Description

The 1994 World Cup Half Dollar was issued to celebrate the XV FIFA World Cup Soccer playoff games held in the United States. As part of the same commemorative coin program, a $5 gold coin and silver dollar were also issued.

The 1994 FIFA World Cup was the 15th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national soccer teams. It was hosted by the United States and took place from June 17 to July 17, 1994, at nine venues across the country. Brazil were crowned the winners after defeating Italy 3–2 in a penalty shoot-out at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California near Los Angeles, after the game had ended 0–0 after extra time. It was the first World Cup final to be decided on penalties. The victory made Brazil the first nation to win four World Cup titles. There were three new entrants in the tournament: Greece, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia plus Russia, following the breakup of the Soviet Union, and for the first time since 1938, a unified Germany took part in the tournament. It was the first world cup where three points were awarded for a victory instead of two and also the first with the back-pass rule. This was done to encourage attacking football after the defensive tactics and low-scoring matches of the 1990 World Cup. The result was more high-scoring matches with an average of 2.71 goals per match, one of the highest of the modern era.