Twenty-five years ago, in 1990, Germany was reunified, and the state of East Germany ceased to exist. But in the dying days of the so-called Democratic Republic one international football match in Belgium remained to be played. Many of the best players saw no point in turning up - but those who did gave all they had.
It was on 12 September 1990 that East Germany's fate was sealed. At a ceremony in Moscow the foreign ministers of East and West Germany and the four occupying powers - Britain, France, the US and the Soviet Union - signed a treaty that brought about German unification three weeks later.
As the signatures were drying on the historic document a group of East German footballers were preparing for their own farewell, hundreds of miles to the west, in Brussels.
"I knew that that game would go into the history books. I was proud to be called up and we wanted to go out on a high note," remembers Uwe Rosler, then a 21-year-old striker playing for FC Magdeburg.
Communist East Germany had won more renown on the running track and in the pool than on the football pitch. In the last summer Olympics before the fall of the Berlin Wall - in Seoul in 1988 - it had come second only to the Soviet Union in the medals table.
Showing posts with label France. Show all posts
Showing posts with label France. Show all posts
Sunday, December 27, 2015
The East German team that refused to die
Twenty-five years ago, in 1990, Germany was reunified, and the state of East Germany ceased to exist. But in the dying days of the so-called Democratic Republic one international football match in Belgium remained to be played. Many of the best players saw no point in turning up - but those who did gave all they had.
It was on 12 September 1990 that East Germany's fate was sealed. At a ceremony in Moscow the foreign ministers of East and West Germany and the four occupying powers - Britain, France, the US and the Soviet Union - signed a treaty that brought about German unification three weeks later.
As the signatures were drying on the historic document a group of East German footballers were preparing for their own farewell, hundreds of miles to the west, in Brussels.
"I knew that that game would go into the history books. I was proud to be called up and we wanted to go out on a high note," remembers Uwe Rosler, then a 21-year-old striker playing for FC Magdeburg.
Communist East Germany had won more renown on the running track and in the pool than on the football pitch. In the last summer Olympics before the fall of the Berlin Wall - in Seoul in 1988 - it had come second only to the Soviet Union in the medals table.
Monday, December 14, 2015
Euro 2016: Host France to open against Romania in Stade de France
Host France will open Euro 2016 against Romania as the draw for the 24-team tournament was made Saturday in Paris.
The Stade de France, targeted in the Paris attacks last month, will be the venue for the first match as well as the final on July 10.
The draw at Le Palais des Congres in the French capital was held amid tight security as the representatives of the participating nations learned their opponents for next summer's finals.'Real Madrid star suspended by France over blackmail case'
One of France's biggest soccer stars looks set to miss the 2016 European Championships after he was suspended from national duty for his alleged involvement in a blackmail plot.
Karim Benzema, who plays for Spanish giants Real Madrid, has been implicated in a scheme to blackmail fellow player Mathieu Valbuena.Saturday, December 12, 2015
Euro 2016 draw: Guide to the 24 finalists in France
Euro 2016 draw: England to face Wales in France
Euro 2016 draw: England to face Wales in France
Friday, December 11, 2015
Euro football 2016 draw: Home nations set to find out opponents
The Euro 2016 draw takes place in Paris on Saturday, when the home nations will find out who they will meet at next summer's tournament in France. England are joined in the draw by Wales and Northern Ireland - the former at a major tournament for the first time in 58 years and the latter at a European Championship for the first time. Republic of Ireland will also feature after they qualified through the play-offs. The tournament begins on 10 June. A new format features 24 teams, an increase from the 16 to have competed in previous editions. But how does the draw work? Who will the home nations face? And what will they need to do to reach the knockout stages?
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