REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Jun 05, 2006 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- And the FIFA World Cup trophy goes to... Czech Republic!
Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:ERTS) today declared the winner of the 2006
FIFA World Cup Germany™. Using a simulation engine in the 2006 FIFA
World Cup™ videogame, EA was able to test all 32 teams in the
competition and determine that the Czech Republic would come out on
top.
2006 FIFA World Cup, the officially licensed videogame of the FIFA
World Cup™, also predicted the following placements:
-- FIFA World Cup Champion: Czech Republic
-- FIFA World Cup Final: Czech Republic 2 Brazil 1
-- 1st team to be eliminated: Ecuador
-- Golden Shoe winner: Milan Baros, Czech Republic (6 goals)
-- Golden Ball winner: Pavel Nedved, Czech Republic
Players around the globe will compare these astonishing statistics
to the real world results as they unfold. The Final itself was an epic
battle where the Czech Republic's resilient defense was pitted against
Brazilian flair, with the Czech Republic ultimately winning 2-1 to
capture its first FIFA World Cup. Goals from Ronaldo and Tomas Rosicky
kept the game tied 1-1 going into the second half. The difference
between the teams was Czech forward Pavel Nedved, who unlocked a
weaker Brazilian backline in the 77th minute for Milan Baros to score
his sixth goal of the tournament, and secure the trophy for the
Czechs.
In the EA SPORTS™ simulation, old rivalries were reignited.
England was beaten by Germany in the Round of Sixteen. The host
country then went on to meet eventual champion Czech Republic in one
semifinal. The Czech team, inspired by Nedved in his final tournament
as an international player, halted the German advance with a 2-1
victory, with Nedved getting on to the scoresheet.
The only penalty shoot-out of the tournament was at the end of a
classic clash between Brazil and Argentina in the other semifinal.
With result locked at 2-2 at the end of extra time, the freshly
substituted Robinho was the man of the moment to hammer home the
winning goal after Juan Riquelme shot wide for Argentina's final
penalty.
The biggest tournament upsets were Italy and Portugal being
knocked out in the group stages.
The surprise team of the tournament was Costa Rica who recorded
their greatest finish in FIFA World Cup history by reaching the
quarterfinals. One-time English Premiership player Paolo Wanchope
established himself as a favorite for supporters from every nation
with his creative passing and a handful of stunning goals securing
wins against Poland and Ecuador along the way.
Team USA managed wins over Italy (3-2) and Ghana (2-0) and tied
the Czech Republic in the difficult Group E before its luck ran out
against the powerful Brazilian side in the Round of 16. USA opened the
tournament with a 2-2 tie against eventual champion Czech Republic
when DeMarcus Beasley scored the game-tying goal in the 84th minute
against the run of play. USA trailed 2-1 early in the second half
after Nedved put the Czechs out in front. Brian McBride scored the
other goal for USA. Beasley's game-tying goal created momentum for the
U.S. against the Italian side. USA led 2-1 at the half on goals by
Eddie Lewis and Eddie Johnson but Italy's Alessandro Del Piero notched
his second goal to tie the game in the 60th minute. USA pressed
forward and counted the winner off of the foot of Landon Donovan in
the 72nd minute. Donovan and Beasley both counted goals for USA and
Kasey Keller earned the shutout in the 2-0 win over Ghana that sent
the American side on to play Brazil.
In 2006 FIFA World Cup, players step into the heart of the action
to take on their favorite team or most loathed opponent. Featuring
stunning visual representations of the world's superstar players,
gamers will experience the 12 official stadiums as they lead their
team from qualification to FIFA World Cup glory. True champions can
challenge their friends in eight-way multiplayer matches and take
advantage of tremendous in-game un-lockable content such as legendary
players and exclusive soccer apparel.
Developed by EA Canada in Vancouver, 2006 FIFA World Cup is
available in stores now for the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment
system, the Xbox® and Xbox 360™ video game systems from
Microsoft, Nintendo GameCube™, Nintendo DS™, and Game Boy®
Advance, PSP™ (PlayStation®Portable) system, PC and mobile
phones. The game is rated "E" (Everyone) by the ESRB. Screenshots can
be downloaded at http://info.ea.com.
EA SPORTS(TM) 2006 FIFA World Cup(TM) Results:
Final
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Brazil 1 Ronaldo
Czech Rep. 2 Baros, Rosicky
3rd Place Game
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Argentina 3 Tevez, Messi, Galetti
Germany 1 Schweinsteiger
Semi Finals
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Argentina 1 Tevez
Brazil 2 Adriano 2
Germany 0
Czech Rep. 2 Baros, Nedved
Quarter Finals
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Costa Rica 1 Wanchope
Argentina 3 Messi, Tevez, Riquelme
Brazil 1 Ronaldo
France 0
Germany 2 Podolski, Ballack
Mexico 0
Czech Rep. 3 Baros, Smicer, Koller
Switzerland 0
Group of 16
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Costa Rica 2 Wanchope 2
Paraguay 0
Argentina 1 Crespo
Iran 0
USA 2 Donovan, McBride
Brazil 3 Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Robinho
France 2 Zidane 2
Spain 1 Torres
Germany 1 Podolski
England 0
Holland 2 Robben, Van Nistlerooy
Mexico 4 Bravo, Borgetti 2, Pardo
Czech Rep. 3 Koller 2, Galasek
Australia 1 Viduka
Switzerland 2 Frei, Vogel
Ukraine 1 Shevchenko
Group Play
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Group A
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Germany 1 Costa Rica 1
Poland 2 Ecuador 1
Germany 2 Poland 1
Ecuador 1 Costa Rica 3
Ecuador 0 Germany 1
Costa Rica 2 Poland 1
Group B
----------------------------------------------------------------------
England 3 Paraguay 0
Trinidad & Tobago 1 Sweden 0
England 2 Trinidad & Tobago 0
Sweden 1 Paraguay 2
Sweden 2 England 2
Paraguay 2 Trinidad & Tobago 1
Group C
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Argentina 3 Ivory Coast 1
Serbia & Montenegro 0 Holland 1
Argentina 2 Serbia & Montenegro 0
Holland 2 Ivory Coast 1
Holland 1 Argentina 1
Ivory Coast 2 Serbia & Montenegro 3
Group D
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Mexico 1 Iran 1
Angola 0 Portugal 3
Mexico 2 Angola 0
Portugal 1 Iran 2
Portugal 2 Mexico 3
Iran 0 Angola 0
Group E
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Italy 2 Ghana 2
USA 2 Czech 2
Italy 2 USA 3
Czech 2 Ghana 0
Czech 2 Italy 1
Ghana 0 USA 2
Group F
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Brazil 3 Croatia 1
Australia 2 Japan 1
Brazil 1 Australia 1
Japan 1 Croatia 1
Japan 0 Brazil 2
Croatia 2 Australia 4
Group G
----------------------------------------------------------------------
France 2 Switzerland 2
Korea 1 Togo 1
France 3 Korea 0
Togo 0 Switzerland 2
Togo 0 France 2
Switzerland 2 Korea 1
Group H
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Spain 1 Ukraine 1
Tunisia 1 Saudia 1
Spain 2 Tunisia 1
Saudia 1 Ukraine 3
Saudia 0 Spain 2
Ukraine 2 Tunisia 1
About Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA), headquartered in Redwood City,
California, is the world's leading interactive entertainment software
company. Founded in 1982, the company develops, publishes, and
distributes interactive software worldwide for videogame systems,
personal computers and the Internet. Electronic Arts markets its
products under four brand names: EA SPORTS™, EA™, EA SPORTS
BIG™ and POGO™. In fiscal 2006, EA posted revenue of $2.95
billion and had 27 titles that sold more than one million copies. EA's
homepage and online game site is www.ea.com. More information about
EA's products and full text of press releases can be found on the
Internet at http://info.ea.com.
Electronic Arts, EA, EA SPORTS, EA SPORTS BIG, and POGO are
trademarks or registered trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. in the
U.S. and/or other countries. Official FIFA licensed product. FIFA
World Cup is the property of its respective owner and used with
permission. Microsoft, Xbox and Xbox 360 are either registered
trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the U.S. and/or
other countries. "PlayStation" is a registered trademark and PSP is a
trademark of SCEI. Nintendo DS, Nintendo GameCube and Game Boy Advance
are trademarks of Nintendo. All other trademarks are the property of
their respective owners.
SOURCE: Electronic Arts Inc.
Electronic Arts
Steve Frost, 604-456-5067
sfrost@ea.com
Tammy Schachter, 650-628-7223
tschachter@ea.com