Germany crashed out in the Women’s World Cup group stages for the first time on Thursday, a 1-1 draw with South Korea not enough to put them through.
It’s an historic exit for the two-time champions, who had never previously gone out at this stage, with Colombia and Morocco instead advancing to the last 16 from Group H.
After reaching the final of the Euros last year, and losing by such fine margins, Germany were a huge favourite for this tournament. To suffer an exit like this, then, in a group they were such heavy favourites to win was the biggest shock of the 2023 Women’s World Cup. Head coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg signed a new contract earlier this year, extending her stay in the role until 2025, but there will be huge questions asked of her after this failure.
