Germany fired Nagelsmann after the team's failure at the 2026 World Cup
The German Football Association has officially terminated its contract with national team head coach Julian Nagelsmann following the team’s poor performance at the 2026 World Cup. The association is currently searching for a new head coach.
Julian Nagelsmann took over as head coach of the German national team in September 2023. Under his leadership, Germany reached the quarterfinals of the 2024 European Championship, held on home soil, where they lost in extra time to the eventual champions, Spain (1–2).
However, the team’s performance at the 2026 World Cup came as a real shock to the country. In the group stage, although Germany thrashed Curaçao (7–1) and defeated Côte d’Ivoire (2–1), they managed to suffer a sensational loss to Ecuador (1–2).
The final nail in the coffin came in the Round of 16 match against Paraguay. After a 1–1 draw in regulation and extra time, the Germans were eliminated in a penalty shootout (3–4).
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It was this fiasco that forced the DFB to part ways with the coach, even though Nagelsmann himself refused to resign voluntarily. For his early dismissal, the coach is now set to receive a substantial severance package amounting to approximately 7 million euros.
Along with the 38-year-old coach, his closest assistants—Benjamin Glück and Benjamin Hübner—are also leaving the national team.
The German Football Association made no secret of the name of the leading candidate for the vacant position. The legendary Jürgen Klopp is set to succeed Nagelsmann.
The DFB press office has officially confirmed that it is immediately beginning negotiations with the famous former Liverpool coach. Klopp himself had previously publicly expressed his willingness to lead the national team after its World Cup campaign ends, although he emphasized that “this is not a part-time job.”
As a reminder, the knockout stage is currently underway at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The Swiss national team easily defeated Algeria 2-0 and secured a spot in the round of 16.
