The Germans will play Brazil on Saturday at the Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro. Lukas Klosertmann and Nils Peterson scored to send Germany into the Olympic gold-medal match for the first time with a 2-0 semifinal victory over Nigeria on Wednesday.
The stadium was the site of the country’s World Cup victory in 2014, a few days after the German senior team embarrassed Brazil 7-1 in the semifinals. Nigeria’s Jon Obi Mikel had a good chance in the 31st minute but was off the mark. Mikel, who plays for Chelsea, is one of the three senior players that Nigeria added to the Olympic roster.
The men’s tournament is played among under-23 teams. Peterson charged in and directed Davie Selke’s cross into the far corner in the 89th minute. It was Peterson’s sixth goal of the tournament.
The German women’s national team is also playing in the gold-medal match against Sweden on Friday, marking the first time a nation has had both its men and women in soccer final at the same Olympics.