Germany were knocked out in a stunning fashion on Monday by Paraguay in the round of 32, which will go down as one of the biggest upsets in this edition of the FIFA World Cup.
The Germans were defeated in the penalty shootout after playing out a 1-1 draw in regular and extra time. Although the Germans look like the superior team on paper, with them having completed almost triple the amount of passes than their South American opponents, it was not enough to see them through to the next round.
Here we look at some of the most interesting facts and trivia from the match:
The end of Germany's penalty shootout invincibility
This is the first time ever that Germany have been knocked out in a penalty shootout in the long history of the FIFA World Cup. Die Mannschaft had created an almost mythical reputation for themselves after having won all of their previous penalty shootouts in the competition.
Paraguay's revenge after 24 years
In the 2002 World Cup, it was Germany which knocked out Paraguay in the round of 16, thanks to a late goal. And now, 24 years later, the same Paraguay knocked Germany out to reach the round of 16 in the FIFA World Cup.
Germany's World Cup decline
One of the most successful teams in World Cup history, Germany's string of poor performances continue at the biggest stage of football. After their 2014 win, in which they defeated a Lionel Messi-led Argentina, Germany were knocked out of the group stage in both 2018 and the 2022 editions of the tournament.
The 2026 round of 32 was their first appearance in the knockout stages of the tournament in 12 years, but the run was ended abruptly.
A massive ranking upset
This match was also one of the biggest ranking upsets of the tournament, with Germany starting the match when they were at the 12th spot globally on FIFA rankings while Paraguay were 38th.
Orlando Gill: Paraguay's new national hero
26-year-old Orlando Gill, the Paraguay goalkeeper, had hardly made any significant contributions to his national side before being selected for this World Cup. Notably, he was inducted into the Paraguay squad only in September 2025, and had made only five appearances for the side before the World Cup began.
He faced intense criticism after Paraguay's 4-1 defeat to the United States in the group stages, but in a matter of weeks he has become a national hero for his country.
Paraguay's first win in a WC knockout game since 2010
This was also the first time the South American nation managed to win a World Cup knockout game since the 2010 edition of the tournament in South Africa. This victory has thus ended their 16-year wait to win a match in this stage of the tournament.
Shocking match stats
When one looks at the stats of the Germany vs Paraguay match, it would be almost unbelievable that Germany managed to lose this one. They were the better side in almost all aspects of the game.
Take shots attempted. The Germans tried 21 times while Paraguay tried on a mere four occasions.
Germans had a stunning 75% possession while Paraguay had only 25%.
The Germans completed 753 passes while Paraguay managed to complete around a third of those - 262.
While Germany's pass accuracy was 92%, Paraguay's was a mere 69%.
Germany also took 16 corners in the span of the match, while Paraguay took only six.
