Format

 The first round, or group stage, was a competition between the 32 teams divided among eight groups of four, where each group engaged in a round-robin tournament within itself. The two highest ranked teams in each group advanced to the knockout stage.^[30] Teams were awarded three points for a win and one for a draw. When comparing teams in a group over-all result came before head-to-head.

Tie-breaking criteria for group play

In the knockout stage there were four rounds (round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals, and the final), with each eliminating the losers. The two semi-final losers competed in a third place play-off. For any match in the knockout stage, a draw after 90 minutes of regulation time was followed by two 15 minute periods of extra time to determine a winner. If the teams were still tied, a penalty shoot-out was held to determine a winner.^[30]

The match schedule was announced on 20 October 2011^[61] with the kick-off times being confirmed on 27 September 2012;^[62] after the final draw, the kick-off times of seven matches were adjusted by FIFA.^[63] The competition was organised so that teams that played each other in the group stage could not meet again during the knockout phase until the final (or the 3rd place match).^[30] The group stage began on 12 June, with the host nation competing in the opening game as has been the format since the 2006 tournament. The opening game was preceded by an opening ceremony that began at 15:15 local time.^[64]