FIFA used the 1995 tournament as an opportunity to experiment with the time-out concept, a rule which enabled each team to call one two-minute break per half. But, with hardly any teams taking this opportunity, the rule was tightened restricting the breaks to a time when a break was imminent such as after a goal was scored, a throw-in about to be taken or a goal-kick.
So, with two prizes up for grabs, the tournament got underway with the group stages. The top qualifiers were Germany, Norway and USA; second-place qualifiers were Sweden, England and China PR whilst Japan and Denmark qualified as the top third place finishers to play in the quarter-finals.
The results left Germany, Norway, USA and China PR in the semi-finals from which Germany and Norway reached the final.
This was Norway's second consecutive final and, unlike their previous final, they came out victorious with a 2-0 win over Germany to capture the Women's World Cup title.
Alongside runners-up Germany the USA ran in third and China finished the tournament in fourth place. Other awards included the Golden Ball which went to Norway's Hege Riise, Norway's Kirstin-Ann Aarones took home the Golden Boot award while the FIFA Fair Play award was bestowed upon the host nation Sweden.
The final World Cup of the century proved to be the beginning of a new era of success for women's football and stamped itself as a milestone in the history of women's sport.