As champions of the 2000 OFC Nations Cup, Australia headed to South Korea for the 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup. They were drawn in a group with hosts South Korea; 1998 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2000 winners, France and Mexico, winners of the 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup. Australia beat Mexico in the opening game with a first half goal to Shaun Murphy and another to Josip Skoko in the second half. They then had a surprise victory over France when Clayton Zane scored the only goal of the game. Despite losing the third game 1–0 to South Korea, Australia finished second in the group on goal difference to proceed to the semi-final stage. They had to travel to Yokohama to play against Japan, the joint hosts, and lost the game 1–0. Australia finished off the tournament with another upset victory to claim third-place. This time it was against Brazil when Murphy scored in the 84th minute for a 1–0 victory.