Germany’s hockey men have to bury the dream of winning the next big title and direct Olympic qualification.
In the semi-finals of the European Championship at home in Mönchengladbach, the reigning world champion surprisingly lost 5-4 in a penalty shoot-out against England, fifth in the world rankings, on Friday evening, after regular time it was 0-0. The Brits will now meet the defending champions from the Netherlands in the final on Sunday (3:00 p.m.).
The Netherlands, who lost 3-0 to the team of national coach Andre Henning in the preliminary round, had previously beaten Belgium 3-2 (0-1). Germany will play the 2021 Olympic champion for the bronze medal on Sunday.
The German women, who had also fought for the European title and the associated Olympic qualification in the Gladbach Hockey Park, failed on Thursday in the semi-finals against Belgium.