Football | Squad show at the amusement park

The screaming of children and the noise of cars are certainly not an everyday occurrence when a national coach presents his squad for a tournament. On Thursday, Christian Wück sat in a kitschy Swiss mountain village at Europa-Park in Rust as images of his 23 female soccer players nominated for the European Championship flickered across the monitor. Meanwhile, children bearing the names of his chosen players had boarded the Swiss bobsleigh run. But the German women's soccer team should not be on a rollercoaster ride next month. "We want to play with a mixture of joy in playing, enthusiasm, willpower, and conviction - that's what this squad stands for. I believe we have very, very high quality in our squad - in every position. But so do many other nations. The team will make the difference," explained the national coach.

The convincing performances in the Nations League, including the 4-0 win over the Netherlands and the 6-0 victory in Austria, certainly provided a boost, the national coach believes, adding: "The path has also been visible on the pitch with the recent results." After taking office, the 52-year-old undertook a lengthy casting process, accompanied by errors in all parts of the team. But perhaps just in time, the ensemble no longer seemed like a lucky dip. Wück called it a jigsaw puzzle to find 23 players "who work together best." The element of surprise was therefore limited on Thursday. The basic structure had long been in place.

The youth development agency, which has been extremely successful with the German U17 junior team, called up a talented creative player, Cora Zicai, at the last minute. The 20-year-old, who is moving to VfL Wolfsburg, had an MRI done on Tuesday. According to Wück, there is a "clear statement from the doctors" that Zicai, who grew up in a football-loving family in Freiburg and trained at Sport-Club, will be fit to play again by the start of the training camp on June 19 in Herzogenaurach. However, the European Championships come too soon for 18-year-old Alara Şehitler, who, while she has similar talent, is not yet a regular at FC Bayern. Munich has the largest squad with seven double winners .

"We want to act with a mixture of joy, enthusiasm, willpower, and conviction."

Christian Wück national coach

Fundamentally, the national coach finds the mix of "experience and carefreeness" to be just right. The average age is 25.6 years, and seven players have no previous tournament experience. At the training camp in Franconia, there will be no more friendly matches – not even behind closed doors. The fact that captain Giulia Gwinn and most of her teammates are currently busy posting vacation photos is perfectly fine with Wück. On the one hand, training plans have been issued, and on the other, they want to switch off: "They don't lose much of their athleticism by lying on the beach for a week. I was a player myself: At that age, you want to be doing something again after half an hour at the latest."

Although Olympic bronze medalist Germany is also ranked third in the new FIFA world rankings behind the USA and Spain, the national coach didn't want to talk about the European Championship title as openly as Julian Nagelsmann did about the World Cup triumph. "We can spark a certain euphoria in Germany and at home. Then anything is possible."

For sporting director Nia Künzer, based on her experience as a player, this mission in the neighboring country is "linked to the goal of winning the title." After the opening match on July 4 against Poland in St. Gallen, the eight-time European champions will face Denmark in Basel four days later and Sweden in Zurich on July 12. The quarterfinals of the compact 16-team tournament already feature top-class teams such as France and defending champions England. Despite losing the 2022 final, the German women's football team returned from there as "European Championship heroes" – and were celebrated extensively at Frankfurt's Römer after their spirited performances. Eleven players are now participating again.