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Germany

Nickname(s)	Die Nationalelf (The National Eleven)
Association	German Football Association (Deutscher Fußball-Bund, DFB)
Confederation	UEFA (Europe)
Head coach	Horst Hrubesch (Interim)
Captain	Dzsenifer Marozsán
Most caps	Birgit Prinz (214)
Top scorer	Birgit Prinz (128)
FIFA code	GER
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	2 (7 December 2018)[1]
Highest	1 (October 2003 – 2007, December 2014 – June 2015, March 2017)
Lowest	3 (March 2018)
First international
West Germany 5–1 Switzerland   (Koblenz, West Germany; 10 November 1982)
Biggest win
Germany 17–0 Kazakhstan  (Wiesbaden, Germany; 19 November 2011)
Biggest defeat
United States 6–0 Germany  (Decatur, United States; 14 March 1996)
World Cup
Appearances	8 (first in 1991)
Best result	Champions (2003, 2007)
European Championship
Appearances	10 (first in 1989)
Best result	Champions (1989, 1991, 1995, 1997, 2001, 2005, 2009, 2013)
Medal record Summer Olympics 2016 Rio de Janeiro Team 2000 Sydney Team 2004 Athens Team 2008 Beijing Team FIFA Women's World Cup 2003 United States 2007 China 1995 Sweden UEFA Women's Championship 1989 Germany 1991 Denmark 1995 Germany 1997 Norway 2001 Germany 2005 England 2009 Finland 2013 Sweden

German national team in 2012

The Germany women's national football team (German: Deutsche Fußballnationalmannschaft der Frauen) is governed by the German Football Association (DFB).

The German national team is one of the most successful in women's football. They are two-time world champions, having won the 2003 and 2007 tournaments. They are also the only nation to have won both the men's and women's tournament. The team has won eight of the twelve UEFA European Championships, claiming six consecutive titles between 1995 and 2013. Germany is one of the two nations to win both the men's and women's European tournament, along with the Netherlands. Germany has won Olympic gold in 2016, after three consecutive bronze medals at the Women's Olympic Football Tournament, finishing third in 2000, 2004 and 2008. Birgit Prinz holds the record for most appearances and is the team's all-time leading goalscorer. Prinz has also set international records; she has received the FIFA World Player of the Year award three times and is the joint second overall top goalscorer at the Women's World Cup.

Women's football was long met with skepticism in Germany, and official matches were banned by the DFB until 1970. However, the women's national team has grown in popularity since winning the World Cup in 2003, as it was chosen as Germany's Sports Team of the Year. As of June 2018, Germany is ranked 2nd in the FIFA Women's World Rankings.

History

Early history

In 1955, the DFB decided to forbid women's football in all its clubs in West Germany. In its explanation, the DFB cited that "this combative sport is fundamentally foreign to the nature of women" and that "body and soul would inevitably suffer damage". Further, the "display of the body violates etiquette and decency".^[2] In spite of this ban, more than 150 unofficial international matches were played in the 1950s and 1960s. On 30 October 1970, the ban on women's football was lifted at the DFB annual convention.^[3]

Other football associations had already formed official women's national teams in the 1970s, the DFB long remained uninvolved in women's football. In 1981, DFB official Horst R. Schmidt was invited to send a team to the unofficial women's football world championship. Schmidt accepted the invitation but hid the fact that West Germany had no women's national team at the time.^[3] To avoid humiliation, the DFB sent the German club champions Bergisch Gladbach 09, who went on to win the tournament.^[4] Seeing a need, the DFB established the women's national team in 1982. DFB president Hermann Neuberger appointed Gero Bisanz, an instructor at the Cologne Sports College, to set up the team.^[5]

1982–1994: Difficult beginnings and first European titles

In September 1982, Bisanz organised two scouting training courses from which he selected a squad of 16 players.^[6] The team's first international match took place on 10 November 1982 in Koblenz. Following the tradition of the men's team, Switzerland was chosen as West Germany's first opponent. Doris Kresimon scored the first international goal in the 25th minute. In the second half, 18-year-old Silvia Neid contributed two goals to the 5–1 victory; Neid later became the assistant coach in 1996 and the head coach in 2005.^[5]

With five draws and one defeat, West Germany failed to qualify for the inaugural 1984 European Championship, finishing third in the qualifying group.^[7] In the beginning, Bisanz's primary objective was to close the gap to the Scandinavian countries and Italy – then the strongest teams in Europe. He emphasized training in basic skills and the need for an effective youth programme.^[8] Starting in 1985, Bisanz increasingly called-up younger players, but at first had little success with this concept, as West Germany again failed to qualify for the 1987 European Championship finals.^[9]

Undefeated and without conceding a goal, the German team qualified for the European Championship for the first time in 1989; the tournament was played on home soil in West Germany. The semi-final against Italy was the first international women's football match shown live on German television.^[10] The game was decided by a penalty shootout, in which goalkeeper Marion Isbert saved three penalty kicks and scored the winning penalty herself. On 2 July 1989 in Osnabrück, West Germany played Norway in the final. Before a crowd of 22,000, they beat favourites Norway and won 4–1 with goals from Ursula Lohn, Heidi Mohr and Angelika Fehrmann. This victory marked the team's first international title.^[11]

After the German reunification, the East German football association joined the DFB. The East German women's national football team had played only one official international match, losing 0–3 to Czechoslovakia in a friendly match on 9 May 1990. The unified German team defended their title successfully at the 1991 European Championship. After winning all games in the qualifying group, Germany again met Italy in the semi-final, this time winning 3–0. On 14 July 1991, the German team once more faced Norway in the final. The game went to extra time, during which Heidi Mohr and Silvia Neid scored for Germany and secured the 3–1 victory.^[12]

In November 1991, Germany participated in the first Women's World Cup in China. Following victories over Nigeria, Taiwan and Italy, the German team reached the quarter-final without conceding a single goal. Silvia Neid scored the first German World Cup goal on 17 November 1991 against Nigeria. Germany won the quarter-final against Denmark 2–1 after extra time, but lost 2–5 in the semi-final to the United States, who went on to win the tournament. Following a 0–4 defeat in the third-place match against Sweden, Germany finished fourth in the tournament.^[13]

The German team failed to defend their title at the 1993 European Championship, suffering a semi-final defeat to Italy in a penalty shootout, and later losing 1–3 against Denmark in the third-place playoff.^[14] Despite the disappointing result, new talents such as Steffi Jones, Maren Meinert and Silke Rottenberg made their tournament debut and later became key players for the German team.^[10]

1995–2002: Olympic and World Cup disappointments

Birgit Prinz scored in a major tournament for the first time in 1995.
In 1995, Germany won its third European Championship. After winning all qualification matches, scoring 55 goals, the German team defeated England 6–2 over two legs in the semi-final. Germany met Sweden in the final, which was played at the Fritz Walter Stadion in Kaiserslautern, Germany, on 26 March 1995. The Swedish team managed to score early, but Germany came back to win 3–2 with goals from Maren Meinert, Birgit Prinz and Bettina Wiegmann.^[15]

At the 1995 Women's World Cup in Sweden, the German team lost against the Scandinavian hosts, but still succeeded in winning their group by beating Japan and Brazil. Germany won the quarter-final against England 3–0, and defeated China 1–0 with a late goal by Bettina Wiegmann in the semi-final. On 18 June 1995 in Stockholm, the German team appeared in their first Women's World Cup final. Facing Norway, they lost the match 0–2, but as runners-up achieved their best World Cup result until then.^[16]

Women's football was first played as an Olympic sport at the 1996 Summer Olympics. Bettina Wiegmann scored the first Olympic goal in the opening match against Japan, which Germany won 3–2. After losing their second group game against Norway 2–3, and drawing with Brazil 1–1, Germany was eliminated, finishing third in the group with four points from three matches.^[17] Head coach Gero Bisanz resigned after the tournament and his assistant since 1983, Tina Theune, took over as the new national coach. Silvia Neid ended her playing career and was appointed the new assistant coach.^[18]

The 1997 European Championship was the first test for new coach Theune. Following a defeat against Norway, Germany finished second in the qualifying group and only secured qualification by beating Iceland in a relegation play-off. After drawing with Italy and Norway, a victory over Denmark in the last group game saw the German team go through to the knockout stage. They beat Sweden 1–0 in the semi-final, and on 12 July 1997, claimed their fourth European championship with a 2–0 win over Italy, with goals from Sandra Minnert and Birgit Prinz.^[19]

At the 1999 Women's World Cup in the United States, the German team also failed to qualify directly, but managed to beat the Ukraine in a qualifying play-off. Germany started their World Cup campaign by drawing with Italy and winning 6–0 over Mexico. In the last group game, Germany drew 3–3 against Brazil; by conceding a last minute equalizer, Germany failed to win the group and subsequently had to face the hosts in the quarter-final. With 54,642 people in attendance, among them U.S. President Bill Clinton, the crowd at the Jack Kent Cooke Stadium was the biggest the German team had ever played in front of. Despite leading twice, they lost 2–3 to the eventual World Cup winners.^[20]

Germany competed at the 2000 Summer Olympics, winning all three group games against Australia, Brazil and Sweden. The German team dominated the semi-final against Norway, but lost the game 0–1 after an own goal by Tina Wunderlich in the 80th minute.^[21] They beat Brazil 2–0 in the third place match with goals from Birgit Prinz and Renate Lingor, and won the bronze medal.^[22] It was the first Olympic medal for the German Football Associations since 1988 when the men's team also won bronze.^[23]

In 2001, Germany hosted the European Championship. Following victories over Sweden, Russia and England in the group stage, the German team beat Norway 1–0 in the semi-final courtesy of a diving header by Sandra Smisek. On 7 July 2001 in Ulm, they met Sweden in the final, which was played in heavy rain. The game was scoreless after 90 minutes and went to extra time, where Claudia Müller scored a golden goal and secured the fifth European title for Germany.^[24]

2003–present: Two consecutive World Cup titles

Germany playing Sweden in the 2003 Women's World Cup final.

At the 2003 Women's World Cup in the United States, Germany was drawn in a group with Canada, Japan and Argentina. After winning all three group games, the German team defeated Russia 7–1 in the quarter-final, which set up another clash with the United States. Germany's Kerstin Garefrekes scored after 15 minutes and goalkeeper Silke Rottenberg made several key saves. In the dying minutes of the semi-final, Maren Meinert and Birgit Prinz sealed the 3–0 win. On 12 October 2003, Germany met Sweden in the World Cup final in Los Angeles. The Scandinavians went ahead before half time, but Maren Meinert equalized shortly after the break. The game went to extra time, where Nia Künzer headed the winning golden goal in the 98th minute to claim Germany's first Women's World Cup title.^[25] Birgit Prinz was honoured as the tournament's best player and top goalscorer.^[26]

With wins over China and Mexico, the German team finished first in their group at the 2004 Summer Olympics. They beat Nigeria 2–1 in the quarter-final, but suffered a 1–2 semi-final loss to the United States after extra time. In the third place match, Germany defeated Sweden 1–0 with a goal by Renate Lingor, winning the teams's second Olympic bronze medal.^[27]

The 2005 European Championship was held in England. With wins over Norway, Italy and France in Round 1, the German team advanced to the semi-final, where they defeated Finland 4–1. On 19 June 2005, they met Norway for the third time in the European championship final. Germany won 3–1 with goals from Inka Grings, Renate Lingor and Birgit Prinz and added a sixth European title.^[28] Head coach Tina Theune stepped down after the tournament and her assistant Silvia Neid took over as national coach.^[18] In 2006, Germany won the annual Algarve Cup for the first time.^[29]

Nadine Angerer saved a penalty in the 2007 Women's World Cup final.

As reigning world champion, Germany played the opening game at the 2007 Women's World Cup in China, outclassing Argentina 11–0. After a goalless draw against England and a 2–0 win over Japan, the German team defeated North Korea 3–0 in the quarter-final. They beat Norway by the same result in the semi-final, with goals from Kerstin Stegemann, Martina Müller and a Norwegian own goal. On 30 September 2007, Germany faced Brazil in the World Cup final in Shanghai. Birgit Prinz put Germany in front after half time and goalkeeper Nadine Angerer saved a penalty by Brazilian Marta. Simone Laudehr scored a second goal after 86 minutes, which sealed the German 2–0 victory. Germany was the first team (men's and women's game) to win the World Cup without conceding a goal and the first to successfully defend the Women's World Cup title.^[30] With 14 goals, Prinz became the tournament's overall top goalscorer.^[31]

In a replay of the 2007 World Cup final, the German team drew 0–0 with Brazil in the opening game at the 2008 Summer Olympics. They then beat both Nigeria and North Korea to advance to the quarter-final, where they defeated Sweden 2–0 after extra time. In the semi-final, Germany again met Brazil. Birgit Prinz scored in the 10th minute, but the German team lost 1–4 after conceding three goals to Brazilian counter-attacks in the second half. They beat Japan 2–0 for the bronze medal, with Fatmire Bajramaj scoring both goals.^[32] The third consecutive semi-final loss at the Olympics was seen as a disappointment by both the players and the German press.^[33] The team's overall performance and head coach Silvia Neid were harshly criticised in the media.^[34]

Germany qualified for the 2009 European Championship in Finland winning all eight games and scoring 34 goals. They beat Norway, France and Iceland in the group stage to advance to the quarter-final, where they won 2–1 against Italy. After trailing Norway at half-time in the semi-final, the German team fought back to a 3–1 victory. On 10 September 2009, they defeated England 6–2 for their seventh European trophy. Birgit Prinz and Inka Grings scored twice, with Melanie Behringer and Kim Kulig also scoring.^[35] Grings retained her award as the tournament's top scorer from 2005, while Germany extended their winning streak at the European Championship finals to a 19-match run dating back to 1997.^[36]

Fara Williams calmly slots a penalty beyond Nadine Angerer at the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup, to inflict Germany's first ever defeat by England

Germany hosted the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup and won the three games on the group stage, over Canada, France and Nigeria. On the quarterfinals, the team suffered an upset by Japan, who won on overtime with a goal by Karina Maruyama. The defeat broke the Germans' streak of sixteen undefeated games at the World Cup.^[37] By failing to finish among the top two UEFA teams, Germany was unable to qualify for the 2012 Summer Olympics.^[38]

At the 2013 European Championship in Sweden, the Germans won their sixth straight continental title, with the decisive game being a 1–0 victory over Norway. Goalkeeper Nadine Angerer, who stopped two penalties during the final, was chosen as the tournament's best player.^[39] The 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup had Germany again reaching the top four. In the semifinal against the United States, Célia Šašić, who wound up as the tournament's top scorer, missed a penalty, and afterwards goals by Carli Lloyd and Kelley O'Hara lead to an American victory.^[40] The third place match saw the Germans lose their first ever match to England after 21 contests, due to a penalty kick by Fara Williams during extra time.^[41]

Tournament record

World Cup

Germany is one of the most successful nations at the FIFA Women's World Cup, having won the tournament twice and finishing runner-up once.^[42] The German team won the World Cup in 2003 and 2007.^[25][30] At the first World Cup in 1991, they finished in fourth place.^[13] In 1995, Germany reached the World Cup final, but were defeated by Norway.^[16] The team's worst results were quarter-final losses to the United States in 1999,^[20] and Japan in 2011.^[37] Overall, the German team has appeared in three Women's World Cup finals, and is a five-time semi-finalist. They have participated in every Women's World Cup and have a 26–5–8 win–draw–loss record.^[31]

Year	Result	Matches	Wins	Draws*	Losses	GF	GA
1991	Fourth Place	6	4	0	2	13	10
1995	Runners-up	6	4	0	2	13	6
1999	Quarterfinal	4	1	2	1	12	7
2003	Champions	6	6	0	0	25	4
2007	Champions	6	5	1	0	21	0
2011	Quarterfinal	4	3	0	1	7	4
2015	Fourth Place	7	3	2	2	20	6
2019	Qualified
Total	8/8	39	26	5*	8	111	37

*Denotes draws including knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.

**Gold background colour indicates that the tournament was won.

***Red border color indicates tournament was held on home soil.

Olympic Games

Women's football debuted at the 1996 Summer Olympics and Bettina Wiegmann scored the first Olympic goal in the opening game of the tournament. However, Germany failed to progress to the knockout stage and was eliminated after Round 1.^[17] Four years later the German team won the bronze medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics.^[22] They again finished third at both the 2004 and the 2008 Summer Olympics.^[27][32]

The German team has qualified for all Women's Olympic Football Tournaments until 2008. However, they failed to qualify for the 2012 tournament as UEFA used the 2011 World Cup for qualification, and Germany ended below France and Sweden.^[43] The German team beat Sweden in the Olympics final in Rio in 2016 to obtain their first Olympic gold medal.^[44]

Year	Result	Matches	Wins	Draws	Losses	GF	GA
1996	Round 1	3	1	1	1	6	6
2000	Third Place	5	4	0	1	8	2
2004	Third Place	5	4	0	1	14	3
2008	Third Place	6	4	1	1	7	4
2012	Did Not Qualify
2016	Champions	6	4	1	1	14	6
Total	5/6	25	17	3	5	49	21

European Championship

Germany failed to qualify for the first two UEFA European Championships in 1984 and 1987.^[7][9] Since 1989, the German team has participated in every tournament and is the record European champion with eight titles. Germany has won six consecutive championships from 1995 to 2013 and has an overall 31–6–3 win–draw–loss record.^[28] The worst German result at the European championship finals was finishing fifth in 2017.

Year	Result	Matches	Wins	Draws*	Losses	GF	GA
1984****	Did not qualify	–	–	–	–	–	–
1987	Did not qualify	–	–	–	–	–	–
1989	Champions	2	1	1	0	5	2
1991	Champions	2	2	0	0	6	1
1993	Fourth Place	2	0	1	1	2	4
1995	Champions	3	3	0	0	14	4
1997	Champions	5	3	2	0	6	1
2001	Champions	5	5	0	0	13	1
2005	Champions	5	5	0	0	15	2
2009	Champions	6	6	0	0	21	5
2013	Champions	6	4	1	1	6	1
2017	Quarterfinals	4	2	1	1	5	3
Total	10/12	40	31	6*	3	93	24

*Denotes draws including knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.

**Gold background colour indicates that the tournament was won.

***Red border color indicates tournament was held on home soil.

****Missing flag indicates no host country; tournament was played in two-leg knockout rounds (with the exception of the 1995 final).

Coaches

Former German international Horst Hrubesch is the current head coach of the German women's national football team. The coach's official title is DFB-Trainer and he or she is employed by the German Football Association.^[45]

Head coach Horst Hrubesch

• 
  Gero Bisanz was the first coach of the women's national team. He selected his first squad in September 1982.^[8] At the same time, he also worked as the chief instructor for DFB coaching training from 1971 to 2000.^[6] Bisanz led the German team to three European Championships in 1989, 1991 and 1995.^[46] Under Bisanz, Germany also was runner-up at the 1995 Women's World Cup.^[16] He resigned after the German team was eliminated in Round 1 at the 1996 Summer Olympics.^[47] With his assistant since 1983, Tina Theune, he built a scouting system and was responsible for a new DFB youth programme.^[8]


• 
  Tina Theune took over as head coach after the 1996 Summer Olympics. She was the first woman to acquire the highest German football coaching license.^[18] Theune was responsible for three European Championship titles in 1997, 2001 and 2005.^[46] During her time as head coach, Germany won the bronze medal at the 2000 and 2004 Summer Olympics.^[48] Her biggest success was the 2003 Women's World Cup title.^[25] Theune is the most successful national coach to date.^[18] She benefited from an effective youth programme and integrated several Under-19 players into the nation team. Theune stepped down after winning the European Championship in 2005.^[18]


• 
  Silvia Neid was the team's assistant coach from 1996 to 2005 and the head coach of the German Under-19 team, who won the 2004 U-19 Women's World Championship.^[49] In July 2005, she became the team's head coach and the 2006 Algarve Cup marked her first tournament win.^[29] By winning the 2007 Women's World Cup, Neid became the first German national coach (men's and women's team) to win the World Cup at the first attempt.^[30] At her first Summer Olympics as a coach in 2008, Germany won the bronze medal for a third time. Neid was also responsible for Germany's seventh European Championship in 2009. She was signed until 2016, and her assistant was Ulrike Ballweg.^[45]


• On 30 March 2015, DFB announced that Steffi Jones would become the new German head coach in 2016.^[50]

Statistical summary

Name	Germany career	P	W	D	L	%	Achievements
Gero Bisanz	1982–1996	7002127000000000000♠127	7001830000000000000♠83	7001170000000000000♠17	7001270000000000000♠27	07001653499999900000♠65.35	1984 European Championship – failed to qualify 1987 European Championship – failed to qualify 1989 European Championship – champion 1991 European Championship – champion 1991 Women's World Cup – fourth place 1993 European Championship – fourth place 1995 European Championship – champion 1995 Women's World Cup – runner-up 1996 Summer Olympics – group stage
Tina Theune	1996–2005	7002135000000000000♠135	7001930000000000000♠93	7001180000000000000♠18	7001240000000000000♠24	07001688900000000000♠68.89	1997 European Championship – champion 1999 Women's World Cup – quarter-final 2000 Summer Olympics – bronze medal 2001 European Championship – champion 2003 Women's World Cup – champion 2004 Summer Olympics – bronze medal 2005 European Championship – champion
Silvia Neid	2005–2016	7002169000000000000♠169	7002125000000000000♠125	7001220000000000000♠22	7001220000000000000♠22	07001739609999999999♠73.96	2007 Women's World Cup – champion 2008 Summer Olympics – bronze medal 2009 European Championship – champion 2011 Women's World Cup – quarter-final 2012 Summer Olympics – failed to qualify 2013 European Championship – champion 2015 Women's World Cup – fourth place 2016 Summer Olympics – champion
Steffi Jones	2016–2018	7001220000000000000♠22	7001130000000000000♠13	7000400000000000000♠4	7000500000000000000♠5	07001590900000000000♠59.09	2017 European Championship – quarter-final
Horst Hrubesch (interim)	2018	7000800000000000000♠8	7000700000000000000♠7	7000100000000000000♠1	5000000000000000000♠0	07001875000000000000♠87.50
Martina Voss-Tecklenburg	2019–	5000000000000000000♠0	5000000000000000000♠0	5000000000000000000♠0	5000000000000000000♠0	!—
Total		7002460000000000000♠460	7002320000000000000♠320	7001620000000000000♠62	7001780000000000000♠78	07001695709999999999♠69.57

*Key: P–games played, W–games won, D–games drawn; L–games lost, %–win percentage. Statistics as of 13 November 2018.^[51][52]

Venues

The German national football team has no national stadium. Like the men, the women's team play their home matches in different stadiums throughout the country. As of June 2011, they have played in 87 different German cities. Most home games have been held in Osnabrück with six matches, followed by Ulm (five games), and Bochum, Kaiserslautern, Koblenz, Lüdenscheid, Rheine, Siegen and Weil am Rhein (three games each).^[51] The first home match in former East Germany was played in Aue in May 1991.^[53]

Germany playing Brazil before a crowd of 44,825 in Frankfurt.

In the 1980s and 1990s, home matches were mostly played in smaller towns with no professional football clubs. As the team became more successful, especially after the World Cup win in 2003, the number of spectators rose accordingly. Today, the team usually plays in stadiums with 10,000 to 25,000 seats.^[54] The ten largest German cities have only hosted five international matches. The team have played twice in Frankfurt and Berlin, and once Hamburg. Bremen, Dortmund, Düsseldorf, Essen, Cologne, Munich and Stuttgart have never hosted an international match of the women's team.^[51]

Outside Germany, they have played the most games in Faro, Portugal (10 matches), and Guangzhou, China (six matches), the host cities of the annual Algarve Cup and the Four Nations Tournament respectively. They have also played five games in Albufeira, Portugal (also an Algarve Cup venue), and four times in Minneapolis in the United States.^[51]

The record attendance for Germany was 73,680 in the 2011 Women's World Cup opening game against Canada at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin.^[55] That game also set a new European record in women's football. Away from home, the team's crowd record was 54,642 in the 1999 Women's World Cup quarter-final against the United States at the Jack Kent Cooke Stadium in Landover.^[56]

Colours

Emblem for the Olympic Games

The German women's national football team wears white shirts with black shorts and white socks, following the tradition of the German men's team – black and white are the colours of Prussia.^[57] The current change kit is red and black, with black shorts and red socks.^[58] In the past, Germany also used green shirts with white shorts and green socks as the away kit.^[59]

The women's national team originally played with the emblem of the German men's team, a variation of the DFB logo with the Federal Eagle of Germany (Bundesadler) and three stars at the top for the men's 1954, 1974 and 1990 World Cup titles. Since their first Women's World Cup win in 2003, the team displays its own World Cup titles; initially with one star,^[60] and since 2007, with two stars at the top of the emblem.^[61] While being reigning world champions, Germany also displayed the newly created "FIFA Women's World Champions Badge" on their shirts from 2009 until 2011 when they were succeeded by Japan.^[62]

Verse of the national anthem on the collar.

In accordance with the rules of the International Olympic Committee,^[63] Germany does not wear its official uniform with the logo of the German Football Association while competing at the Summer Olympics. Instead, the DFB badge is replaced by the coat of arms of Germany.^[61] Like all DFB squads, the women's national team is supplied by Adidas,^[58] which had provided a specifically designed female football jersey since 1999.^[64] The team's main sponsor is the German insurance company Allianz.^[65]

Acceptance and popularity

For most of the 20th century, women's football was a niche sport in Germany and was frowned upon. When the DFB appointed Gero Bisanz to coach the newly founded women's national team, he was initially very reluctant about his assignment and feared it would harm his reputation.^[54] Winning the 1989 European Championship was the team's first international success, but it had little lasting effect on their popularity. As a gift for the first European trophy, every player received a tea set, which is often cited as an example of male chauvinism and general lack of interest in the women's national team at that time.^[54] This attitude within the German Football Association has changed considerably in the last two decades, in particular during the term of Theo Zwanziger as DFB president, an outspoken supporter of women's football.^[66]
Each member of the 2003 Women's World Cup squad received a prearranged bonus of 15,000 euros for winning the tournament; four years later the players received 50,000 euros for their successful title defense.^[67] In 2009, one million of the 6.7 million DFB members were female.^[68]

The 2003 World Cup title marked the breakthrough for the women's national football team in Germany. The final was watched by 10.48 million viewers on German television (a 33.2 percent market share)^[69] and the German team was welcomed home by almost 10,000 fans at Frankfurt's city hall.^[70] Later that year, they were honoured as the 2003 German Sports Team of the Year.^[71]Nia Künzer's World Cup winning golden goal was voted Germany's 2003 Goal of the Year, the first time the award was won by a female player.^[72] Since 2005, almost all of the women's national football team's matches have been shown live on German television.^[73]

Arrival in Frankfurt after winning the 2007 Women's World Cup

The final of the 2007 Women's World Cup was seen by 9.05 million television viewers (a 50.5 percent market share).^[69] After the team returned to Germany, they were celebrated by a crowd of 20,000 in Frankfurt.^[70] In December 2007, all players of the World Cup squad received the Silberne Lorbeerblatt (Silver Laurel Leaf), the highest state decoration for athletes in Germany. National coach Silvia Neid was awarded the Federal Cross of Merit on ribbon by German president Horst Köhler.^[74]

In 2009, the team's six home matches had an average attendance of 22,753.^[75] In a survey of German football fans, 65 percent of the male and 62 percent of the female respondents said they were interested in women's football.^[76] However, this popularity is mostly limited to international matches. Although the number of spectators in the women's Bundesliga has more than doubled since 2003,^[77] the average attendance in the 2007–08 season (887)^[78] was still less than three percent of that of the men's Bundesliga (38,612).^[79]

Today, women's football is socially accepted in Germany, although one of the main points of criticism remains the alleged lack of quality compared to the men's game. The German women's national team has played several exhibition matches against male teams, most notably losing 0–3 to the VfB Stuttgart Under-17 squad in preparation for the 2003 World Cup.^[66] Most German players dismiss comparisons between the quality of men's and women's football; Renate Lingor has said they are "two entirely different sports".^[80] Players such as Simone Laudehr, Ariane Hingst and Melanie Behringer have stated that men's football is played at a much faster pace, but also has more interruptions and brutal tackling than the women's game.^[64][81]Linda Bresonik has said she generally prefers to watch men's football.^[81]

Results and fixtures

2018

United States  v  Germany

2 March 2018 2018 SheBelieves Cup	United States	1–0	Germany	Columbus, United States
01:00	Rapinoe  17'	Report		Stadium: Mapfre Stadium Attendance: 14,591 Referee: Melissa Borjas (Honduras)

Germany  v  England

4 March 2018 2018 SheBelieves Cup	Germany	2–2	England	Harrison, United States
21:00	Kayikçi  17' Bright  51' (o.g.)	Report	White  18', 73'	Stadium: Red Bull Arena Attendance: 7,882 Referee: Karen Abt (United States)

France  v  Germany

7 March 2018 2018 SheBelieves Cup	France	3–0	Germany	Orlando, United States
22:00	Henry  10' Le Sommer  55' Gauvin  68'	Report		Stadium: Orlando City Stadium Attendance: 6,525 Referee: Christina Unkel (United States)

Germany  v  Czech Republic

7 April 2018 2019 FIFA World Cup qualifier	Germany	4–0	Czech Republic	Zwickau, Germany
16:15	Schüller  5', 31', 68', 79'	Report		Stadium: Stadion Zwickau Attendance: 4,564 Referee: Kateryna Monzul (Ukraine)

Slovenia  v  Germany

10 April 2018 2019 FIFA World Cup qualifier	Slovenia	0–4	Germany	Domžale, Slovenia
16:00		Report	Magull  10' Golob  43' (o.g.) Popp  53' Dallmann  61'	Stadium: Domžale Sports Park Attendance: 500 Referee: Sarah Garratt (England)

Canada  v  Germany

10 June 2018 Friendly	Canada	2–3	Germany	Hamilton, Canada
21:00	Sinclair  59' Fleming  69'	Report	Huth  1' Däbritz  70' Knaak  84'	Stadium: Tim Hortons Field Attendance: 22,826 Referee: Qin Lian (China)

Iceland  v  Germany

1 September 2018 2019 FIFA World Cup qualifier	Iceland	0–2	Germany	Reykjavík, Iceland
16:55		Report	Huth  42', 74'	Stadium: Laugardalsvöllur Attendance: 9,636 Referee: Pernilla Larsson (Sweden)

Faroe Islands  v  Germany

4 September 2018 2019 FIFA World Cup qualifier	Faroe Islands	0–8	Germany	Tórshavn, Faroe Islands
17:00		Report	Schüller  3' Magull  25', 68' Maier  27' Simon  58', 74' Popp  73', 90+2'	Stadium: Tórsvøllur Attendance: 653 Referee: Lizzy Van Der Helm (Netherlands)

Germany  v  Austria

6 October 2018 Friendly	Germany	3–1	Austria	Essen, Germany
14:00	Popp  8' Dallmann  56' Schüller  84'	Report	Billa  34'	Stadium: Stadion Essen Attendance: 3,569 Referee: Monika Mularczyk (Poland)

Germany  v  Italy

10 November 2018 Friendly	Germany	5–2	Italy	Osnabrück, Germany
16:00	Magull  6' Däbritz  18' Gwinn  50' Petermann  60' Maier  86'	Report	Bonansea  29' Sabatino  43'	Stadium: Stadion an der Bremer Brücke Attendance: 5,900 Referee: Ivana Martinčić (Croatia)

Germany  v  Spain

13 November 2018 Friendly	Germany	0–0	Spain	Erfurt, Germany
16:00		Report		Stadium: Steigerwaldstadion Attendance: 3,169 Referee: Tess Olofsson (Sweden)

2019

Sweden  v  Germany

6 April 2019 Friendly	Sweden	v	Germany	Stockholm, Sweden
13:45		Report		Stadium: Friends Arena

Germany  v  China PR

8 June 2019 2019 FIFA World Cup	Germany	v	China PR	Rennes, France
15:00		Report		Stadium: Roazhon Park

Germany  v  Spain

12 June 2019 2019 FIFA World Cup	Germany	v	Spain	Valenciennes, France
15:00		Report		Stadium: Stade du Hainaut

South Africa  v  Germany

17 June 2019 2019 FIFA World Cup	South Africa	v	Germany	Montpellier, France
18:00		Report		Stadium: Stade de la Mosson

Team

Current squad

The following players were named to the squad for the friendly matches against Italy and Spain on 10 and 13 November 2018.^[82]

Caps and goals as of 13 November 2018.^[83]

Head coach: Horst Hrubesch

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
2	2DF	Carolin Simon	(1992-11-24) 24 November 1992 (age 26)	14	2	Lyon
3	2DF	Kathrin Hendrich	(1992-04-06) 6 April 1992 (age 26)	26	3	1. FFC Frankfurt
4	2DF	Leonie Maier	(1992-09-29) 29 September 1992 (age 26)	69	10	Bayern Munich
5	2DF	Babett Peter	(1988-05-12) 12 May 1988 (age 30)	119	8	VfL Wolfsburg
7	4FW	Lea Schüller	(1997-11-12) 12 November 1997 (age 21)	11	7	SGS Essen
9	4FW	Nicole Rolser	(1992-02-07) 7 February 1992 (age 26)	2	0	Bayern Munich
10	3MF	Dzsenifer Marozsán (C)	(1992-04-18) 18 April 1992 (age 26)	86	32	Lyon
11	4FW	Alexandra Popp	(1991-04-06) 6 April 1991 (age 27)	93	44	VfL Wolfsburg
12	1GK	Lisa Schmitz	(1992-05-04) 4 May 1992 (age 26)	2	0	Turbine Potsdam
13	3MF	Sara Däbritz	(1995-02-15) 15 February 1995 (age 23)	58	10	Bayern Munich
14	2DF	Maximiliane Rall	(1993-11-18) 18 November 1993 (age 25)	2	0	TSG Hoffenheim
15	2DF	Sara Doorsoun	(1991-11-17) 17 November 1991 (age 27)	21	0	VfL Wolfsburg
18	3MF	Melanie Leupolz	(1994-04-14) 14 April 1994 (age 24)	55	8	Bayern Munich
19	3MF	Svenja Huth	(1991-01-25) 25 January 1991 (age 27)	41	6	Turbine Potsdam
20	3MF	Lina Magull	(1994-08-15) 15 August 1994 (age 24)	27	7	Bayern Munich
21	1GK	Merle Frohms	(1995-01-28) 28 January 1995 (age 23)	3	0	SC Freiburg
22	3MF	Turid Knaak	(1991-01-24) 24 January 1991 (age 27)	5	1	SGS Essen
23	4FW	Lena Petermann	(1994-02-05) 5 February 1994 (age 24)	19	5	Turbine Potsdam
24	3MF	Giulia Gwinn	(1999-07-02) 2 July 1999 (age 19)	4	1	SC Freiburg
25	2DF	Johanna Elsig	(1992-11-01) 1 November 1992 (age 26)	9	0	Turbine Potsdam
26	3MF	Lena Lattwein	(2000-05-02) 2 May 2000 (age 18)	2	0	TSG Hoffenheim
27	2DF	Felicitas Rauch	(1996-04-30) 30 April 1996 (age 22)	6	0	Turbine Potsdam
28	2DF	Janina Hechler	(1999-01-28) 28 January 1999 (age 19)	0	0	1. FFC Frankfurt
29	3MF	Sydney Lohmann	(2000-06-19) 19 June 2000 (age 18)	1	0	Bayern Munich
30	1GK	Carina Schlüter	(1996-11-08) 8 November 1996 (age 22)	1	0	SC Sand
31	1GK	Ann-Katrin Berger	(1990-10-09) 9 October 1990 (age 28)	0	0	Birmingham City

Recent call-ups

The following players were named to a squad in the last 12 months.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Almuth Schult	(1991-02-09) 9 February 1991 (age 27)	56	0	VfL Wolfsburg	v.  Italy, 10 November 2018
GK	Laura Benkarth	(1992-10-14) 14 October 1992 (age 26)	8	0	SC Freiburg	v.  Czech Republic, 7 April 2018
DF	Verena Schweers	(1989-05-22) 22 May 1989 (age 29)	41	3	Bayern Munich	v.  Austria, 6 October 2018
DF	Lena Goeßling	(1986-03-08) 8 March 1986 (age 32)	103	10	VfL Wolfsburg	v.  Faroe Islands, 4 September 2018
DF	Joelle Wedemeyer	(1996-08-12) 12 August 1996 (age 22)	1	0	VfL Wolfsburg	v.  Faroe Islands, 4 September 2018
DF	Anna Blässe	(1987-02-27) 27 February 1987 (age 31)	27	0	VfL Wolfsburg	v.  Slovenia, 10 April 2018
DF	Johanna Elsig	(1992-11-01) 1 November 1992 (age 26)	5	0	Turbine Potsdam	v.  Czech Republic, 7 April 2018
DF	Jacqueline Klasen	(1994-02-04) 4 February 1994 (age 24)	3	0	SGS Essen	2018 SheBelieves Cup
MF	Kristin Demann	(1993-04-07) 7 April 1993 (age 25)	20	1	Bayern Munich	v.  Italy, 10 November 2018
MF	Linda Dallmann	(1994-09-02) 2 September 1994 (age 24)	18	4	SGS Essen	v.  Austria, 6 October 2018
MF	Sharon Beck	(1995-03-22) 22 March 1995 (age 23)	0	0	TSG Hoffenheim	2018 SheBelieves Cup
MF	Tabea Kemme	(1991-12-14) 14 December 1991 (age 27)	47	6	Arsenal	2018 SheBelieves Cup
FW	Hasret Kayikçi	(1991-11-06) 6 November 1991 (age 27)	11	6	SC Freiburg	v.  Canada, 10 June 2018
FW	Mandy Islacker	(1988-08-08) 8 August 1988 (age 30)	25	5	Bayern Munich	v.  Slovenia, 10 April 2018

Notes:

• 
  PRE = Preliminary squad


• 
  RET = Retired from international duty

Records

Birgit Prinz is the most capped German player with 214 caps, and the top ever scorer with 128.

Birgit Prinz, a former team captain who retired after the 2011 World Cup,^[84] holds the record for Germany appearances, having played 214 times from 1994 to 2011. She is one of 21 German players to have reached 100 caps.^[85]Kerstin Stegemann is second, having played 191 times. Bettina Wiegmann, Germany's team captain during the 2003 World Cup win, comes fourth with 154 games.^[85] Prinz exceeded Wiegmann's record as the most capped player in November 2006.^[86] Wiegmann is the only honorary captain of the German women's national football team.^[87]

The title of Germany's highest goalscorer is also held by Prinz. She scored her first goal in July 1994 against Canada and finished her career with 128 goals (averaging 0.60 goals per game).^[88]Heidi Mohr, as well as being the second-highest scorer, is also the most prolific with 83 goals coming from 104 games (averaging 0.80 goals per game).^[88] Two players share the record for goals scored in one match: Conny Pohlers scored five goals in October 2001 against Portugal,^[89] and Inka Grings scored five times in February 2004, again facing Portugal.^[90]Silvia Neid, the former German national coach, is the sixth highest goalscorer with 48 goals in 111 games.^[88]

The largest margin of victory achieved by Germany is 17–0 against Kazakhstan during a European Championship qualifying game in November 2011.^[91] The record defeat, a 0–6 deficit against the United States, occurred during a friendly match in March 1996.^[92]

Silke Rottenberg has the most appearances for a goalkeeper with 126 caps and 67 games without conceding a goal.^[93] Former goalkeeper Nadine Angerer is second, with 124 games (80 without conceding a goal).^[94] Bettina Wiegmann holds the record of 14 goals from penalty kicks; Renate Lingor comes in second with 8 goals.^[95]Tina Wunderlich scored the team's only own goal in the semi-final of the 2000 Summer Olympics against Norway; it was the game's only goal.^[96]

The German team also holds several international records. In 2007, they were the first to win two consecutive Women's World Cup titles and they achieved the biggest win in tournament history by beating Argentina 11–0.^[31] Germany is also the only team to win either the men's or women's World Cup without conceding a goal and the only country to win both World Cups.^[30][97] With 14 goals, Prinz became the overall top goalscorer at the Women's World Cup in 2007,^[31] and she and Brazilian Marta are the only women to have received the FIFA World Player of the Year award at least three times.^[98]

Titles

Achievements
Preceded by 1999 United States	World Champions 2003 (first title) 2007 (second title)	Succeeded by 2011 Japan
Preceded by 2012 United States	Olympic champions 2016 (first title)	Succeeded by Incumbent
Preceded by 1987 Norway	European Champions 1989 (first title) 1991 (second title)	Succeeded by 1993 Norway
Preceded by 1993 Norway	European Champions 1995 (third title) 1997 (fourth title) 2001 (fifth title) 2005 (sixth title) 2009 (seventh title) 2013 (eighth title)	Succeeded by 2017 Netherlands

See also

• Germany national football team


• Germany women's national under-20 football team


• Germany women's national youth football team


• FIFA Women's World Cup


• UEFA Women's Championship

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Germany women's national football team.

• 
  Official website (in German)
  


• FIFA profile