In 2018, Germany followed the infamous trend of embarrassing World Cup title defenses, becoming the fourth title holder in the last five World Cups to not make it out of the group stage. Despite the opening game loss to Mexico, the Germans bounced back for three points against Sweden to go into the final matchday with plenty of hope against South Korea. What ensued was a dramatic 2–0 loss—thanks to two stoppage-time goals from South Korea—that saw the European giants go crashing out of the group stage in what was a national disgrace.
Germany was better at its next major tournament in last year’s Euros, where it survived a tough group by beating reigning champion Portugal. However, the Germans were outclassed by England in the round of 16, which marked the end of longtime manager Joachim Löw’s nearly 15-year run in charge. In came a former Löw assistant in Hansi Flick, who won two Bundesliga titles and a Champions League trophy with Bayern Munich.
Things look to be on the upswing. Germany has lost only once in 15 matches under Flick (against Hungary in September in the UEFA Nations League). The trip to Qatar will be Flick’s toughest test yet, but it is the challenge that he was specifically brought in to face.
