Togo has won the World Cup - albeit just the pre-tournament beauty contest. Student Edwige Madze Badakou, 24, beat representatives of the 31 other finalists to be crowned Miss World Cup. Contestants paraded in swimwear and evening gowns for a jury which included footballers. It is not clear whether their football knowledge was tested.

Ms Badakou's victory comes after a Togolese voodoo priest predicted glory for the team, widely seen as rank outsiders, in Germany.

Maria Garrido B'aez, 23, of Spain came second, followed by Ecuador's Katty Lopez Saman, 23.

Ms Badakou, who was crowned Miss Togo two years ago, won 2,000 euros ($2,557; ?1,370) and the use of a convertible car for a year.

On Thursday, Togo's chief voodoo priest predicted success for the national football team, the Sparrowhawks, at the World Cup in Germany.

"The ancestral spirits say that Togo will go far at the World Cup," Togbui Assiogbo Gnagblondjro III said.

He said that Togo would definitely beat South Korea and France to get to the next round and he would be able to predict the actual scores two days before the matches.

His prediction and Ms Badakou's victory are likely to give hope to fans angered with their players' lacklustre performance and a demand of $200,000 each to take part in the tournament.