Germany have set an unwanted record at the 2026 FIFA World Cup following their Round of 32 defeat to Paraguay at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough on Tuesday, June 30. The four-time world champions were eliminated after losing 4-3 on penalties following a 1-1 draw after regulation time and extra time.
Strasbourg winger Julio Enciso gave Paraguay the lead in the 42nd minute after being set up by Matías Galarza, before Arsenal forward Kai Havertz equalised nine minutes into the second half. Havertz arrived at the World Cup on the back of an outstanding season, having played a key role in Arsenal's first Premier League title in 22 years.
Germany's Historic Shootout Failure
Germany failed to convert three of their spot-kicks, with Arsenal forward Kai Havertz, Nick Woltemade and Jonathan Tah all missing from the penalty spot. Paraguay's Orlando Gill, making his FIFA World Cup debut, emerged as the hero by outperforming Germany captain Manuel Neuer in the shootout, according to ESPN. The 26-year-old goalkeeper produced crucial saves to deny Havertz and Woltemade, giving La Albirroja the upper hand before Jose Canale calmly converted the decisive penalty to seal a 4-3 shootout victory, as reported by Al Jazeera.
Germany's elimination by Paraguay marked the first time they have ever been knocked out of a FIFA World Cup via a penalty shootout. Before the defeat, the four-time world champions had won all four of their previous World Cup penalty shootouts. It was also only the second time Germany had lost a penalty shootout at a major international tournament, with their only previous defeat coming in the 1976 UEFA European Championship final, where they lost 5-3 to Czechoslovakia.
Record-Breaking Exit for Germany
Germany became the highest-ranked team to be eliminated in the Round of 32. The four-time world champions entered the tournament ranked 10th in the FIFA World Rankings, while Paraguay were ranked 41st. The result sent Paraguay into the Round of 16, where they will face either France or Sweden.
Germany thought they had completed the comeback when Jonathan Tah headed home from a corner, but the goal was ruled out following a VAR review for a foul on Paraguay goalkeeper Orlando Gill.
Fan Reactions to the Shock Defeat
Fans have reacted to the shocking defeat Germany suffered at the hands of Paraguay. @DonKiyawa said: "The penalties happened to Germany. One love guys. The tournament was so good to you until now. ??" @Chelsea_2580 wrote: "What goes around comes around, he that lives by the sword will surely die by the sword. Paraguay finally breaking the German penalty monopoly tonight, Orlando Gill was impressive. Kudos to Paraguay and hardluck to Germany." @FcKwame added: "They have been poor since winning the World Cup in 2014."
Legit.ng earlier reported that Manchester United midfielder Casemiro has etched his name into Brazil's FIFA World Cup history after becoming the nation's second-oldest goalscorer at the tournament.
