Paraguay ends their World Cup drought as Germany is knocked out of the tournament
Paraguay, one of the lowest-ranked teams in the World Cup finals, shocked everyone by knocking out the 2014 champions, Germany. This defeat ended a tough streak for Paraguay, who had previously taken down big teams like France, England, and Argentina.
Germany’s team has been hit hard by injuries, leading famous expert Gary Lineker to call it the weakest squad the country has had in recent memory. On top of that, coach Julian Nagelsmann hasn’t been popular with fans, who even booed the team during pre-tournament friendlies. So, many expected this to be a tough World Cup for Germany.
Some new players like Felix Nmecha showed promise, scoring in their strong 7-0 win over Curacao. It seemed like Germany had enough firepower to go far. But in the Round of 32, Germany became the first big team to fall, losing to Paraguay.
What made this even bigger was that Germany lost in a penalty shootout — something they almost never do. Paraguay, ranked 41st, fought hard to hold on after an early goal, pushing the game into extra time. Then, a VAR review controversially took away what looked like a winning goal from Germany’s Jonathon Tah because of a foul.
Germany has always been known for staying calm under pressure during shootouts, but things fell apart here. Tah missed the crucial penalty, following earlier misses by Kai Havertz and Nick Woltemade. Paraguay held their nerve, even with some shaky shots of their own, and moved on.
Before this, Germany had never lost a shootout in World Cup history. Their streak started in 1982 when they beat France but lost to Italy in the final. They went on to win shootouts against Mexico, England, and Argentina in later tournaments, building an almost flawless record.
Paraguay’s win puts an end to that amazing run. They might even thank England, who ended Germany’s winning streak in Euro 2020.
Now, Paraguay will be celebrating their huge victory as they get ready to face the winner of France vs. Sweden in the Round of 16. This surprise win could be just the start of their World Cup adventure!