Germany entered the match as favorites, having finished atop Group C and achieving an upset victory against defending champions United States in the semi-finals.

Sweden had emerged from the "group of death" by finishing second behind the United States and defeated Brazil and Canada in the earlier knockout stages.

The Germans took the lead early in the second half on a header by Stefanie Gottschlich in the 47th minute, which was followed by goals by Birgit Prinz and substitute Kerstin Garefrekes to win 4–1.

The team lost defender Steffi Jones to a knee injury in the second half and conceded a consolation goal to Argentina before scoring twice at the end of the match to extend their lead.

Germany broke through early in the second half and scored thrice in a five-minute span, including strikes by Minnert, substitute Pia Wunderlich, and Garefrekes.

[16] Kerstin Garefrekes's header off a corner kick in the 15th minute opened the scoring for the Germans, while the United States responded by switching to an attack-minded 3–4–3 in the second half and squandered several chances to equalize, forcing saves out of goalkeeper Silke Rottenberg.

[21][22] Sweden lost 3–1 in their opening match against the United States in Washington, D.C., conceding twice in the first half to goals scored by Kristine Lilly and Cindy Parlow, both assisted by Mia Hamm.

[23] Four days later in Philadelphia, Sweden defeated North Korea 1–0 with an early goal scored by Svensson in the seventh minute, tying them for second place in the group.

[28] The match remained scoreless in the first half and the deadlock was broken in the 64th minute by Canadian midfielder Kara Lang, who took a free kick from 35 yards (32 m) that slipped out of the hands of Jönsson and spun into the goal.

Substitute forward Josefine Öqvist scored the winning goal for Sweden six minutes later, finishing a rebound off a shot by Hanna Ljungberg that was saved by goalkeeper Taryn Swiatek.

[36][37] In the lead-up to the final, Germany were named slight favorites due to their strong midfielders and high goalscoring during the tournament's earlier rounds.

[41] The opening goal was scored in the 41st minute by Swedish playmaker Hanna Ljungberg, who collected a through pass from Victoria Svensson and shot past Rottenberg from 15 yards (14 m).

[41] The match remained tied at 1–1 and advanced into sudden death extra time as the two sides traded chances to score with end-to-end play.

Renate Lingor's free kick in the 98th minute found Nia Künzer, a second-half substitute and among the shortest players on the field, who leapt above Kristin Bengtsson to score the match's golden goal with her header.

[45][46] Germany celebrated their 2–1 victory by singing a version of Guantanamera,[45] while Sweden manager Marika Domanski Lyfors confronted Ionescu about her controversial free kick call.