Germany's over-80s national football team are world champions. The side won the title in Australia with a 2-0 victory over the USA in the final, held in Cleveland, a suburb of Brisbane.
The success highlights the growing importance of senior sports. Player Michael Rätsch from Hertha BSC, who scored the winning goal in the preliminary round match against Japan (2-1), stressed after the tournament: "We must ensure that more people play sports in old age." The tournament, already the eighth edition of the World Cup for players over 70, took place over five days with age groups Over-70, Over-75 and Over-80. The German Over-80s had to play two matches in one day to advance from the group stage through the semi-final to the final. Matches are played with eight outfield players and last 2 x 30 minutes. Up to four players per team may be under 80 years old, the goalkeeper can be as young as 77. Five Berliners were in the German squad.
Successful Title Defence
With the Over-80s' triumph, Germany continued the success story of its senior national teams. The Over-75s had already won the world title the previous year. A European Championship and further senior international matches are planned for the coming season. The joy of the latest success was undimmed by the exertions. "We all have red faces and sunburn. That didn't diminish the joy," said Rätsch.
While the seniors triumph, the senior men's national team is preparing for its next competitive fixture. On 13 November, they travel to Serbia for an away match in qualification. The recent form of the German team shows a mixed record with one win, two draws and one loss from the last four games (DWLD). The last match ended in a 0-0 draw in Greece on 4 October. Prior to that, there was a 2-0 home win against Serbia, with goals from Tom Bischof (39') and Florian Wirtz (61').
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