Germany–Italy football rivalry

The Germany–Italy football rivalry between the national football teams of Germany and Italy,[1][2][3][4][5] two of the most successful football nations in Europe, is a long-running one. Overall, the two teams have won eight FIFA World Cup championships (four each) and made a total of 14 appearances in the final of the tournament (eight for Germany and six for Italy)—more than all the other European nations combined.

Italy–Germany rivalry
Commemorative plaque at Estadio Azteca (Mexico City) for the Game of the Century
LocaleUEFA
Teams Germany
 Italy
First meetingItaly 3–1 Germany
Friendly
(1 January 1923)
Latest meetingItaly 0–0 Germany
Friendly
(15 November 2016)
Statistics
Meetings total35
Most winsItaly (15)
All-time seriesItaly: 15
Draw: 12
Germany: 8
Largest victoryGermany 5–2 Italy
Friendly
(26 November 1939)
Italy 4–1 Germany
Friendly
(1 March 2006)
Germany 4–1 Italy
Friendly
(29 March 2016)
Largest goal scoringGermany 5–2 Italy
Friendly
(26 November 1939)
Italy 4–3 (a.e.t) Germany
1970 World Cup
(17 June 1970)
Germany
Italy

They have played against each other five times in the World Cup, and many of these matches have been notable in the history of the tournament. The "Game of the Century", the 1970 semifinal between the two countries that Italy won 4–3 in extra time, was so dramatic that it is commemorated by a plaque at the entrance of the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. Germany has also won three European Championships while Italy has won it once. The two countries have faced each other four times in the European championship, with three draws (one German penalty shoot-out success) and one Italian victory.

While Germany has won more international championships, Italy is largely dominant in the head-to-head international match-up, having beaten Germany 15 times in 35 games, with 12 draws and 8 defeats.[6] Moreover, Germany has never won against Italy in an official major tournament match, with all Germany's wins over Italy being in friendly competitions—however, Germany had overcome Italy on penalties following a draw after extra time in the quarter-finals of Euro 2016.[7] A draw in the group stage of Euro 1996 also eliminated Italy from the tournament, while Germany had already qualified for the knockout stage.[8][9] There were also four matches played between Italy and East Germany which resulted 1 win for each country and 2 draws.

List of matches

No. Date Location Competition Game Results
11 January 1923 MilanFriendlyItaly – Germany3–1
223 November 1924 DuisburgGermany – Italy0–1
328 April 1929 TurinItaly – Germany1–2
42 March 1930 FrankfurtGermany – Italy0–2
51 January 1933 BolognaItaly – Germany3–1
615 November 1936 BerlinGermany – Italy2–2
726 March 1939 FlorenceItaly – Germany3–2
826 November 1939 BerlinGermany – Italy5–2
95 May 1940 MilanItaly – Germany3–2
1030 March 1955 StuttgartGermany – Italy1–2
1118 December 1955 RomeItaly – Germany2–1
1231 May 1962 Santiago1962 World CupItaly – Germany0–0
1313 March 1965 HamburgFriendlyGermany – Italy1–1
1417 June 1970 Mexico City1970 World CupItaly – Germany4–3
(a)
1526 February 1974 RomeFriendlyItaly – Germany0–0
168 October 1977 BerlinGermany – Italy2–1
1714 June 1978 Buenos Aires1978 World CupItaly – Germany0–0
1811 July 1982 Madrid1982 World Cup FinalItaly – Germany3–1
(b)
1922 May 1984 ZürichFriendlyGermany – Italy1–0
205 February 1986 AvellinoItaly – Germany1–2
2118 April 1987 KölnGermany – Italy0–0
2210 June 1988 DüsseldorfEuro 19881–1
2325 March 1992 TurinFriendlyItaly – Germany1–0
2423 March 1994 StuttgartGermany – Italy2–1
2521 June 1995 ZürichGermany – Italy2–0
2619 June 1996 ManchesterEuro 1996Germany – Italy0–0
2720 August 2003 StuttgartFriendlyGermany – Italy0–1
281 March 2006 FlorenceItaly – Germany4–1
294 July 2006 Dortmund2006 World CupGermany – Italy0–2
(c)
309 February 2011 DortmundFriendlyGermany – Italy1–1
3128 June 2012 WarsawEuro 2012Germany – Italy1–2
3215 November 2013 MilanFriendlyItaly – Germany1–1
3329 March 2016 MunichGermany – Italy4–1
342 July 2016 BordeauxEuro 2016Germany – Italy1–1
(d)
3515 November 2016 MilanFriendlyItaly – Germany0–0

(a) Italy wins the semi-final 4–3 in extra time.
(b) Italy wins the final 3–1 and wins the 1982 World Cup.
(c) Italy wins the semi-final 2–0 in extra time and later wins the 2006 World Cup.
(d) Germany advanced in the quarter-final 6–5 in penalty shoot-out.

Comparison in major international tournaments

Key

  Denotes which team finished better in that particular competition.
DNQ: Did not qualify.
DNP: Did not participate.
TBD: To be determined.

Tournament  Germany  Italy Notes
1930 World Cup DNP DNP
1934 World Cup 3rd 1st Tournament played in Italy.
1938 World Cup 10th German team included Austrian players as a result of the Anschluss.
1950 World Cup DNP 7th Germans were still banned as a result of World War II.
1954 World Cup 1st 10th First tournament where only West Germany was represented.
1958 World Cup 4th DNQ
Euro 1960 DNP DNP
1962 World Cup 7th 9th Germany and Italy were placed in the same first round group. Ended in a scoreless draw in the match between the two teams.
Euro 1964 DNP DNQ
1966 World Cup 2nd 9th
Euro 1968 DNQ 1st Tournament played in Italy.
1970 World Cup 3rd 2nd In the semifinals, Italy defeated Germany 4–3 after extra time.
Euro 1972 1st DNQ
1974 World Cup 10th Tournament played in West Germany. East Germany also qualified for this tournament.
Euro 1976 2nd DNQ
1978 World Cup 6th 4th In the second round, the two sides ended in a scoreless draw.
Euro 1980 1st 4th Tournament played in Italy.
1982 World Cup 2nd 1st In the final, Italy defeated Germany 3–1.
Euro 1984 5th DNQ
1986 World Cup 2nd 12th
Euro 1988 3rd 4th Tournament played in West Germany. Germany and Italy were placed in the same first round group. Ended as a 1–1 draw in the match between the two teams.
1990 World Cup 1st 3rd Tournament played in Italy.
Euro 1992 2nd DNQ First tournament since World War II where all of Germany was represented by one team.
1994 World Cup 5th 2nd
Euro 1996 1st 10th Germany and Italy were placed in the same first round group. The match against each other ended in a scoreless draw, and eliminated Italy from the tournament, which Germany won.
1998 World Cup 7th 5th
Euro 2000 15th 2nd
2002 World Cup 2nd 15th
Euro 2004 12th 9th
2006 World Cup 3rd 1st Tournament played in Germany. In the semi finals, Italy defeated Germany 2–0 after extra time.
Euro 2008 2nd 8th
2010 World Cup 3rd 26th
Euro 2012 3rd 2nd In the semi finals, Italy defeated Germany 2–1.
2014 World Cup 1st 22nd
Euro 2016 3rd 5th In the quarter finals, Germany eliminated Italy 6–5 in penalty shootout after the match ended 1–1.
2018 World Cup 22nd DNQ
Euro 2020 TBD TBD Tournament played in both Germany and Italy.

Major encounters

1962 World Cup

This game was the first match ever played in a World Cup between Germany and Italy, and saw few scoring chances for both sides. In the first half Uwe Seeler hit the bar, Albert Brülls and Omar Sívori also had their chances. In the second half the game became more physical and sometimes brutal but in the end defences overcame attacks and no goals were scored.[10]

West Germany 0–0 Italy
Report

1970 World Cup

Italy led for the majority of the semi-final match, after Roberto Boninsegna scored in the 8th minute. Germany's Franz Beckenbauer dislocated his shoulder[11] after being fouled, but stayed on the field carrying his dislocated arm in a sling, as his side had already used their two permitted substitutions.

Defender Karl-Heinz Schnellinger equalized for West Germany during injury time at the end of the second half. German television commentator Ernst Huberty exclaimed "Schnellinger, of all people!", since Schnellinger played in Italy's professional football league, Serie A, at A.C. Milan (for whom he rarely scored) and previously for A.S. Roma and A.C. Mantova. It was also his first and only goal in 47 matches for the national team. The second half ended with the scores deadlocked at 1–1, and at this point the match became a battle of endurance during the two periods of extra time.

Gerd Müller put Germany ahead in the 94th minute, but Tarcisio Burgnich tied it back up four minutes later and Luigi Riva put the Italians back in front. Gerd Müller scored again for West Germany to tie up the score at 3–3. Yet, as television cameras were still replaying Müller's goal, Italy's Gianni Rivera scored the game-winning goal in the 111th minute. Being left unmarked near the penalty area, Rivera connected a fine cross made by Boninsegna, clinching the victory for Italy at 4–3.[12]

Italy 4–3 (a.e.t.) West Germany
Boninsegna  8'
Burgnich  98'
Riva  104'
Rivera  111'
Report Schnellinger  90'
Müller  94', 110'
Attendance: 102,444
Referee: Arturo Yamasaki Maldonado (Mexico)

1978 World Cup

This match was played in the first matchday of Group A of the 1978 FIFA World Cup, a round robin played between the winners and the runners-up of the groups of the first phase; the game ended in a scoreless draw. At the end of the second phase Italy managed to reach the third place play-off against Brazil, while Germany were eliminated as third in the group.

1982 World Cup

On 11 July, after a scoreless first half during which Antonio Cabrini fired a penalty low and wide to the right of goal, Paolo Rossi scored first, heading home a bouncing Claudio Gentile cross from the right from close range. Marco Tardelli then scored from the edge of the area with a low left footed shot before Alessandro Altobelli, at the end of a counterattack by winger Bruno Conti, made it 3–0 with another low left footed shot. Paul Breitner scored for Germany in the 83rd minute, firing low past the goalkeeper from the right, but Italy held on to claim their first World Cup title in 44 years, and their third in total with a 3–1 victory.[13]

Italy 3–1 West Germany
Rossi  57'
Tardelli  69'
Altobelli  81'
Report Breitner  83'

Euro 1988

Both the sides faced-off in the opening match of Euro 1988 in group stage held in West Germany. The first half ended without any goals. Within 10 minutes of the second half Roberto Mancini gave the Italian side the lead by scoring at the 52nd minute, however the lead was short lived as Andreas Brehme scored the equalizer for West Germany at the 55th minute. The game ended in a draw with one goal for each side.[14]

West Germany 1–1 Italy
Brehme  55' Report Mancini  52'
Attendance: 62,552

Euro 1996

The two teams were matched up in the final game of the group stage of UEFA Euro 1996. Germany was already guaranteed progress to the next stage unless Italy and Czech Republic both won their matches while Italy was faced with a must-win situation if the Czech Republic did not lose to Russia. Gianfranco Zola had a penalty saved by Andreas Köpke in the 9th minute and Thomas Strunz was sent off in the 59th minute. Despite the man advantage and the lion's share of possession, Italy failed to score due to the heroic display of Köpke. The goalless draw resulted in Italy being eliminated from the tournament as the Cezch Republic drew with Russia[15]


Italy 0–0 Germany
Report
Attendance: 53,740

2006 World Cup

This was the semi-final match played in Westfalenstadion, Dortmund, in front of a crowd of 65,000 on 4 July 2006. Until then, the Westfalenstadion had been a fortress-like stadium for the German national team, as Germany had never lost there in 14 matches. During an eventful match, this record was broken when two late goals in the closing half of extra-time scored by Fabio Grosso and Alessandro Del Piero saw Italy advance to the final. Italy went on to win the World Cup for a fourth time.

German midfielder Torsten Frings was suspended for this semi-final match against Italy after footage was released by the media of him throwing a punch at Argentinian player Julio Cruz in Germany's quarter-final match up with Argentina after a brawl broke out; his suspension for the semi-final was announced by FIFA one day before the semi-final match was to be played.[16]

Germany 0–2 (a.e.t.) Italy
Report

Euro 2012

Italy met Germany again in the semi-final match of Euro 2012 in the evening of 28 June 2012 at National Stadium in Warsaw. Prior to this match, Germany had set a world football record with 15 consecutive wins in competitive matches, which included all matches of Euro 2012 up to that point and the qualifiers. However, also this record was to be broken by Italy on that day.

In the 20th minute, Italian striker Mario Balotelli scored the first goal for Italy, in the left corner of the net, heading past German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer after receiving a cross from Antonio Cassano, then in the 36th minute, Balotelli scored again for Italy, this time blasted into the top right corner on a one-on-one with Neuer, assisted by a Riccardo Montolivo lob over the German defence, giving them a two-goal lead. In the second half, the Germans attacked, trying to even the score. Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon made several impressive saves to many German shots. Two minutes into added time, Italian defender Federico Balzaretti committed a handball inside the penalty box. The resulting penalty was successfully converted by the German midfielder Mesut Özil.

Thus, the final score was 2–1 to Italy, who went on to the finals against defending champions Spain. As in their previous encounter in the 2006 World Cup semifinal match, Andrea Pirlo was again elected the man of the match.

Germany 1–2 Italy
Özil  90+2' (pen.) Report Balotelli  20', 36'
Attendance: 55,540[17]

Euro 2016

On 2 July 2016, Germany and Italy met at the Nouveau Stade de Bordeaux in Bordeaux during the quarter-finals of the UEFA Euro 2016 where the match ended in a 1–1 draw after extra time, with Germany advancing 6–5 after a penalty shoot-out—statistically still a draw, it was the first time ever Germany had overcame Italy in a competitive match.[18][7]

Mesut Özil scored in the 65th minute to give Germany the lead. In the 78th minute Leonardo Bonucci scored from the penalty spot after Jérôme Boateng was fouled for a handball in the box. After a goalless extra time period, with the two sides still locked at one goal each, a penalty shoot-out resulted 6–5 in favour of Germany.

Manuel Neuer (Germany) and Gianluigi Buffon (Italy), the goalkeeper-captains of their respective teams for the quarter-final (although Neuer handed the skipper's armband when Bastian Schweinsteiger was substituted in), were the last goalkeepers who had not conceded a goal in the tournament until this match. They received praise for their performances in the quarter final.[19]

Statistics

Overall

Competition Matches Result Goals
Germany Draws Italy Germany Italy
FIFA World Cup 502349
UEFA Euros 403*134
All competitions 9054713
Friendly 2687113437
All matches 35812154150

Note: *Germany overcame Italy in a Euro 2016 quarter-final match via penalty shoot-out.

See also

References

  1. ""Tra noi e i panzer una rivalità speciale" (in Italian). ilgiornale.it. 15 November 2013.
  2. "Germania-Italia story: dal '70 al 2006 una rivalità che si rinnova nel tempo" (in Italian). calcio.fanpage.it. 26 June 2012.
  3. "L'Inter vince la Champions e riaccende l'eterna rivalità fra Italia e Germania" (in Italian). loccidentale.it. 23 May 2010. Archived from the original on 2 December 2013. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
  4. "E' di nuovo Italia-Germania, dolci ricordi mondiali..." (in Italian). gazzetta.it. 24 June 2012.
  5. "Italy, Germany renew rivalry at Euro". sportsnet.ca. 28 June 2012.
  6. Italy national football team: record v Germany
  7. "Germany finally defeat Italy to stride into semis". UEFA.com. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
  8. Euro 96 Germany vs. Italy match report.
  9. Bundesliga Fanatic: CLASSIC EURO PERFORMANCES – GERMANY VS ITALY – 1996 – “ARRIVEDERCI ITALIA!”
  10. World Cup 1962: Game Details
  11. "Der Kaiser, the brains behind Germany". FIFA. Retrieved 24 July 2009.
  12. 1970 FIFA World Cup Mexico. Match report. Italy - Germany FR FIFA.com
  13. "Sparkling Italy spring ultimate upset". Glasgow Herald. 12 July 1982. Retrieved 28 February 2016.
  14. "Brehme salvages precious point against Italy". UEFA.com. 5 October 2003. Retrieved 4 December 2017.
  15. "Italy pay penalty for Germany stalemate". UEFA.com. 6 October 2003. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  16. "Frings misses semi-final after trial by TV footage". theguardian.com. 4 July 2016. Retrieved 13 July 2016.
  17. "Full-time report Germany-Italy" (PDF). UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 28 June 2012. Retrieved 28 June 2012.
  18. "Germany vs Italy, Euro 2016: Germans win the shootout after Bonucci penalty cancels out Ozil opener". The Telegraph. 2 July 2016. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  19. "Manuel Neuer edges Buffon in battle of Germany and Italy's great goalkeepers". theguardian.com. 3 July 2016. Retrieved 4 July 2016.
  20. "Full Time Summary – Germany v Italy" (PDF). UEFA.org. Union of European Football Associations. 2 July 2016. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
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