Europe World Cup Qualification: Georgia Eliminated, Stars Return for 2nd Round

Germany’s men’s national football team secured a 2-0 victory over Georgia in Tbilisi on Sunday, marking a crucial step in their European Championship qualifying campaign. Goals from Marco Reus and Thomas Müller in the first half propelled the team to a win, placing them within one point of group leader Poland, which drew 1-1 with Ireland.

The win comes as several nations with strong footballing traditions navigate the qualifying process for the 2026 World Cup, a consequence of their performance in the recent European Championship. Poland, Serbia, and Montenegro are among those required to participate in qualifying rounds, a departure from automatic qualification.

Elsewhere in qualifying action, Greece advanced after securing a 34-31 aggregate victory over Belgium, winning the second leg 34-31 in Belgium (19-17 at halftime). Theodoros Boskos and Achilleas Toskas each contributed seven goals to the Greek effort. Despite a strong performance from Raphael Kotters with 13 goals, Greece prevailed. They will now face the Netherlands in May.

Serbia as well progressed, defeating Lithuania 42-25, with Dragan Pechmalbec scoring 10 goals and Dejan Milosavljev recording 21 saves. Bosnia-Herzegovina defeated Kosovo 34-21, with Zoran Radi making 13 saves. Romania won 37-32 against Turkey, while Montenegro defeated Finland 36-32, with Nebojsa Simic making 13 saves.

Georgia’s qualifying hopes were dashed after losing both legs of their tie against Israel. Despite 12 goals from Giorgi Tskhovrebadze, they fell short in both matches, losing the first 29-32 in Telavi and the second 30-28, also in Telavi, due to the ongoing situation in the Middle East. Israel will now face Spain.

Ukraine also failed to advance, losing 24-27 to Slovakia despite 11 goals from Ihor Turchenko. Marian Zernovic’s 12 saves proved pivotal for Slovakia. According to reports, Germany is preparing for its group stage opponents in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which include Curaçao, Ivory Coast, and Ecuador. Germany’s group stage games are scheduled for June 14th against Curaçao in Houston, June 20th against Ivory Coast in Toronto, and June 25th against Ecuador in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

Germany has a strong record in the FIFA World Cup, having won four titles and consistently reaching the podium, standing on the podium at least once during every completed decade in which a tournament was held (1930s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s and 2010s). They have qualified for 20 out of 22 tournaments, failing to reach the quarter-finals only three times – in 1938, 2018, and 2022.