Germany World Cup exit reveals structural failures, says Leverkusen boss

Germany’s continued World Cup failures are a result of structural, political and cultural problems in German society, Bayer Leverkusen CEO Fernando Carro said on Wednesday.

Four-time winners Germany were eliminated by minnows Paraguay in the last 32 of the World Cup in June, having crashed out at the group stage of the 2018 and 2022 editions.

Having taken over Leverkusen in 2018, Carro helped guide the club to a first Bundesliga title in 2024 alongside lifting the German Cup in the same season.

“Germany still have outstanding individual players, but we surely need to look closely at where we are now – it seems like there are fewer players coming through to the top level,” 61-year-old Carro told AFP.

“There needs to be greater investment in youth development, including a better integration of school and sports.

“A state of the art, modern infrastructure is a key figure as well… projects that improve these conditions are too often slowed down by bureaucracy and lengthy decision-making.

“The issue goes beyond facilities and structures. There is also a cultural dimension,” the Spaniard added.

Carro said Leverkusen have been waiting almost a decade for approval on a new training centre despite scaling the project down from its initial target.

“We are still struggling with approvals despite identifying a suitable site,” he said.

“That just illustrates one example of a much broader challenge here in Germany,” he added.

Originally from Barcelona, Carro said World Cup finalists Spain and semi-finalists France and England succeeded due to “enormous ambition, resilience and collective strength.”

“There are always things you can learn from other countries and systems. With Spain, England and France, you have three of the four World Cup semi-finalists literally next door.

“These are similarly developed football nations that have invested consistently in modern infrastructure and academies as well as in coaches and player development,” he added.

Germany are set to appoint Jurgen Klopp as coach after Julian Nagelsmann’s resignation but Carro said the former Liverpool boss could not solve German football’s woes on his own.

“Jurgen Klopp has achieved a great deal in his career and deserves respect for that,” he said.

“But, one coach alone cannot solve long term and structural challenges.

“The conditions around him are at least as important: a strong and modern youth development concept, state of the art infrastructure, clear performance principles and a willingness to change.”