Germany are out of the World Cup after Paraguay held their nerve to win a gripping penalty shoot-out after surviving a controversial VAR in extra-time.
Julian Nagelsmann’s side thought they had taken the lead in extra-time after Jonathan Tah’s header, but VAR intervened and the Germany defender also missed a vital penalty in the shoot-out before Jose Canale buried the decisive kick.
Paraguay had taken a shock lead through Julio Enciso’s crisp header, but Nagelsmann’s side worked their way back into the contest thanks to Florian Wirtz’s curling cross and the thinnest of touches from Kai Havertz to beat Orlando Gill.
And a thrilling shoot-out saw Paraguay twice miss spot kicks to win the tie with Manuel Neuer’s heroic effort following Kai Havertz and Nick Woltermade’s misses, but after Tah’s third miss for Germany, Canale held his nerve to ensure a second South American side advanced on Tuesday to the last 16 after Brazil’s comeback victory over Japan.
Follow all the latest reaction and updates from the penalty shoot-out between Germany and Paraguay in the World Cup round of 32 below:
Carlo Ancelotti’s old habit inspires dramatic Brazil comeback to break Japan hearts
So this was what Brazil hired Carlo Ancelotti to bring. The Italian won the Champions League three times with Real Madrid. Each brought a crucial injury-time goal in either the semi-final or the final; at times more than one.
And so, as Bruno Guimaraes pierced the Japan defence and Gabriel Martinelli angled a 95th-minute shot into the far corner of the net, the manager with the lowest heart rate in football had seen it all before.
Ancelotti can be the king of cool, the man who does not panic. His capacity for calm thinking in pressurised situations nevertheless contributed to a comeback that extends Brazil’s hope of gaining a sixth star on their shirts. Two of his changes had a catalytic effect: first introducing Endrick for Lucas Paqueta at half-time, giving Brazil a greater attacking threat, and then summoning Martinelli to replace Matheus Cunha.
World Cup 2026 golden boot standings as Lionel Messi surges clear of Mbappe, Haaland and Kane
Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland have been in excellent scoring touch themselves as two of Europe’s leading marksmen thrive on the biggest stage. Harry Kane is there or thereabouts, too, after heading home against Panama in England’s final group game. Vinicius Jr also stamped his mark with a brace against Scotland while Ousmane Dembele hit a superb hat-trick against Norway to throw his hat in the ring.
World Cup 2026 TV schedule: How to watch every game on BBC and ITV in the UK
Of course, you do have to factor in the time difference, with the kinder kick-off times including slots at 6pm BST and 8pm BST, while there are games throughout the night for UK viewers.
Welcome to the real World Cup – the tournament begins now
The Dutch squad perhaps put it best ahead of the most fascinating last-32 tie of all, against Morocco.
“It’s game on,” said Dutch defender Jan Paul van Hecke. “Now, the big games come.”
Musiala fortunate to escape with yellow
Darren Cann, BBC’s referee expert, on the Musiala yellow card: “I think it was a very strong challenge, the VAR will look at this, yellow is reckless, if the ref thinks it’s a red, then it’s endangering the safety of an opponent, it’s the back leg that catches him, is it only reckless?
“Or does he endanger the safety of an opponent with excessive force? I think probably the yellow will stand, but if Musiala had caught him with the front leg, it would have been a red card.”
World Cup 2026 power rankings: Argentina and France lead charge heading into knockouts
The 2026 World Cup is storming towards the knockout stages after this year’s bumper 48-team tournament had its first culling.
After a build-up that centred on controversy, greed and conflict, fans have been captivated by some enthralling performances and disappointed by others, with the likes of France and holders Argentina stamping their marks as rightful favourites, while England, Portugal and Brazil have all made slight missteps.
But the group stage is only the beginning – history will be written on the road to the final, with 32 remaining teams now raring to sink their teeth into the drama of knockouts football.
Here’s how every team in the knockout stages stacks up in The Independent’s World Cup 2026 power rankings, delving deeper into the top 10:
World Cup results
Here are the results in full from the opening games in the round of 32:
Sunday, 28 June
South Africa 0-1 Canada
Monday, 29 June
Brazil 2-1 Japan
Germany 1-1 Paraguay (3-4 pens.)
Is it over for Nagelsmann?
“Look, in a way this has been coming. Germany has been poor,” says German football expert Raphael Honigstein on BBC 5 Live.
“To be honest, if I want to be cynical and sarcastic, all we would have earned is a right to get absolutely destroyed by France.
“Of course, we will never know. I think it will be over for Julian Nagelsmann, I am afraid,” he added.
‘We deserved one more game’
“I think that what we are feeling right now is really hard to explain. I am really proud of my colleagues, of the team. We deserved one more game to be honest,” said Paraguay defender Gustavo Gomez at full-time.
“I think, considering everything that was said, everything we went through, what I want to highlight from my team is how united we are. We are incredibly strong.
“Today was a game where we needed to show our true colours as the Paraguayan team. Germany knew it would be really hard for them. They knew we would fight not to be defeated. We dedicate this to all the people of Paraguay.”
