Oh No, Germany! | Blake Byrne

Today was a full day at our hotel here in Brannenburg catching up on all the work we have to do before the program comes to an end. I did my best to focus on the task at hand and got as much work done as I could, but my eyes continued to wander to the clock every 15 to 20 minutes. Why? Because the German National Team was playing their final group stage game at 4 PM, and it was a huge game. Germany had to win to make sure they had a fighting chance of getting into the tournament phase of the World Cup. Needless to say, I was extremely interested to see how this would play out for Germany. Considering they were the previous World Cup Champions, they needed to win. So, I did my work and waited until 4.

By the time game time came around, I was ready to go. Unfortunately, my new Germany jersey was dirty, so I could not support in that way, but I did wear the German flag proudly on my cheeks. Die Mannschaft was playing South Korea, a team who had not picked a point up in the tournament up to this stage. So, in other words it was supposed to be a cake walk for Germany to score a goal and get out of their group. As the first half of the game played out Germany appeared to be in control. They had a lot of possession and just were struggling to find chances to put the ball on target. However, the start was promising because comparing it to the other games I have watched Germany play this summer they did appear to be much sharper with their decisions and passes. The first half ended 0-0 but I was feeling confident.

In an attempt to kill time before the second half started, myself and some of the other E3 students went and played a couple games of foosball that were as intense as the World Cup game. Okay, maybe that was a bit of a stretch, but it was intense none the less. We got back to the tv right when the second half started and were fired up and ready for Germany to take over. Then something surprising happened.

Sweden, who was also fighting for a spot to advance, scored against the group leaders Mexico. This meant that Germany had to score now in order to get into the round of 16. They began throwing their numbers forward in an attempt to find their elusive goal. Then Sweden scored again! This was actually okay for Germany because again, all they had to do was score and then Sweden and Germany would both advance. Time went on and into stoppage time. The score was still 0-0 even though Germany had some great shots and the South Korea goalkeeper made some great saves. That was when the unthinkable happened.

South Korea had won a corner kick and from this kick the South Koreans were able to find the back of the net! I was in shock, but then the ref said the goal scorer was offside. The main referee went to check this call in the replay booth and decided the player was not offside and the goal stood. So many different emotions came over me in this time, but the situation now required Germany to score twice in 6 minutes to win. I watched 3 of those 6 minutes until I decided this was impossible and went to get my clothes out of the dryer. Korea ended up scoring another cheap goal, but the result was still the same. Germany would not make the round of 16 in the World Cup after they had won the previous one. Overall, today was a sad day for the people of Germany.