After a hard-fought draw against Hungary, Die Mannschaft have made it through to the round of sixteen at the Euros. Germany will now take on England in their next match.
The German national football team have managed to advance into the next stage of the European Championships, after earning a tough point to see them finish second in the group stages. Their position in the group means that they will now face England, in an exciting clash between two old rivals.
After a comfortable win over Portugal, German fans might have been excused for thinking that the game against Hungary was going to be smooth sailing. In reality, it was anything but, with Hungary taking the lead after just eleven minutes. Germany did manage to claw a goal back in the second half through Kai Havertz, however, Germany’s lead was cancelled out almost immediately by Andras Shafer. The goal sent Germany crashing to the bottom of the group, suddenly facing the prospect of being dumped out of the tournament in the group stages.
Germany finally managed to draw level again through Leon Goretzka, who smashed home a goal in the 84th minute to push Germany to second in the table. Despite a sluggish performance from Die Mannschaft, the team managed to hold on for a 2 – 2 draw, setting up a tantalising clash with England in the next stage of the tournament.
Even before kick-off, Germany’s final game of the group stages was marred by controversy. Following the introduction of a controversial law in Hungary, which limits access to information on homosexuality for minors, UEFA decided to reject a proposal that would have seen the Allianz Arena in Munich light up in rainbow colours. In a statement, UEFA said: “Given the political context of this particular request - a message aimed at a decision by the Hungarian Parliament - UEFA has to reject this request."
Fans and protestors came out in droves to support the LGBTQ+ community and protest UEFA’s ruling. Spectators flew rainbow-coloured flags during the game and one even ran onto the pitch during Hungary’s national anthem, sporting a German football shirt and a giant rainbow flag.
Outside the stadium, Christopher Street Day, which organises Pride celebrations around Germany, worked to hand out stickers and rainbow flags to the 11.000 supporters at the stadium. And, while the Allianz Arena was banned from displaying rainbow lights, other stadiums lit up around Germany, to show they stood in solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community.