Opening match shocks are no stranger to football's showpiece event and the Costa Ricans also can pull them off as they showed when they beat Scotland and Sweden to reach the last 16 in the 1990 edition.

The match too should serve to energise German public support for the tournament that awards the greatest prize in sport and which is being held in the country for just the second time, 32 years after the then West Germany were hosts.

While in England in particular the build-up has been passionate with thousands of flags of St George hanging from pubs, houses and cars - with even Prime Minister Tony Blair agreeing to hang a flag from 10 Downing Street - enthusiasm has been more muted in Germany.

A rarer sight too could be the presence of Michael Ballack in the German shirt at the tournament for just as seemingly all England let themselves breathe again as Wayne Rooney was passed fit to play at least a part in the tournament, the German's main hope of leading them to glory was signing off for the opener because of a calf injury.

Indeed whether the 29-year-old Chelsea signing remains a darling of the German fans remains to be seen as he has been criticised for not having the injury attended to quicker - something that he was quick to deny.

"I reject any insinuation that I behaved in any way unprofessionally," said Ballack in a statement carried on the DFB website.

"Any such allegations are totally unacceptable. It's essentially an attack on my reputation, the things that are being said about me and what's being put about."

The other match on day one will be a lower key affair with Poland taking on Ecuador in Gelsenkirchen with both sides endeavouring to achieve something they didn't manage in 2002 and progress beyond the first round.

Whatever the results there will be one certain winner on the opening day when the first ball is kicked and that will be German football legend Franz Beckenbauer.

The legendary defender must be the first man to have won the World Cup as a player, a coach and then as a bid leader as his stunning one man presentation - incorporating a bit of showmanship - back in 2000 helped win it at the death from the stunned South Africans.

The South Africans were of course to have their day later on and will host the 2010 renewal but on Friday they will have to sit back and watch the finals that Beckenbauer won commence and the 'Kaiser' will hope that all his efforts do not end flatly.

He will have no influence on what happens on the pitch but somehow with all that has gone before in his career it seems unlikely that he will be disappointed or that his country will let him down.

The soon to be married Beckenbauer will be hoping that the champagne is not kept on ice till his big day - only the Costa Ricans can make it fall flat.