England began 2013 with a memorable 2-1 victory at Wembley over 2014 World Cup hosts and perennial challengers Brazil.
In front of almost 88,000 fans, Roy Hodgson's men ensured a perfect start on the pitch to The FA's 150th anniversary celebrations by winning an entertaining game against the South Americans.
The visitors should have been in front though Ronaldinho, whose early penalty was saved by Three Lions 'keeper Joe Hart, after man-of-the-match Jack Wilshere had been harshly judged to have handled a cross in the area.
Wayne Rooney celebrates the opening goal against Brazil.
But Brazil were soon made to pay for that miss, as Wayne Rooney struck England ahead just before the half-hour mark when he pounced on a loose ball in the box after Julio Cesar had denied Theo Walcott.
There were chances for both teams after that, but Brazil found a deserved equaliser early in the second half when substitute Fred fired his side level with a powerful left-footer.
But Hodgson's decision to introduce Frank Lampard from the bench also paid dividends, as the Chelsea midfielder shot home via a post after being set-up by Rooney on the hour mark.
With a raft of substitutions made by both Hodgson and Luiz Felipe Scolari after that, including a standing ovation for Ashley Cole on his 100th appearance for England, there weren't too many more chances for either side and England's year was off to a winning start.
And the game was obviously a hit with viewers too, with the official match highlights package attracting just over 1m views on YouTube alone to become FATV's third-highest watched video of the year.
