German newspapers’ websites react boldly to World Cup victory
The German team earned a reputation for calm and collected goal celebrations throughout the tournament. But Sunday, Germany let loose after being crowned World Cup champions, so German newspapers tried to capture the joy in the form of passionate, exclamatory headlines on their websites.
The newspaper Die Welt (The World) ran the words “All Germany is world champion” over a photo of Bastian Schweinsteiger leaping jubilantly with the trophy in hand, his teammates following while displaying their medals.
The German jerseys feature three stars, representing the country’s three previous World Cup victories. Those uniforms now need a redesign.
“Finally the fourth star is there,” shouted a banner on Die Welt’s website.
Germany had last won a World Cup in 1990. The Germans lost an extra-time semifinal game to Italy on home soil in 2006. In 2010, Germany lost, 1-0, to eventual champion Spain and finished in third place.
So the word “finally” -- endlich in German -- carries a great deal of weight.
Given the long wait for the celebration, the German media did not shy away from superlatives as they sought to describe the emotional victory. The Frankfurter Allgemeine called Mario Goetze’s 113th-minute goal “the goal of goals.”
The Frankfurter Allgemeine also posted a gallery of fan photos, describing the reaction of the “black-red-gold” faithful as “jubilation that knew no boundaries.”
Many of the German papers featured a photo of German Chancellor Angela Merkel with President Joachim Guack as they celebrated with arms raised high. Der Spiegel Online (The Mirror Online) posted the photo beneath the phrase “hands to heaven.”
As part of the trend of spiritual imagery, the Süddeutsche Zeitung (South German Newspaper) ran the subtitle “Götzseidank,” a play on the name Goetze and the German phrase Gott sei dank, “thank God.”
As the Frankfurter Allgemeine pointed out, Argentina might have the pope, but Germany is again World Cup champion.
Follow Samantha Zuba on Twitter: @szuuuubes
