Football European Championship qualification: German footballers in the wake of the European Championship footballers before the Olympics

When were there so many black, red and gold flags at a training session for German footballers? On Tuesday evening at the Paul Janes Stadium in Düsseldorf, Lena Oberdorf had to take a closer look, and not just because of the low sun. Warm applause from around 2,000 fans, who were happy to bring the utensils they had tried out at the men’s European Championship, greeted the players, who politely thanked them afterwards with selfies and given away balls. It was a matter of course for the national coach that Horst Hrubesch also fulfilled as many autograph requests as possible: The women’s national team could hardly have had much more support for the flight to Reykjavik on Wednesday before the European Championship qualifier against Iceland on Friday ( 6:15 p.m./ZDF) the penultimate compulsory task awaits.

More than 34,000 tickets have already been sold for the final against Austria in Hanover next Tuesday (7 p.m./ARD). This is an outstanding number considering that the eight-time women’s European champion Germany has long since qualified for the 2025 European Championship finals in Switzerland. The Arena am Maschsee has never been the venue for a women’s international match. Lower Saxony’s state capital is now providing evidence that the boundaries between the genders are becoming increasingly blurred, at least for part of the German audience, because the interaction between the national teams is currently quite obvious. Women are currently benefiting from the wave of sympathy surrounding men.

Hrubesch also watched a few games in Hamburg from the current European Championship in Germany and of course followed the German performances on the screen. Colleague Julian Nagelsmann’s team “did well and played really well”; all that was missing was that “a little bit of luck.” Above all, the 73-year-old emphasized that he was deeply impressed by the togetherness. At this point in the most recent media round, his assistant Thomas Nörenberg went a little further. It was “extremely impressive” how the men’s team took people along. The women’s selection now has “the same obligation, without ifs and buts,” said the 60-year-old in a demanding tone. The eternal Hrubesch confidant, affectionately referred to as “boss” by the national coach, gave an almost fiery speech about his sense of honor. The ensemble around captain Alexandra Popp is already “on a very good path,” but this path will “never be over.”

Like Hrubesch, co-coach Britta Carlson, who will soon be leaving – the new national coach Christian Wück will be supported by ex-national players Saskia Bartusiak and Maren Meinert after the Olympics – also observed an exemplary team spirit from the couch: “I hope that we share this sense of unity, this commitment and this euphoria.«

As a reminder: Despite a previous EM 2022 that was characterized by harmony, the DFB women returned from the 2023 World Cup in Australia as a shattered community because, above all, head coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg’s relationship with the players had completely broken down. That’s the only reason Hrubesch is helping out in the position a second time. As an “ancient man” (Hrubesch), the Westphalian native still reliably provides glue when something falls apart somewhere in the German Football Association (DFB). The women should now present themselves as a close-knit community at the Olympic Games, especially because the U21 men did not qualify at all.

In accordance with the strict guidelines of the International Olympic Committee, the squad, which only consists of 16 field players and two goalkeepers, will meet in Frankfurt on July 20th and travel to the south of France a day later. In Marseille we will face World Cup fourth-placed Australia (July 25) and record Olympic champion USA (July 28), before outsiders Zambia await in Saint-Étienne (July 31).

The short squad, the tight schedule and the expected heat make the medal mission particularly challenging. However, Hrubesch claims to have noticed “a sparkle in the eyes of the basketball and hockey players” when they were getting dressed at the beginning of the week. This unifying sporting event is made for people “who train for four years so that they might be eliminated in the preliminary stages. You have to get it under your belt first.” He still raves about the special spirit that prevailed in the Olympic Village when he reached the final with Germany’s men in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. In 2024, however, his new protégés will only be able to experience this feeling if they reach the final on August 10th in Paris.