Germany national football team
| Nickname(s) | DFB-Team (DFB Team) Die Nationalelf (The National Eleven) DFB-Elf (DFB Eleven) Die Mannschaft (The Team) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Association | Deutscher Fußball-Bund (DFB) | |||
| Confederation | UEFA (Europe) | |||
| Head coach | Julian Nagelsmann | |||
| Captain | Joshua Kimmich | |||
| Most caps | Lothar Matthäus (150) | |||
| Top scorer | Miroslav Klose (71) | |||
| Home stadium | Various | |||
| FIFA code | GER | |||
| ||||
| FIFA ranking | ||||
| Current | 10 (3 April 2025) | |||
| Highest | 1 (December 1992 – August 1993, December 1993 – March 1994, June 1994, July 2014 – June 2015, July 2017, September 2017 – June 2018) | |||
| Lowest | 22 (March 2006) | |||
| First international | ||||
| Switzerland 5–3 Germany (Basel, Switzerland; 5 April 1908) | ||||
| Biggest win | ||||
| Germany 16–0 Russian Empire (Stockholm, Sweden; 1 July 1912) | ||||
| Biggest defeat | ||||
| England Amateurs 9–0 Germany (Oxford, England; 13 March 1909) | ||||
| World Cup | ||||
| Appearances | 20 (first in 1934) | |||
| Best result | Champions (1954, 1974, 1990, 2014) | |||
| European Championship | ||||
| Appearances | 14 (first in 1972) | |||
| Best result | Champions (1972, 1980, 1996) | |||
| Nations League Finals | ||||
| Appearances | 1 (first in 2025) | |||
| Best result | Fourth place (2025) | |||
| Summer Olympic Games | ||||
| Appearances | 8 (first in 1912) | |||
| Best result | Bronze medal (1988) | |||
| Confederations Cup | ||||
| Appearances | 3 (first in 1999) | |||
| Best result | Champions (2017) | |||
Medal record | ||||
| Website | dfb.de (in German) | |||
The Germany national football team (German: Deutsche Fußballnationalmannschaft) represents Germany in men's international football and played its first match in 1908. The team is governed by the German Football Association (Deutscher Fußball-Bund), founded in 1900. Between 1949 and 1990, separate German national teams were recognised by FIFA due to Allied occupation and division: the DFB's team representing the Federal Republic of Germany (commonly referred to as West Germany in English between 1949 and 1990), the Saarland team representing the Saar Protectorate (1950–1956) and the East Germany team representing the German Democratic Republic (1952–1990). The latter two were absorbed along with their records; the present team represents the reunified Federal Republic. The official name and code "Germany FR (FRG)" was shortened to "Germany (GER)" following reunification in 1990.
Germany is one of the most successful national teams in international competitions, having won four FIFA World Cups (1954, 1974, 1990, and 2014), tied with Italy, and only one less than the most successful team, Brazil. Having won three European Championships (1972, 1980, and 1996) Germany is second behind Spain, the record holder in that international competition with four. Germany also won the FIFA Confederations Cup in 2017. They have also been runners-up at the European Championship three times, and four times at the World Cup, with a further four third-place finishes at the World Cup. East Germany won Olympic Gold in 1976. Germany was the first, and is one of only two nations to have won both the FIFA World Cup and the FIFA Women's World Cup (the other being Spain). By combined World Cups, Germany stands as the most successful football nation in history with six World Cups – four for the men's team and two for the women's. At the end of the 2014 World Cup, Germany earned the second highest Elo rating of any national football team in history, with 2,223 points. Germany is also the only European nation that has won a FIFA World Cup in the Americas.