During a car ride
Sandro Wagner’s World Cup dream burst 2018
20.08.2025 – 12:12 p.m.Reading time: 2 min.
In 2018 Sandro Wagner was not nominated for the World Cup by the then national coach Joachim Löw. Now he talks about the background.
For Sandro Wagner it was the bitterest moment of his career: Shortly before the 2018 World Cup, the then Bayern striker learned that he was not in the squad. In the Podcast “Phrasenmäher”, today’s coach of FC Augsburg spoke openly about how he experienced Jogi Löw’s cancellation – and why he regretted his reaction afterwards.
According to his own assessment, Wagner was in top form. In his opinion, eight hits in the second half of the season for Bayern Munich had made him the “best German striker”. The call of the national coach came all the more surprising for him.
Wagner remembered that he drove back from Italy with his wife and a friend in the car when he reached news from his teammates. They asked if his wife was traveling to the World Cup or whether they would share a room. Wagner replied that he still had no information – and continued.
According to his own statement, he only got the decisive call late in the evening. Wagner reported: “I put on loudspeakers because I have just driven and I no longer have the exact words in my head. It was definitely loud and I heard wine glasses in the back and then he said that I wasn’t there.” It was incomprehensible to him because he felt in a flow. He could also have supported the team as a substitute.
A day later, Wagner ended his career in the DFB team. At that time he said that he was probably not a coaching team with his open and direct manner. Today he sees this decision critically. “It was stupid to focus on this,” he said. Instead of immediate criticism, he should have passed a few days.
Wagner emphasized about the relationship with Löw that there are no problems today. They had met several times in recent years, and when he moved to China, the former national coach even contacted him – a gesture that surprised and delighted him.