Uruguay overcame Italy 1-0 on Sunday to win their first Under-20 World Cup title.
The Celeste's victory ends a streak of four consecutive wins by European teams in the tournament.
Luciano Rodriguez scored the winning goal in the 86th minute in a header from close range, giving Uruguay a much deserved victory after dominating the entire match against Italy.
More than 40,000 people, mostly cheering for Uruguay, attended the match at the Diego Maradona Stadium. FIFA President Gianni Infantino was also present.
Uruguay barely needed to count on their steady defense, which conceded only three goals in the tournament, all against England in the group stage.
The South American team had clear chances to open the scoring much earlier in a free kick taken by Rodríguez, two long distance shots by captain Fabricio Díaz and a header by Anderson Duarte that forced Italy goalkeeper Sebastiano Desplanches to make one of the best saves of the tournament.
Italy's Cesare Casadei, the top tournament's top scorer with seven goals, had a disappointing performance in the final.
Neither Uruguay nor Italy were among the favorites when the U20 World Cup kicked off on May 20, but unlike Brazil, Argentina and England they faced less resistance from clubs about releasing players for the tournament.
It is not mandatory for clubs to allow their players to take part in international youth competitions.
Uruguay lost the final of the tournament in 1997 and 2013. Brazil were the last winner from South America in 2011.
The title for the Celeste comes in the wake of Argentina's World Cup title in December, which also ended a sequence of wins by European teams.
Earlier, debutant Israel beat South Korea 3-1 to secure third place in the same stadium in La Plata.
Indonesia were initially scheduled to host the tournament, but the Muslim-majority country did not accept Israel's participation. FIFA decided to hand the organization over to Argentina one month before kickoff.
Latest Stories
-
Ghana can draw lessons from global heatwaves to address climate challenges
18 minutes -
NDC goes to court to prevent some parliamentary results re-collation
31 minutes -
Chaos at EC G/A office as NDC supporters demand declaration of Weija Gbawe result in their favour
60 minutes -
Involve technocrats in your transformation agenda – Security analyst urges Mahama
2 hours -
Ghana Water insists on ownership to property earmarked for demolition; ready to resist attempts on encroachment
2 hours -
Our platform remits a quarter of Ghana’s remittances – Taptap Send’s Growth Director
2 hours -
I had to clear my name at embassies before I could travel – Medikal recounts arrest
2 hours -
AkataStone releases new single ‘Konji is A Bastard’
2 hours -
Aburi Girls Old Girls’ Assoc. congratulates Vice President-elect Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang
3 hours -
Ato Forson raises alarm over plan to buy ships worth €140m, Nitiwul justifies the move
3 hours -
Police investigate defacement of Akufo-Addo’s statue in Sekondi-Takoradi
3 hours -
KJ Spio, Konshens and Harmonize team up on ultimate party starter ‘Messi’
3 hours -
Let’s close shop for Ablakwa’s personal interest if parliament’s business for now is irrelevant – NAPO
3 hours -
Don’t go for an outsider if you don’t retain Babgin as speaker – Afenyo-Markin to NDC gov’t
3 hours -
Our experienced nurses leaving for greener pastures abroad, it’s worrying – KATH Emergency Medicine Unit head
3 hours