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Neuer is “already a legend” – reactions to DFB exit
Manuel Neuer announces his departure from the German national team. This means that the European Championships in Germany will be the 38-year-old's last tournament in the DFB jersey. There are words of praise from both the association and the club as he leaves.
A great era of German goalkeepers has come to an end. A decade and a half after his debut in the national team, Manuel Neuer sits down in front of a camera and says: “The day had to come at some point.” Without tears, but rather with a satisfied smile, the 38-year-old announces his retirement from the DFB selection. “Today marks the end of my career with the German national football team.”
After the European Championship at home without a happy ending, the exceptional footballer has abandoned his long-term goal of the 2026 World Cup and will only play for FC Bayern in the future. After many years of waiting, Marc-André ter Stegen's time has now come in the national team.
After the resignations of Toni Kroos, Thomas Müller and Ilkay Gündogan, national coach Julian Nagelsmann has to replace another selection veteran and important pillar in the team. “Even though I can understand Manu's decision and his motives, his departure is a great loss – both in sporting and human terms,” said Nagelmann in a DFB statement and praised his previous protégé: “Manu has shaped goalkeeping like no other in the history of football.”
No participation in the 2026 World Cup despite good physical condition
For Bayern Munich president Herbert Hainer, the goalkeeper, who has retired from the national team, is “already a legend”. He was an unparalleled constant in the DFB team. “Manuel Neuer is one of the greatest goalkeepers in German football, which has never lacked great goalkeepers,” Hainer continued on the FC Bayern website.
Bayern's sports director Max Eberl sees things similarly. Manuel Neuer is much more than an outstanding goalkeeper and captain. “He is a title and record collector on the pitch and also an absolute leader who everyone looks up to. We are proud that players like him play for FC Bayern – and happy that he will continue to keep our goal clean,” says Eberl. In the national team, however, after Thomas Müller, “the next guarantor of success of the past two decades is retiring.”
Once “ultra-nervous” at DFB debut
On June 2, 2009, Neuer made his DFB debut against the United Arab Emirates (7:2) – and was “extremely nervous”. He was then the number one goalie in Germany for eight major tournaments – the crowning achievement for him and an entire generation of footballers was the 2014 World Cup triumph in Brazil. Looking back, he feels proud and grateful for his time in the DFB selection, which he led as captain for seven years.
“I feel very good physically and of course the 2026 World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico would have been very appealing to me,” Neuer said in a statement. At the same time, however, he is convinced that now is the right time to retire. “Everyone who knows me knows that this decision was not an easy one for me.” The quarter-finals of the home European Championship against Spain with a 1:2 defeat after extra time will therefore be Neuer's last competitive game with the eagle on his chest.
Reflection time after European Championship exit
Neuer has played 124 international matches for Germany – in total he spent 11,100 minutes in goal for the DFB, that is 185 hours or 7.7 days. For over a decade he shaped goalkeeping internationally with his exceptional performances, his ability, his reflexes and also his class far in front of the goal line.
The Gelsenkirchen native initially left the decision about his future in the DFB team open after the European Championship. “I said I'll think about it after the tournament,” said the long-time captain immediately after the European Championship exit. At the start of the week there were even reports that Neuer wanted to continue. But he drew a line under it. “Personally, I loved wearing the jersey of the German national team. Thank you very much for that,” he said in the video addressed to the fans and former companions.
“We will miss Manu”
The end of his DFB or even football career could have come a year and a half ago. In a serious skiing accident after the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, he suffered a complicated fracture of his lower leg. “What happened after that was an encore for me personally,” said Neuer. “The fact that I managed to do that again, to stand on the pitch at a home European Championship, was the crowning achievement.”
National coach Nagelsmann had already announced during the European Championship that he wanted to rejuvenate the DFB squad with a view to the 2026 World Cup. After Kroos, who ended his entire football career at the age of 34, and Müller, Neuer is the last world champion from Rio to leave the DFB selection. “We will miss Manu in the national team,” said the coach. Like Müller, Neuer now wants to go for the biggest titles again with Bayern – the Champions League final is coming up in Munich in spring 2025. DFB captain Gündoğan also recently ended his DFB career.
Neuer's long-time team colleague and rival within the team, ter Stegen, is now considered the first candidate for the number one goalie position for the national team. The 32-year-old from FC Barcelona had already had hopes of being number one at the home European Championships. But then Neuer came back – for his final appearances in the DFB jersey.
