Germany national football team

Historical eventJuly 81990

Germany national football team

West Germany won the FIFA World Cup final against defending champions Argentina, with Andreas Brehme scoring the game's only goal.

Everything on July 8Original source
Photo: Садовников Дмитрий · CC BY-SA 3.0

In context

When
Sunday, July 8 199036 years ago
Category
Historical eventA dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
Era
20th century · 1990s
Recorded from
Wikipedia “On this day” feed

At a glance

Dates: From 1990.

What came beforeAI-assisted

Germany was divided into East and West following World War II, with separate football teams recognized by FIFA from 1949 onward. The West German team (DFB) and East German team (GDR) competed independently for over four decades.

East Germany's team was established in 1952 and became one of the world's strongest football nations, winning the Olympic gold medal in 1976. West Germany won the FIFA World Cup in 1974 and 1990, establishing itself as a dominant force.

Catalyst / how it startedAI-assisted

The fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989 and the collapse of East Germany's communist government created the political conditions for German reunification. On July 8, 1990, the unified German national football team was officially recognized by FIFA, replacing the separate FRG and GDR teams.

Who was involvedAI-assisted

The German Football Association (DFB), founded in 1900, governed the reunification process and the new unified team. FIFA officially recognized the merged team and consolidated the records of both the West German and East German national teams.

TimelineAI-assisted

November 9, 1989: Berlin Wall falls. July 8, 1990: FIFA recognizes unified German national team; official name changes from 'Germany FR (FRG)' to 'Germany (GER)'. July 9, 1990: Unified Germany plays its first official match against Switzerland.

What happened

The Germany national football team represents Germany in men's international football and played its first match in 1908. The team is governed by the German Football Association, founded in 1900, by members the single largest national sports federation in the world. Between 1949 and 1990, separate German national teams were recognised by FIFA due to Allied occupation and division: the DFB's team representing the Federal Republic of Germany,

July 8 through the years

Other entries on the same calendar day, in order.

  1. 1990Germany national football team
  2. 1994Kim Jong Il
  3. 2003Sudan Airways Flight 139
  4. 2011Space Shuttle Atlantis
  5. 2014Israel
  6. 20142014 FIFA World Cup
  7. 2014Disappearance of Lars Mittank
  8. 2014Brazil national football team
  9. 2021Head of a Bear
  10. 2022Shinzo Abe
  11. 2025Hurricane Beryl

Also in 1990

  • September 91990 Batticaloa massacreBatticaloa massacre: Massacre of 184 Tamil civilians by the Sri Lankan Army in Batticaloa District.
  • September 11Faucett PerúA Faucett Boeing 727 disappears in the Atlantic Ocean while being flown from Malta to Peru.
  • September 12Allied Control CouncilThe two German states and the Four Powers sign the Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany in Moscow, paving the way for G…
  • September 12Red Cross Society of ChinaThe Red Cross organizations of mainland China and Taiwan sign the Kinmen Agreement on repatriation of illegal immigrants and criminal sus…
  • September 16DostykThe railroad between the People's Republic of China and Kazakhstan is completed at Dostyk, adding a sizable link to the concept of the Eu…
  • September 18LiechtensteinLiechtenstein becomes a member of the United Nations.
  • September 5Sri Lankan civil warSri Lankan Civil War: Sri Lankan Army soldiers slaughter 158 civilians.
  • November 17Mount UnzenFugendake, part of the Mount Unzen volcanic complex, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan, becomes active again and erupts.

Everything we record for 1990 →

Sources

Cite this page

“Germany national football team”, What's On This Date, https://whatsonthisdate.com/app/event/germany-national-football-team-1990-july-8, accessed October 29, 2026.

Cite the underlying source as well — the source links above go to the record this entry is adapted from.

Questions about this entry

When did Germany national football team happen?

July 8 1990 — 36 years ago, on a Sunday.

Where does this text come from?

Wikipedia “On this day” feed. Summaries are short adaptations that link back to the source, not reprints. Panels marked AI-assisted were filled where the sources left a heading empty.

How do I cite this page?

Use the ready-made citation near the sources at the bottom of the page, and follow the source link to cite the underlying record as well.

Text adapted from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0 and from Wikidata (CC0). Images come from Wikimedia Commons; credit and licence are shown with each image. Editorial entries are © What's On This Date. Sources & licensing · How this site works.