Netherlands national football team scored to Willem Hesselink. The Netherlands made their first appearance at the FIFA World Cup final tournament in 1934. After a second appearance in 1938, they did not appear in another World Cup until 1974. The 1970s saw the invention of Total Football (), pioneered by Ajax and led by playmaker Johan Cruyff and national team head coach Rinus Michels. The Dutch made significant strides, qualifying for two World Cup finals in the decade. The captain of the Brazilian team that won the 1970 FIFA World Cup, Carlos Alberto, went on to say, "The only team I've seen that did
Brazil at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in his first five career World Cup matches since Peru’s Teófilo Cubillas (across the 1970 and 1978 tournaments). The two teams had met in 21 previous matches, including in the final of the 2002 World Cup (their only previous encounter in the tournament's history), won by Brazil 2–0. While Germany kept the same starting lineup as their quarter-final against France, Brazil made two changes: defender and captain Thiago Silva was suspended for the match due to accumulation of yellow cards, and was replaced by Dante, while forward Neymar was sidelined after suffering a fractured vertebra in the quarter-final against Colombia,