1994 FIFA World Cup
Baggio was the cornerstone of the Italy team during the 1994 FIFA World Cup, leading them to the final after a disappointing start. He scored five goals, all in the knockout phase, and he started every match from the beginning: two in the round of 16 to beat Nigeria (scoring with 2 minutes left of the game sending it into extra time, and then another goal in extra time), one in the quarter-finals to top Spain (the game winner with 3 minutes remaining) and two to beat Bulgaria in the semi-finals. Baggio was not fully fit for the final against Brazil, which ended 0-0 after extra time; he took Italy\'s last penalty in the resulting shoot-out, but his kick went over the cross-bar and the Brazilians won the title. Two other Italians, Franco Baresi and Daniele Massaro, had already missed penalties; had Baggio scored, Brazil would have still had a penalty to win the Cup nevertheless. Baggio has since been blamed for costing Italy that World Cup despite the fact that he singlehandedly carried a weak and aging Italian team to the final.
Baggio finished tied for second in the tournament in goals scored and was named one of the top three players.