Winners & Losers Of World Cup 2014

Germany claimed its fourth World Cup title when it defeated Argentina 1-0 in extended extra time.

Considered one of the favorites going into the tournament, Germany wasn't the only winner this summer. Let's look at who else came out on top, and some who fell a little flat.

Winners

Disney DIS

Disney-owned ABC and its ESPN subsidiary struck gold in 2014.

The World Cup final, broadcast on ABC at 3 p.m. ET July 13, was watched by 26.5 million total viewers; 17.3 million on ABC and 9.2 million on Univision.

Related Link: Adidas Gaining The Edge, As Nike Leaves Manchester United Behind

The final averaged a 9.7 overnight rating across the 56 biggest metered media markets. This makes it the third-highest rated World Cup match ever across the ABC and ESPN networks.

The ESPN family of networks received record ratings throughout the entire tournament. Fox Sports 1 has some big shoes to fill when it takes over in 2018.

Adidas ADDYY

"We are once again underlining our position as the world's leading football brand. Adidas is the clear number one in football globally," Hainer added in a statement. The sports apparel company sponsored both World Cup finalists.

The official match ball for the World Cup, Adidas Brazuca, also showed the power of Adidas' social savvy -- a Twitter account for the ball finished the tournament with 3.5 million followers.

Germany

The country won its fourth World Cup and first since 1990. The Washington Post noted that the tournament run and ultimate win has redefined patriotism throughout the country.

Losers

Nike NKE

As noted above, Adidas shined brightly over its rival throughout the World Cup. Bloomberg noted Nike soccer sales amounted to $2.3 billion in the financial year that ended in May, compared with the $2.7 billion Adidas expects for 2014.

That report also noted how much more engaging Adidas was on social media than its rival.

Related Link: Is The World Cup Making U.S. Soccer More Popular Than Ever Before?

Brazil

The country's top player left the tournament injured, en route to the team's 7-1 thrashing by Germany in the semi-finals. Manager Luiz Felipe was also let go this week, though his contract was up this summer.

"Brazilian football has to evolve in general," right back Dani Alves said, as reported by ABC.

"I have already denounced this," said Sports Minister Aldo Rebelo. "This is a type of football colonialism exercised by rich teams in Europe."

No World Cup title also makes the brief pizzazz of the event a tougher pill to swallow. The Wall Street Journal reported that economists have repeatedly lowered their expectations for Brazil's gross domestic product growth this year. Marcelo Salomon, an economist at Barclays, now projects the nation's economy will expand just 0.7 percent, down from 1.7 percent.