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Germany lost on penalties to Paraguay after a 1-1 draw in their FIFA World Cup 2026 last-32 match.
Updated on 29 Jun 2026
Germany’s 2026 World Cup campaign has come to an end after a shock defeat – arguably the tournament’s biggest ever – to Paraguay in the Round of 32.
The Germans trailed 1-0 at the break thanks to Julio Enciso’s 42nd-minute header on Monday.
It was a light display for the four-time winners in the first half, but they came back in the second half, with Kai Havertz scoring eight minutes after the restart.
Germany then had a goal from a corner that was disallowed after a VAR review for fouling the Paraguayan keeper, and without another goal, the game saw extra time.
Havertz, who helped Arsenal end a 22-year wait to win the English Premier League title this season, missed the opening match. The striker’s team would miss all three kicks, while Paraguay, who missed two, eventually won 4-3.
Germany was ranked 10th in the world by the world governing body, FIFA, going into the tournament, while Paraguay was ranked 41st.
Germany’s defeat may be the biggest disappointment in World Cup football, but it is the most certain of the knock-out games. The previous game they won was Germany’s other defeat at the US 1994 World Cup, where Hristo Stoichkov’s Bulgaria knocked out the defending champions in the quarterfinals.
Stoichkov, then a Barcelona player, was named the Ballon d’Or winner in 1994, when Bulgaria was ranked 29th in the world at the time.
It was Germany’s first defeat on penalties at the World Cup, and they have now failed to reach the last 16 since they last won the tournament in 2014.
