German FA hit by big police raid just hours after World Cup exit
The German football team faced a tough break when they were knocked out of the World Cup after losing a penalty shootout to Paraguay, a team that made it through as one of the best third-placed teams. The shootout caused quite a stir online because several German players didn’t want to take a penalty, and Jonathan Tah ended up missing his first-ever professional penalty by hitting it over the bar. This happened after some of his teammates hesitated to step up when the team really needed them.
This means Germany has now missed getting past the last 16 in three World Cups in a row, and they missed a potential exciting match against France. But that’s not the only trouble for Germany right now. Just 36 hours after their World Cup exit, the German football federation (DFB) was hit by a big police raid.
Over 150 officers searched the DFB offices in Frankfurt and town halls in cities that hosted Euro 2024 games. They are investigating claims that officials in these cities might have accepted freebies like tickets, travel, and hotel stays from the DFB during the tournament, which could be seen as bribery. Germany’s interior minister, Herbert Reul, made it clear that public servants shouldn’t be taking such perks and warned them to expect visits from the police if they do.
There are even reports that two people linked to the Euro 2024 organizing committee gave out free tickets to the semi-final between Spain and France. The police and prosecutors said they are looking into whether unauthorized benefits, like tickets, were given to officials in host cities and how tickets were handled by the organizing group.
The DFB isn’t new to controversy—in fact, they were involved in bribing FIFA officials to host the 2006 World Cup. But right now, the bigger issue is the team’s performance. Losing to Paraguay has raised questions about whether coach Julian Nagelsmann is the right person to lead Germany in the future. The 38-year-old coach feels the pressure and admitted after the game, “If you can’t beat Paraguay in 120 minutes, then you deserve to be out. You can’t rely on luck.” He also said the team isn’t among the top football nations anymore and expressed his disappointment.
There’s talk that former Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp might take over if Nagelsmann is let go after the tough World Cup exit, and it seems Klopp is ready to step in.