The calm after the storm or the silence in the eye of the storm? A lot went on in 2014 and this packed year reached its peak at the World Cup Final in the Maracanã. What will happen in 2015? The men’s senior side have some time off while many other German sides have major tournaments in the next twelve months, including the finals of the World and European Championships. Who is playing when and where? DFB.de gives an overview of the tournaments happening in 2015.
Ladies first...
Women’s national team
The Women’s World Cup will take place in Canada between 6th June and 5th July 2015. Germany will play in Group B in Ottawa against the Ivory Coast on 7th June and Norway on 11th June. The final group game will take place in Winnipeg on 15th June and Thailand are Germany’s opponents. The winners of the group, the second-placed team and the four best third-placed teams will qualify for the quarter-finals. The tournament in Canada is the 7th edition of Women’s World Cup. Germany and the USA are the equal record champions with two titles each, while Norway and defending champions Japan have each won the trophy once. Germany are travelling to Canada with high expectations. Their coach Silvia Neid said: “It is of course both our dream and our aim to become World Champions again. However, it is a long road to get there. If we get to the semi-finals, then we would have already achieved a great goal.”
U19 Women
In the spring, the German Football Association will host one of the six groups of the Elite Round of the 2015 European Championships that will take place in Israel between 15th and 27th July. Maren Meinert’s women’s U19 team will play against Belgium, Scotland and the Ukraine in the Elite Round. The matches will take place on 4th, 6th and 9th April. The six group winners and the runners-ups with the best records in the groups will qualify alongside Israel for the finals taking place between 15th and 27th July 2015. Meinert described her ambition for her team in the following way: “Our first aim is that we stay in the tournament until the end so that we are able to test ourselves against the other six teams like they do in the U20 World Cup. If we get to the end of the tournament and successfully win the trophy, then it is even better.”
U16 Women
There are two tournaments in 2015 for the U15s. To kick-off 2015, Germany's manager Ulrike Ballweg will take the U16s to their first training course of the year in Duisburg. At the end of the month, between 28th and 30th January, 30 players from the 1999 team will meet at the sports school in Wedau. The course will serve as preparation for tournament number one, the “UEFA Development Tournament” that will take place in Portugal in February. There, the German team will meet the Netherlands on 19th February, Spain on 21st February and Scotland on 23rd Februray. In summer, the team will take part in the “Nordic Cup”. Germany will be in Group B and will play Norway on 29th June, Sweden on 30th June and Iceland on 2nd July.
Last but not least, the men
U21 men
The major goal is Prague. In summer, the U21 team will travel to the European Championship finals in the Czech Republic and will try to bring back the trophy that Germany last won in 2009. The coach of the team both then and now, Horst Hrubesch, said: “We want to play to win the trophy, that is very clear.” The other countries that qualified for the tournament alongside Germany are Denmark, Serbia, England, Italy, Portugal, Sweden and the hosts the Czech Republic. Germany will play in Group A against Serbia on 17th June in Prague, against Denmark on 20th June In Prague and against the Czech Republic on 23rd June also in Prague. The two group winners will qualify for the semi-final and that is where the winner of Group A will meet the second-placed team in Group B and vice-versa.
By qualifying for the semi-finals, a team will also thereby secure a place at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. A very appealing long-term goal, as Hrubesch said: “The Olympic Games are, alongside the World Cup, the biggest event that an athlete can experience. When I became the manager of the U21 team once again in 2013, I said that I absolutely wanted to go to the Olympics and nothing has changed. However, we primarily want to win the title and then we can be happy about securing a spot at the Olympics.”
U20 men
By winning the U19 European Championships in Hungary last year, Germany thereby qualified for the 2015 U20 World Cup. European runners-up Portugal, semi-finalists Serbia and Austria, along with the two teams that finished third in their group, Hungary and Ukraine, are the European teams that have also qualified for the tournament in New Zealand. A total of 24 teams will take part in the World Cup. The tournament will take place in the period between 30th May and 20th June 2015, while the World Cup draw will take place on the 10th February. U20 manager Frank Wormuth talked about his ambition for the team: “That is definitely the title. Lots of players in the team are already U19 European champions and of course want to win another world title in 2015.”
U17 men
Lots of highlights and lots of opportunities and it all starts with the Algarve Cup in February. Manager Christian Wück’s team will play against Portugal on 13th February, against the Netherlands on 15th February and against England on 17th February. The European Championship qualifiers will follow in the middle of March and the U17s will play against Slovakia in Wetzlar on 21st March, against the Ukraine in Marburg on 23rd March and against Italy in Wetzlar on 26th March. If the team qualifies, they will then take part in the European Championships in Bulgaria in May (between 6th and 22nd May) and will also have to qualify once more for the World Cup that will take place in Chile between 17th October and 8th November. “I am only thinking about the Algarve Cup and the European qualifiers,” said Christian Wuck when he was asked about milestones for 2015. “Everything else will come when we get that far.”
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The calm after the storm or the silence in the eye of the storm? A lot went on in 2014 and this packed year reached its peak at the World Cup Final in the Maracanã. What will happen in 2015? The men’s senior side have some time off while many other German sides have major tournaments in the next twelve months, including the finals of the World and European Championships. Who is playing when and where? DFB.de gives an overview of the tournaments happening in 2015.
Ladies first...
Women’s national team
The Women’s World Cup will take place in Canada between 6th June and 5th July 2015. Germany will play in Group B in Ottawa against the Ivory Coast on 7th June and Norway on 11th June. The final group game will take place in Winnipeg on 15th June and Thailand are Germany’s opponents. The winners of the group, the second-placed team and the four best third-placed teams will qualify for the quarter-finals. The tournament in Canada is the 7th edition of Women’s World Cup. Germany and the USA are the equal record champions with two titles each, while Norway and defending champions Japan have each won the trophy once. Germany are travelling to Canada with high expectations. Their coach Silvia Neid said: “It is of course both our dream and our aim to become World Champions again. However, it is a long road to get there. If we get to the semi-finals, then we would have already achieved a great goal.”
U19 Women
In the spring, the German Football Association will host one of the six groups of the Elite Round of the 2015 European Championships that will take place in Israel between 15th and 27th July. Maren Meinert’s women’s U19 team will play against Belgium, Scotland and the Ukraine in the Elite Round. The matches will take place on 4th, 6th and 9th April. The six group winners and the runners-ups with the best records in the groups will qualify alongside Israel for the finals taking place between 15th and 27th July 2015. Meinert described her ambition for her team in the following way: “Our first aim is that we stay in the tournament until the end so that we are able to test ourselves against the other six teams like they do in the U20 World Cup. If we get to the end of the tournament and successfully win the trophy, then it is even better.”
U16 Women
There are two tournaments in 2015 for the U15s. To kick-off 2015, Germany's manager Ulrike Ballweg will take the U16s to their first training course of the year in Duisburg. At the end of the month, between 28th and 30th January, 30 players from the 1999 team will meet at the sports school in Wedau. The course will serve as preparation for tournament number one, the “UEFA Development Tournament” that will take place in Portugal in February. There, the German team will meet the Netherlands on 19th February, Spain on 21st February and Scotland on 23rd Februray. In summer, the team will take part in the “Nordic Cup”. Germany will be in Group B and will play Norway on 29th June, Sweden on 30th June and Iceland on 2nd July.
Last but not least, the men
U21 men
The major goal is Prague. In summer, the U21 team will travel to the European Championship finals in the Czech Republic and will try to bring back the trophy that Germany last won in 2009. The coach of the team both then and now, Horst Hrubesch, said: “We want to play to win the trophy, that is very clear.” The other countries that qualified for the tournament alongside Germany are Denmark, Serbia, England, Italy, Portugal, Sweden and the hosts the Czech Republic. Germany will play in Group A against Serbia on 17th June in Prague, against Denmark on 20th June In Prague and against the Czech Republic on 23rd June also in Prague. The two group winners will qualify for the semi-final and that is where the winner of Group A will meet the second-placed team in Group B and vice-versa.
By qualifying for the semi-finals, a team will also thereby secure a place at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. A very appealing long-term goal, as Hrubesch said: “The Olympic Games are, alongside the World Cup, the biggest event that an athlete can experience. When I became the manager of the U21 team once again in 2013, I said that I absolutely wanted to go to the Olympics and nothing has changed. However, we primarily want to win the title and then we can be happy about securing a spot at the Olympics.”
U20 men
By winning the U19 European Championships in Hungary last year, Germany thereby qualified for the 2015 U20 World Cup. European runners-up Portugal, semi-finalists Serbia and Austria, along with the two teams that finished third in their group, Hungary and Ukraine, are the European teams that have also qualified for the tournament in New Zealand. A total of 24 teams will take part in the World Cup. The tournament will take place in the period between 30th May and 20th June 2015, while the World Cup draw will take place on the 10th February. U20 manager Frank Wormuth talked about his ambition for the team: “That is definitely the title. Lots of players in the team are already U19 European champions and of course want to win another world title in 2015.”
U17 men
Lots of highlights and lots of opportunities and it all starts with the Algarve Cup in February. Manager Christian Wück’s team will play against Portugal on 13th February, against the Netherlands on 15th February and against England on 17th February. The European Championship qualifiers will follow in the middle of March and the U17s will play against Slovakia in Wetzlar on 21st March, against the Ukraine in Marburg on 23rd March and against Italy in Wetzlar on 26th March. If the team qualifies, they will then take part in the European Championships in Bulgaria in May (between 6th and 22nd May) and will also have to qualify once more for the World Cup that will take place in Chile between 17th October and 8th November. “I am only thinking about the Algarve Cup and the European qualifiers,” said Christian Wuck when he was asked about milestones for 2015. “Everything else will come when we get that far.”
