[14][15] After Austria became part of Germany in the Anschluss of March 1938, that country's national team – one of Europe's better sides at the time due to professionalism – was disbanded despite having already qualified for the 1938 World Cup.

Thus, they sent separate teams to the 1952 Summer Olympics and also to the 1954 World Cup qualifiers, when Saarland finished below West Germany but above Norway in their qualification group, having won in Oslo.

West Germany, captained by Fritz Walter, met in the 1954 World Cup some of the teams they had played in friendly matches, namely Turkey, Yugoslavia and Austria.

When playing favourites Hungary in the group stage, with good chances to qualify for the next round even in case of defeat, coach Sepp Herberger did not field his best players, saving them from the experience of a 3–8 loss.

As the Swiss referee did not see the situation properly, the opinion of the Soviet linesman Tofik Bakhramov who believed that the ball bounced back from the net rather than the crossbar led to one of the most contentious goals in the history of football.

While the Germans pushed hard to tie the game, spectators entered the field in the final seconds, and Hurst scored another controversial goal giving England a 4–2 win.

Memorably, Franz Beckenbauer remained on the field even with a dislocated shoulder, his arm in a sling strapped to his body, as West Germany had used up their two allowed substitutions.

[21][22] While the exhausted Italians lost to Brazil, West Germany went on to claim third place by beating Uruguay 1–0, and Gerd Müller finished as the tournament's top scorer with 10 goals.

[26] The West Germans adjusted their line up after the loss and advanced to the final which was the other outstanding match, against the Johan Cruijff-led Dutch team and their brand of "Total Football".

However, West Germany managed to come back, tying the match on a penalty scored by Paul Breitner, and winning it with Gerd Müller's goal just before half-time.

They lost to Czechoslovakia in the final of Euro 1976 in a penalty shootout by a score of 5–3 after the match finished 2–2, with Uli Hoeneß famously kicking the ball sky high.

After a goalless draw, West Germany won on penalties 5–4, and they would then travel to the tropical heat, rain and altitude of Guadalajara to face a strong Michel Platini-led French side- a rematch between the two sides after a classic duel during the previous World Cup in Spain.

West Germany held their nerve to beat the French 2–0, and they then traveled to the 7,380 ft altitude of Mexico City to face a Diego Maradona-led Argentina in the final at the famous Azteca Stadium.

[38][39] In Euro 1988, West Germany's hopes of winning the tournament on home soil were spoiled by the Netherlands, as the Dutch gained revenge of their loss in 1974 by beating them 2–1 in the semifinals.

Striker Rudi Völler and Dutch midfielder Frank Rijkaard were both sent off by the temperamental and emotionally aggressive Argentine referee after arguing and violently tackling each other in the span of a few minutes, including a blatant handball by a furious Voller.

After this victory, midfielder Stefan Effenberg was sent home by Vogts after he gave an obscene hand gesture to German fans and journalists after being substituted out during the 75th minute.

The tough German squad then went to Giants Stadium just outside New York City to play Bulgaria in the quarter-finals, and they were upset 1–2 by the lowly ranked team, even though they led for the first part of the match after Matthaus scored from a penalty 2 minutes into the second half.

[47] They defeated hosts England on penalty kicks (6–5 after a 1–1 draw) in the semifinals[48] and the Czech Republic 2–1 in the final, a match decided by a golden goal scored by Oliver Bierhoff.

[52] Ribbeck resigned amid strong public criticism and was replaced temporarily and then permanently by Rudi Völler – after planned successor Christoph Daum was involved in a drug scandal.

[56] In the knockout stages, riding on the heroics of Oliver Kahn and Michael Ballack they produced three consecutive 1–0 wins against Paraguay,[57] the United States,[58] and co-hosts South Korea,[59] setting up a final against Brazil, the first World Cup meeting between the two.

[68] They continued to develop both confidence and support across the group stage, conceding no further goals as they beat Poland 1–0[69] and Ecuador 3–0, with Miroslav Klose scoring twice and Lukas Podolski adding another in the last match.

[72][73][74] After the game, the Argentinians started a brawl, which later resulted in a match ban for midfielder Torsten Frings after Italian television networks showed video footage of him participating in the fight.

[75] Expectations rose in Germany following these results, with many thinking that a record eighth appearance in the World Cup final was possible even though a starter was missing and the players were tired after already playing a tough 120 minutes against Argentina.

However, despite Klinsmann's focus on fitness, the speed and concentration of the German players faded, and they conceded two goals in the final ninety seconds of extra time.

[76] Despite having their dreams of playing in the final dashed, Klinsmann's squad quickly recovered their composure, and journalists noted the team's upbeat mood in the practices leading up to the third-place match.

Three starters, including captain Michael Ballack, would not be available for the third place match, and their opponent Portugal's goalkeeper, Ricardo, had up to that point conceded only one goal in regular play.

Germany's entry into the Euro 2008 qualifying round was marked partially by the promotion of Joachim Löw to head coach, since Klinsmann retired in spite of a public outcry for him to continue managing the Mannschaft.

Portugal responded with a goal right before halftime, but Germany reclaimed their two-goal lead in the second half when Schweinsteiger assisted another header, this time by Michael Ballack.

Germany qualified top of Group A in qualification for UEFA Euro 2012 with a record of 10 wins out of ten matches against Kazakhstan, Turkey, Austria, Belgium, and Azerbaijan.

[124] Having qualified as the 2014 World Cup Champion, the German coach Joachim Löw decided to participate in the competition with a young team captained by Julian Draxler.