It has been two decades since the ground-breaking 2002 World Cup was held in South Korea and Japan. This was the start of a new era for FIFA, a new journey in many ways as this was the first World Cup to be held outside of Europe and the Americas. This meant challenges logistically, not least in terms of getting games played at a time of day that the traditional hotbeds of soccer could watch the matches. It is a tournament looked fondly on by many thanks to the number of surprises and shocking results before a huge showdown in the final between traditional powers Brazil and Germany.
Who was the best player in the 2002 World Cup? The award for the best player at the World Cupp is the Golden Ball. Oliver Kahn of Germany was awarded the Golden Ball at the 2002 World Cup. This was a unique achievement for Kahn as he was, and still is, the only goalkeeper to have ever won the Golden Ball. The Silver Ball went to Ronaldo of Brazil, and the Bronze Ball was claimed by Hong Myung-bo of host nation and fourth-place finishers South Korea.
Here is a look at the Ball winners in a little more detail with the number of media votes in the poll to win the Golden Ball.
Oliver Kahn – Golden Ball (147 Votes)
Not many goalkeepers have transcended the game, but at his peak, Oliver Kahn was one such player. Khan stood at 1.88 (6’2” in old money), which isn’t that big for a goalkeeper compared to the likes of Peter Schmeichel and Thibault Courtois. However, Khan was one of those goalkeepers who was always able to make himself appear huge, especially in one-on-one situations where he could spread his entire body to close down angles and block shots.
Germany had relatively low expectations ahead of the 2002 World Cup thanks to a run of poor form and a perceived lack of star power in their side. Kahn was brilliant in Japan and South Korea. He conceded just three goals in seven games and was flawless until the final.
It was kept quiet at the time, but Kahn played in the final with torn ligaments in his right ring finger. He made his only mistake of the entire tournament in the final, fumbling a Rivaldo shot right into the path of Ronaldo for the striker to score Brazil’s first goal. Khan, ever the professional, refused to blame the mistake on his injury as he believed he was a good enough goalkeeper to have overcome the pain and not made the mistake.
Khan became the first German goalkeeper to keep five clean sheets at a World Cup. As expected, he won the Lev Yashin award as the best goalkeeper at the tournament. The Golden Ball, however, was a surprise, though it is hard to argue that he didn’t deserve the trophy given how superb he was at the 2002 World Cup.
Ronaldo – Silver Ball (126 Votes)
Ronaldo already had one Golden Ball on his shelf entering the 2002 World Cup. The Brazilian striker was named the Golden Ball winner at the previous World Cup in France, a competition in which Brazil lost the final to the host nation under dubious circumstances surrounding their star striker. Ronaldo, the best player in the world at the time, suffered a fit in the dressing room just before the final and was a shell of himself as France won 3-0.
Ronaldo entered this tournament with a point to prove. It was a point he made well, leading Brazil to their first World Cup win since 1994. Ronaldo was the Golden Shoe (later Golden Boot) winner at the World Cup as he scored eight goals for Brazil, beating teammate Rivaldo and German striker Miroslav Klose to the award by three goals.
The 2002 Brazil side was perhaps the best Ronaldo had played on, with chances created by Rivaldo, Ronaldinho, and Roberto Carlos. However, Ronaldo was unlikely to be at his destructive best in Japan and South Korea. He had barely played in two years after
Rupturing his ACL in April of 2000, he didn’t feature once during Brazil’s poor qualifying campaign.
His Silver Ball/Golden Shoe win was a complete redemption story. Ronaldo thanked French surgeon Gerard Saillant for saving his career, and his two winning goals in the final saw him tie Pele’s Brazilian record with 12 goals in World Cups. This is a record he would go on to break at the 2006 World Cup in Germany
Hong Myung-bo – Bronze Ball (108 Votes)
Khan and Ronaldo are legendary names in the game and the two players winning the Gold and Silver Balls makes sense given their accomplished careers. The same cannot be said for South Korean captain and sweeper Hong Myung-bo, a player that was part of one of the wildest runs to the semi-finals in World Cup history on a host nation team riding a swell of support that FIFA could only have dreamed of when deciding to put the 2002 World Cup in the Far East.
The 2002 World Cup was Hong’s fourth and last World Cup. He made his World Cup debut at Italia 90, just four months after his first appearance for the South Korean side. He was the youngest South Korean to play in the tournament and received positive reviews for his play despite his age.
By the 2002 World Cup, Hong was a seasoned pro. He played his entire career to that point in Japan and South Korea, he went on to end his career with two seasons at the LS Galaxy in MLS and was expected to be an important complement of the South Korean team at the tournament. Hong scored the winning penalty in the quarter-final shoot-out victory over Spain and became the first Asian player to be named as one of the best three players at a World Cup.
Hong isn’t a player that was looked at as having any particularly outstanding trait other than his ability to see the whole field and read the game. He was an excellent communicator on the pitch, which was important for South Korea at this World Cup, and he could cover his lack of pace by marshaling his defense and midfield to cover ground. An icon in South Korea before and after this tournament, the “Eternal Libero” had impressive long-range passing ability and deserved the recognition of the world media during his time in the spotlight.