Editor's note: CNN will be providing minute-by-minute coverage of both World Cup semifinals and the final on July 11.
(CNN) -- At last we have a Spanish side in the World Cup final, and what a side they are! 1-0 doesn't tell the story of their dominance, they played like champions and fully deserved it. It's a shame to lose the Germans, but you can't argue with Paul the Octopus, tweets CNN's Matt Booth.
The Spanish players mob the goalscorer Carles Puyol after his header puts them into their first ever World Cup final! It's Spain v Holland on Sunday, which means we will have a new winner of the world's most famous trophy!
FULLTIME: SPAIN ARE IN THE WORLD CUP FINAL!
92 minutes: Spain substitution to kill some time. Alonso comes off and Carlos Marchena is on.
Now or never for the Germans! tweets CNN's Matt Booth.
91 minutes: Gomez tries to release Klose but gets his pass all wrong. Podolski was free too.
90 minutes: Three minutes of added time to play...
89 minutes: More Spain pressure and Germany look like they have run out of legs. Iniesta fails to work a shooting chance. Spain playing keep ball.
Germany's best chance now is from a set piece. Spain happy to sit back and Germany not used to chasing the game, tweets CNN's Chris Eldergill.
87 minutes: Spain should be three goals up by now as Torres fluffs a pass that could have sent Silva clear.
85 minutes: Pedro is hauled off after squandering that chance and new Manchester City signing David Silva is on. Prior to that Schweinsteiger went down on the edge of the box but the ref says no foul.
83 minutes: The referee penalizes Alonso for a good tackle on Ozil. Germany free-kick, which is cleared by Puyol. Then Schweinsteiger's shot is blocked by guess who? Puyol.
81 minutes: A nightmare for Pedro! Spain had two-on-one and Pedro had Torres square but he didn't use him! He just fell over instead. Torres is furious!
Now this game is made for Torres to come on and finish it. Germany have to press and this will leave space at the back for him to flourish in, tweets CNN's Matt Booth.
80 minutes: Germany's last change as Khedira comes off and striker Mario Gomez comes on. Spain make a substitution too as Torres replaces Villa. Strange, I thought they'd have operated up there together.
78 minutes: And that's exactly what they are doing. A punt upfield finds Villa one-on-one with Friedrich but the defender does well to pinch the ball.
77 minutes: Now is it Germany who have to press forward. Spain can sit back and play on the counter.
After all that beautiful passing, a classic header straight from a corner. Oh to be in Barcelona right now! tweets CNN's Matt Booth.
73 minutes: Superb header from Puyol. He actually nudged his teammate Pique out of the way to latch onto it! All those silky passing moves from Spain and it ends up being a cross into the box and a simple header that gives them the lead.
72 minutes: GOAL! Carles Puyol rises to meet Xavi's corner and he powers it past Neuer. Spain lead!
70 minutes: Good pressure from Germany here as they load balls into the box. Pique heads clear for a corner.
68 minutes: First chance of the second half for Germany after a lovely move, Podolski's crosses to the back post and Kroos's volley is saved by Casillas. What an introduction that would have been.
67 minutes: Spain are creating decent openings on both flanks now but they aren't getting enough men into the box.
Spain getting closer and closer. If I were German I'd be freaking out, tweets CNN's Matt Booth.
65 minutes: Spain are getting closer, this time Iniesta's cross is marginally too high for the onrushing Villa. Still no sign of Torres, though he is warming up.
62 minutes: A superb run into the box from Ramos is spotted by Alonso but the defender can't convert his cross under pressure from Podolski.
61 minutes: Second change for Germany as Trochowski jogs off to be replaced by Toni Kroos.
Spain carve open the Germans twice in quick succession - Xavi really starting to run the show, tweets CNN's Ben Wyatt.
59 minutes: Germany hit back as Jansen fires in a low cross before Pique slides in to clear. Then Klose's volley flies over the bar. Tough chance.
58 minutes: Chances! A lovely move sets up Pedro on the edge of the area but Neuer saves his goalbound effort. Then as Spain rebuild, Iniesta gets to the byline and slides the ball across the goal but Villa is a yard away from tapping it home!
The Germans need to change something. Spain are utterly dominant, tweets CNN's Matt Booth.
54 minutes: Xavi works a shooting chance for Villa but his effort dribbles wide. The game has reverted to first half type.
51 minutes: Jerome Boateng goes off and Marcell Jansen comes on, as Germany make their first change.
49 minutes: Another neat move from Spain ends with another shot by Alonso but this one was close. It speeds narrowly past Neuer's far post.
48 minutes: A brilliant run down the right from Pedro, who skips past three challenges before feeding Alonso but he drags his effort wide.
KICK OFF: We begin again..
Not an all-action blockbuster but completely absorbing. You get the feeling that this will take a moment of magic, or a tragic mistake to settle. Not sure the Germans make mistakes, Spain? tweets CNN's Matt Booth.
Ozil brought down in area right in front of us - didn't look a penalty to me, tweets CNN's Ben Wyatt.
Why isn't either side trying more long range shots? Didn't they see Van Bronckhorst's goal? tweets CNN's Alex Thomas.
If I can offer you any crumb of comfort it is this: no World Cup semifinal has ever finished 0-0. Perhaps I am tempting fate by reporting that fact..
HALFTIME: Not a vintage opening 45 minutes at all but we will surely see more adventure in the second period.
45 minutes: A German break ends with Ozil going down in the box under a challenge from Ramos but the referee says no penalty. Then at the other end Pedro's shot is saved by Neuer.
44 minutes: A poor ball from Mertesacker gifts Spain possession but though Pedro makes space for a shot, he tries to be too clever and the opportunity is lost. The subsequent corner is cleared by Germany.
42 minutes: A Spanish free-kick near the right touchline ends up with Puyol hacking the ball back to his goalkeeper when he was 30 yards from the German goal. Not ideal.
The match is VERY European. Highly technical, tactical and one for the purists, tweets CNN's Matt Booth.
40 minutes: Klose hauls down Pique and concedes a foul. We need a goal to liven things up here.
Spain's passing has been beautiful but they need to turn possession into goals or Germany will punish them, tweets CNN's Alex Thomas.
37 minutes: It's all so tight in the final third. Germany getting numbers behind the ball and Spain failing to pick out a pass that can unlock their defense.
35 minutes: Neat football from Spain as they pour forward on the attack but again their final pass is missing.
33 minutes: Decent run from Ozil into the box and he wins a corner, which Casillas punches clear.
31 minutes: Podolski fancies a pop at goal and Casillas is forced to turn his effort round the post.
29 minutes: Xabi Alonso makes space for a shot but his powerful effort flashes four yards wide of the target.
English St George's Cross seen in the crowd. Is that where Alex Thomas is sitting? tweets CNN's Matt Booth.
28 minutes: Podolski is caught by Ramos and he has limped off for treatment. That could easily have been a yellow card.
Like two heavyweights testing each others range, not much has landed yet ... But the power of both sides shows in flashes, tweets CNN's Ben Wyatt.
25 minutes: Another cross from Ramos, this time it is met by Pedro but his acrobatic effort comes down with snow on it and lands in Neuer's arms.
22 minutes: Great break from Germany as Ozil gets down the left and crosses to Klose, who turns into the area but Puyol gets there in the nick of time.
There's so much talent on the pitch it's frightening. This is what the World Cup finals are all about! tweets CNN's Matt Booth.
19 minutes: A great crossfield ball from Alonso finds Ramos in an advanced position but his effort on goal is from a tight angle and wildly optimistic. Think Marco Van Basten for Holland in 1988.
Vuvuzelas so loud in Durban stadium, I've dug out the earplugs buried deep in my bag, tweets CNN's Isha Sesay.
16 minutes: Germany win a corner and though Casillas comes for it, he misjudged the flight of the ball. Then Trochowski's cross sails over everyone's head.
Spain have power drinks sitting on edge of technical area. Germany none. A sign of who's more thirstier for success (groan), tweets CNN's Alex Thomas.
13 minutes: Alonso clips a ball down the right for Ramos and he wins a corner off Boateng. From it, Iniesta fires in a cross and Puyol nods over from six yards out. A real chance for Barcelona's skipper.
It's all feeling a little bit like a training match at the moment. It's all very tight, tweets CNN's Matt Booth.
10 minutes: Germany's first attacking threat as Klose nearly steals the ball from Pique before Casillas tidies up.
8 minutes: It's all Spain at the moment. Germany can't get hold of the ball or get out of their half.
6 minutes: First chance of the game and Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer has to be on his toes to prevent Villa's shot from opening the scoring. Great pass by Pedro.
Erm, streakers are supposed to be nude aren't they? tweets CNN's Matt Booth.
4 minutes: It's the third last game of the World Cup and sadly, we've just had our first pitch invasion. The stewards deal with him swiftly and bundle him off the field.
Fantastic stadium but strangely muted atmosphere as Germany and Spain kick off. Lots of empty seats again, tweets CNN's Alex Thomas.
2 minutes: Spain with the early possession, but Capdevila's cross from the left is over Villa's head.
KICK OFF: The second semifinal is underway...
We're all set in Durban. It's Germany v Spain for a place in the World Cup final.
Torres dropped? I know this makes sense, but even so the German backline will be relieved, tweets CNN's Matt Booth.
Here come our teams and the vuvuzelas erupt....
Both sides can boast a prolific striker in their ranks. Germany's Miroslav Klose has four goals to his name already while Spain's David Villa can boast five. Villa, recently signed by Barcelona, has scored in Spain's last four games.
First sight of the Durban pitch - it's an awesome arena, can smell the cut grass from the stands, tweets CNN's Ben Wyatt.
These two met in the final of the European Championships in 2008 and Spain won 1-0, courtesy of a goal from Fernando Torres. The Germans called their defeat 'death by a thousand passes.'
Even in pre-match warmups the Germans have more structure, tweets CNN's Joe McCurdy.
We should be in for an absolute cracker tonight. Spain are the European champions and can play attractive, fluid football when they click into gear, but we are yet to see the best of them in South Africa so far. This is their first ever World Cup semifinal.
Germany have been a revelation. Their young team have retained the determined, organized style they have always had but to it they have added a dynamic, counter-attacking edge. They put four goals past England and Argentina in previous rounds. Can they repeat the feat this evening?
The scene is set in Durban and the playing surface looks majestic. Some fans are struggling to make kick-off after delays at the local airport but the crowd is building nicely inside the stadium.
The team news is in and Spain coach Vicente del Bosque has dropped Liverpool striker Fernando Torres in place of Barcelona winger Pedro.
Have you got the Twitter Buzz?
Torres has struggled for form so far and has yet to open his scoring account in South Africa. He's on the bench.
Netherlands beat Uruguay to reach final
For Germany, Piotr Trochowski comes in for the suspended Thomas Muller and will play on the right side of midfield.
Starting line-ups:
Germany: Neuer, Lahm, Boateng, Mertesacker, Friedrich, Khedira, Schweinsteiger, Ozil, Trochowski, Podolski, Klose.
Spain: Casillas, Pique, Puyol, Capdevila, Ramos, Iniesta, Xavi, Busquets, Alonso, Pedro, Villa.
Referee: Victor Hassai (Hungary).
