Marcelo Diaz.
Photo (from left): Germany's Leon Goretzka, Chile's goalie Claudio Bravo and Chile's Marcelo Diaz.
The final game of the tournament was held at the St. Petersburg’s Krestovsky Stadium also known as Zenit Arena.
Photo (from left): Chile's Gonzalo Jara and Germany's Timo Werner.
Photo (from left): Chile's Gonzalo Jara and Germany's Timo Werner.
The attendance at the stadium was record-breaking: the final match gathered more than 57,000 spectators. Other games of the tournament were attended by 38,000 viewers on average.
Photo: Chilean fans during the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup final match between Germany and Chile.
Photo: Chilean fans during the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup final match between Germany and Chile.
The match ended in favor of the Germany national football team with the score 0:1.
Photo (from left): Germany's Antonio Rudiger and Chile's Angelo Sagal.
Photo (from left): Germany's Antonio Rudiger and Chile's Angelo Sagal.
The only goal of the match was scored in the 20th minute by Lars Stindl.
Photo (from left): Chile’s Jean Beausejour and Alexis Sanchez, Germany’s Lars Stindl and Leon Goretzka.
Photo (from left): Chile’s Jean Beausejour and Alexis Sanchez, Germany’s Lars Stindl and Leon Goretzka.
After the game, Germany coach Joachim Loew admitted that the 2017 FIFA Confed Cup victory was very important for the team. “It was a magic match for our young players, they haven’t had much experience, but they showed their single-minded determination, which was quite impressive,” he said at the post-match press conference. “The team had to fight back, the Chileans are very robust and things were heating up in the second half, we were fighting for every meter to defend our lead.”
Photo: Germany's national team during the medal ceremony following the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup final match.
Photo: Germany's national team during the medal ceremony following the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup final match.
Germany team players Julian Draxler and Timo Werner were awarded with the Golden Ball (given to the best player) and the Golden Boot (for top goal scorer) respectively. Chile's Claudio Bravo was recognized the best goalkeeper and received the Golden Glove Award.
Photo: German players during the award ceremony after the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup final match.
Photo: German players during the award ceremony after the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup final match.
The 2017 FIFA Confed Cup in Russia became the third most visited in the tournament’s history, after 1999 Confed Cup in Mexico and 2013 Confed Cup in Brazil.
Photo: A fireworks display near the St. Petersburg stadium after the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup final match between Chile and Germany.
Photo: A fireworks display near the St. Petersburg stadium after the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup final match between Chile and Germany.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino also thanked Russia and its citizens for the well-organized event. “We had been hearing before this tournament about a lot of ‘problems’ we would experience here,” he said. “If a problematic tournament looks like this one, well, I want to have many problematic tournaments going forward,” he quipped.
