{"id":2020565,"date":"2026-06-30T09:32:57","date_gmt":"2026-06-30T06:32:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2020565"},"modified":"2026-06-30T09:32:57","modified_gmt":"2026-06-30T06:32:57","slug":"merz-on-x-post-about-world-cup-exit-causes-confusion-then-another-follows","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2020565","title":{"rendered":"Merz on X: post about World Cup exit causes confusion, then another follows"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/81\/85\/15\/1200x675_cmsv2_c402b3e4-1d3f-5bab-8edc-901ade7775b9-9818515.jpg&#8221;]<\/p>\n<article id=\"abe-2906149-pos1-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-1 m-modeDesktop-1 m-modeXL-1\" data-nid=\"2906149\" data-cid=\"9819411\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2906149-label-pos1-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img 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width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    No Comment<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Drone captures rivers of lava flowing down Mount Etna\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2906024-pos4-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-1 m-modeDesktop-1 m-modeXL-1 the-media-object--has-video\" data-nid=\"2906024\" data-cid=\"9818872\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2906024-label-pos4-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/81\/86\/11\/189x106_cmsv2_05ce2c63-705a-5dcc-86f2-a7477fd0b8fc-9818611.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Ukrainian soldiers from the Cerberus unmanned ground systems company of the 60th Separate Mechanised Brigade, part of the Third Army Corps.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div 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the-media-object--has-video\" data-nid=\"2906279\" data-cid=\"9820166\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2906279-label-pos3-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/82\/01\/66\/189x106_cmsv2_1387eef4-e4da-5f2d-be02-43d762f0c9ec-9820166.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Two lava flows descend Mount Etna during ongoing eruptive activity near Nicolosi, Catania, Italy, Tuesday, Aug. 26, 2025.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    No Comment<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Drone captures rivers of lava flowing down Mount Etna\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2906024-pos4-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-2 m-modeDesktop-2 m-modeXL-2 the-media-object--has-video\" data-nid=\"2906024\" data-cid=\"9818872\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2906024-label-pos4-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/81\/86\/11\/189x106_cmsv2_05ce2c63-705a-5dcc-86f2-a7477fd0b8fc-9818611.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Ukrainian soldiers from the Cerberus unmanned ground systems company of the 60th Separate Mechanised Brigade, part of the Third Army Corps.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Europe News<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Ukrainian volunteers in Poland support front despite war fatigue\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article class=\"helper-site-row o-article-newsy\">\n<div class=\"helper-site-container o-article-newsy__container\">\n<div class=\"o-article-newsy__main\">\n<header class=\"h-grid o-article-newsy__main__header\">\n<nav aria-label=\"Breadcrumbs\" class=\"c-article-breadcrumbs\">\n<div id=\"adb-article-breadcrumb\" class=\"c-article-breadcrumbs__list\">\n<p>                          Europe<\/p>\n<p>                          Europe News<\/p><\/div>\n<\/nav>\n<h1 class=\"c-article-redesign-title\">\n                            Merz on X: post about World Cup exit causes confusion, then another follows<\/h1>\n<div class=\"c-article-image-video u-position-relative \">\n<div class=\"js-superdiv u-aspect-ratio-16x9 u-position-relative \" data-sponsored=\"Partner content\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"js-poster-img c-article-media__img\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/81\/85\/15\/1536x864_cmsv2_c402b3e4-1d3f-5bab-8edc-901ade7775b9-9818515.jpg\" width=\"1536\" height=\"864\" loading=\"eager\" alt=\"German Chancellor Friedrich Merz&apos;s reaction to Germany&apos;s World Cup exit has raised eyebrows.\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"c-article-caption u-position-absolute\"><i id=\"article-caption-content\" class=\"c-article-caption__content\"><span class=\"c-article-caption__text\"><br \/>\n              The reaction of Chancellor Friedrich Merz to Germany\u2019s World Cup exit is causing irritation.<br \/>\n                    <span class=\"u-color-white\">&#8211;\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"c-article-caption__copyright\">Copyright\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"c-article-caption__credit\">(c) Copyright 2026, dpa (www.dpa.de). Alle Rechte vorbehalten<\/span><\/span><\/i><\/div>\n<div class=\"c-article-image-copyright c-article-image-copyright--novideo\">\n      Copyright\u00a0(c) Copyright 2026, dpa (www.dpa.de). Alle Rechte vorbehalten\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"h-grid o-article-newsy__main__body u-article-content\">\n<div class=\"o-article-newsy__contributors-publication-date\">\n<div class=\"c-article-contributors\">\n  By&amp;nbspEduard Wolter\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"c-article-publication-date\" data-timestamp=\"1782811977\">\n                    Published on                 <time datetime=\"2026-06-30 11:32:57 +02:00\">30\/06\/2026 &#8211; 11:32 GMT+2<\/time><span class=\"c-article-publication-date__bullet\">\u2022<\/span>Updated<br \/>\n                                     <time datetime=\"2026-07-01 07:49:37 +02:00\">01\/07\/2026 &#8211; 7:49 GMT+2<\/time><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"c-article-share-comment u-align-items-center u-display-flex\"><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__links u-align-items-center u-display-flex u-justify-content-center js-c-article-share-comment-share\"><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__label\">Share<\/span><\/span><span 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loading=\"lazy\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"c-article-summary\">\n        &#8220;At this World Cup you thrilled our country,&#8221; writes Chancellor Merz after the team\u2019s exit, but reactions show he misreads the mood. A new post has since appeared on X.<br \/>\n    <\/h2>\n<div class=\"c-article-content js-article-content\">\n<p>After the national team\u2019s embarrassing World Cup exit, Chancellor Friedrich Merz caused astonishment with a post on the platform X. The chancellor praised the national team: &#8220;Even though going out hurts: what a match. With your commitment and team spirit at this World Cup you have thrilled our country. We are proud of you.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"c-ad u-show-for-mobile-only\">\n<div class=\"c-ad__placeholder\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"c-ad__placeholder__logo\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/logos\/logo-euronews-stacked-outlined-72x72-grey-9.svg\" width=\"72\" height=\"72\" alt loading=\"lazy\"><span>ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"c-ad u-show-for-desktop\">\n<div class=\"c-ad__placeholder\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"c-ad__placeholder__logo\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/logos\/logo-euronews-stacked-outlined-72x72-grey-9.svg\" width=\"72\" height=\"72\" alt loading=\"lazy\"><span>ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Merz\u2019s post drew heavy criticism in the comments. Comedian Oliver Pocher also weighed in under the chancellor\u2019s post on the social media platform Instagram. &#8220;I hope the account has been hacked. But that fits the situation in this country,&#8221; he wrote. There was &#8220;nothing to sugarcoat&#8221; about the defeat, no one had been enthused. Germany had embarrassed itself and delivered a &#8220;catastrophic performance&#8221;. If a chancellor writes such a completely wrong analysis on Instagram in the middle of the night, Pocher said, you can only worry about how he assesses other issues as well.<\/p>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-quotation\n    widget--size-fullwidth\n    widget--align-center\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"widget__content\">\n<blockquote class=\"widget__quote\"><p><span class=\"widget__quoteText\">When, as chancellor, you yourself write such a wrong analysis on Instagram in the middle of the night, you can only be concerned about the analysis of other topics where you are supposedly meant to have core competence in our country<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Germany captain Kimmich sums up the mood after the World Cup exit as follows: &#8220;I know Germany from watching on television as a child \u2013 it was always semi-finals, finals. Of course you want to be able to give that to children and people and to the current generation as well. The fact is that we couldn\u2019t give that to everyone back home, and that\u2019s very, very sad, especially at a time when it would do us extremely good in Germany to have something we can be proud of. Unfortunately the national team isn\u2019t that, and we all bear responsibility for it.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-image widget--size-fullwidth widget--animation-fade-in widget--align-center\" data-ratio=\"0.6665\">\n<div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n<div class=\"widget__contents\">\n<figure class=\"widget__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"widgetImage__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/81\/85\/15\/808x539_cmsv2_5829a506-46c5-5c8e-8a6e-64b3d8432110-9818515.jpg\" alt=\"Germany captain Joshua Kimmich during the match against Paraguay in Boston, Monday, 29 June 2026. (AP Photo\/Petr David Josek)\"><figcaption class=\"widget__caption\"><span class=\"widget__captionWrap\"><span class=\"widget__captionText\">Germany captain Joshua Kimmich during the match against Paraguay in Boston, Monday, 29 June 2026. (AP Photo\/Petr David Josek)<\/span><span class=\"widget__captionCredit\">Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The Bayern Munich star went on: &#8220;We players who were out on the pitch messed this up. It wasn\u2019t the coach, it wasn\u2019t the media, it wasn\u2019t the referee and it wasn\u2019t the opposition. It was solely us.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Most fans on X also take a far more critical view of the World Cup exit, as the performance against Paraguay was poor and culminated in the first lost World Cup penalty shoot-out in German football history.<\/p>\n<p>At least Karl Lauterbach (SPD) assesses the World Cup exit in a way that is just as original as the chancellor:<\/p>\n<p>The international press is also less impressed than Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU). The daily <em>WELT<\/em> quotes Spanish sports newspaper <em>Marca<\/em> as follows: &#8220;Germany is no longer Germany. At two consecutive World Cups they have been knocked out in the group stage \u2013 an unprecedented feat. (&#8230;) As we said: Germany is no longer what it once was.&#8221; The Italian specialist journal <em>La Gazetta dello<\/em> Sport is quoted by <em>WELT<\/em> as writing: &#8220;Germany flop. Nagelsmann failure.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Verdict on Merz\u2019s initial post on X: it was a flop. The tabloid <em>Bild<\/em> sums it up accordingly: &#8220;Merz makes himself look ridiculous with his posting.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>In the meantime, people around the chancellor have offered an explanation for the heavily criticised post. According to the <em>Tagesspiegel<\/em>, government circles are portraying it as a mistake. The federal press office had prepared several possible social media reactions to the match. However, the version that was published overnight was not the one actually intended, but the wrong post.<\/p>\n<p>According to the <em>Tagesspiegel<\/em>, the chancellery said: &#8220;Wrong tweet, wrong timing, wrong button.&#8221; The incident had therefore been &#8220;unfortunately very annoying&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>Twelve hours after his first post and the many negative reactions, the chancellor spoke up again. On X he wrote: &#8220;We celebrate victories together. And in defeat we stand together. That makes us strong. Anyone who wears the eagle on their chest deserves our backing and not our mockery.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The chancellor\u2019s X debacle and the national team\u2019s World Cup disaster &#8211; for many people in Germany, both are likely to be symptomatic of the state of the country as a whole.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"adb-c-mention-original-translation\" class=\"c-mention-original-translation\">\n<aside>This text was translated with the help of artificial intelligence and originally published in\u00a0German    <\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<p>                          Go to accessibility shortcuts<\/p>\n<div class=\"c-article-share-comment u-align-items-center u-display-flex\"><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__links u-align-items-center u-display-flex u-justify-content-center js-c-article-share-comment-share\"><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__label\">Share<\/span><\/span><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__label\">Comments<\/span><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__label c-article-share-comment__label--always\">Add Euronews on Google<\/span><\/div>\n<div id=\"adb-article-you-might-also-like\" class=\"perf-cv-auto c-article-you-might-also-like\">\n<h2 class=\"c-article-you-might-also-like__title\">\n        Read more<br \/>\n      <\/h2>\n<div class=\"c-article-you-might-also-like__item\">\n<h3>\n<p>                  Ukrainian volunteers in Poland support front despite growing war fatigue<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"c-article-you-might-also-like__item\">\n<h3>\n<p>                  Almost one in three Europeans expect standard of living to decline, survey says<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"c-article-you-might-also-like__item\">\n<h3>\n<p>                  Five pressing tasks for Ireland as it takes over EU Council presidency<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"perf-cv-auto\">\n<ul id=\"adb-article-tags\" class=\"c-tags-list\">\n<li class=\"c-tags-list__item\">\n<section class=\"tc-cta\" data-twig-component=\"Cta-default\">\n  Friedrich Merz<br \/>\n<\/section>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"c-tags-list__item\">\n<section class=\"tc-cta\" data-twig-component=\"Cta-default\">\n  Criticism<br \/>\n<\/section>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"c-tags-list__item\">\n<section class=\"tc-cta\" data-twig-component=\"Cta-default\">\n  Football<br \/>\n<\/section>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"c-tags-list__item\">\n<section class=\"tc-cta\" data-twig-component=\"Cta-default\">\n  World Cup 2026<br \/>\n<\/section>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"o-article-newsy__aside\">\n<div class=\"c-ad-wrapper o-article-newsy__aside__content-1\" data-ad-name=\"adzone-halfpage\">\n<div class=\"c-ad c-ad-halfpage u-show-for-desktop\">\n<div class=\"c-ad__placeholder\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"c-ad__placeholder__logo\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/logos\/logo-euronews-stacked-outlined-72x72-grey-9.svg\" width=\"72\" height=\"72\" alt><span>ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div 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src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/81\/72\/99\/320x180_cmsv2_69d50061-75c7-5336-8a52-15c3e1d8b94f-9817299.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Taoiseach Miche\u00e1l Martin with European Parliament President Roberta Metsola.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Five pressing tasks for Ireland as it takes over EU Council presidency<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"c-top-stories__item\">\n<article id=\"abe-2906250-pos3-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-2 m-modeDesktop-2 m-modeXL-2 the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2906250\" data-cid=\"9820055\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2906250-label-pos3-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" 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src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/82\/00\/54\/320x180_cmsv2_3ba81cda-de53-505c-b0d8-d86e34ae7b62-9820054.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"France&apos;s Kylian Mbappe waves at the end of the World Cup round of 32 soccer match between France and Sweden in East Rutherford, N.J., near New York, Tuesday, June 30, 2026\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    France sweep past Sweden and Mexico advanced to last 16<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"c-top-stories__item\">\n<article id=\"abe-2906239-pos5-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-2 m-modeDesktop-2 m-modeXL-2 the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2906239\" data-cid=\"9820018\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2906239-label-pos5-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" 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u-show-for-mobile-only\">\n<div class=\"c-ad__placeholder\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"c-ad__placeholder__logo\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/logos\/logo-euronews-stacked-outlined-72x72-grey-9.svg\" width=\"72\" height=\"72\" alt><span>ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"perf-cv-auto c-most-viewed\">\n<h2 class=\"c-most-viewed__title qa-section-title\">Most read<\/h2>\n<div class=\"c-most-viewed__list\">\n<div class=\"c-most-viewed__item\"><span class=\"c-most-viewed__item__number\">1<\/span><\/p>\n<article id=\"abe-2904805-pos1-mostViewed\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-3 m-modeDesktop-3 m-modeXL-3 the-media-object--has-video the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2904805\" data-cid=\"9812928\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Where do workers lose the biggest share of their salaries in Europe?<br \/>\n  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alt><span>ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2905758-pos2-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-2 m-modeDesktop-2 m-modeXL-2 the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2905758\" data-cid=\"9817299\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2905758-label-pos2-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/81\/72\/99\/320x180_cmsv2_69d50061-75c7-5336-8a52-15c3e1d8b94f-9817299.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Taoiseach Miche\u00e1l Martin with European Parliament President Roberta Metsola.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Five pressing tasks for Ireland as it takes over EU Council presidency<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2906250-pos3-top-stories\" 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id=\"abe-2906239-label-pos5-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/82\/00\/18\/320x180_cmsv2_0480cf14-8ac1-50f3-b8ab-5e1f494b3467-9820018.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"French far-right National Rally president Jordan Bardella, Monday, Oct. 6, 2025 at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, eastern France.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Prosecutors raid EU far-right offices over alleged misuse of funds<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2906198-pos6-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-2 m-modeDesktop-2 m-modeXL-2 the-media-object--has-video the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2906198\" data-cid=\"9819840\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2906198-label-pos6-top-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/81\/98\/40\/320x180_cmsv2_cb3b7c94-6283-589f-be72-447257bb0a81-9819840.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"An American flag flies at half-staff outside the Supreme Court on5 November, 2025, in Washington.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Supreme Court rejects Trump executive order on birthright citizenship<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2904805-pos1-mostViewed\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-3 m-modeDesktop-3 m-modeXL-3 the-media-object--has-video the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2904805\" data-cid=\"9812928\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Where do workers lose the biggest share of their salaries in Europe?<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2904493-pos2-mostViewed\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-3 m-modeDesktop-3 m-modeXL-3 the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2904493\" data-cid=\"9811340\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    EU ends tax loophole exploited by SHEIN, Temu, and Aliexpress<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2905961-pos3-mostViewed\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-3 m-modeDesktop-3 m-modeXL-3 the-media-object--has-video the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2905961\" data-cid=\"9818348\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Monaco blast not being probed as &#8216;terrorist&#8217; attack, prosecutor says<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2905753-pos4-mostViewed\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-3 m-modeDesktop-3 m-modeXL-3 the-media-object--has-video the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2905753\" data-cid=\"9817221\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Europe&#8217;s record heatwave shifts east, death toll tops 1,300<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2905877-pos5-mostViewed\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-3 m-modeDesktop-3 m-modeXL-3 the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2905877\" data-cid=\"9817931\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Iran prepares largest state funeral in history for slain ayatollah<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"articleBody\" data-key=\"articleBody\">After the national team\u2019s embarrassing World Cup exit, Chancellor Friedrich Merz caused astonishment with a post on the platform X. The chancellor praised the national team: &#8220;Even though going out hurts: what a match. With your commitment and team spirit at this World Cup you have thrilled our country. We are proud of you.&#8221;Merz\u2019s post drew heavy criticism in the comments. Comedian Oliver Pocher also weighed in under the chancellor\u2019s post on the social media platform Instagram. &#8220;I hope the account has been hacked. But that fits the situation in this country,&#8221; he wrote. There was &#8220;nothing to sugarcoat&#8221; about the defeat, no one had been enthused. Germany had embarrassed itself and delivered a &#8220;catastrophic performance&#8221;. If a chancellor writes such a completely wrong analysis on Instagram in the middle of the night, Pocher said, you can only worry about how he assesses other issues as well.Germany captain Kimmich sums up the mood after the World Cup exit as follows: &#8220;I know Germany from watching on television as a child \u2013 it was always semi-finals, finals. Of course you want to be able to give that to children and people and to the current generation as well. The fact is that we couldn\u2019t give that to everyone back home, and that\u2019s very, very sad, especially at a time when it would do us extremely good in Germany to have something we can be proud of. Unfortunately the national team isn\u2019t that, and we all bear responsibility for it.&#8221;The Bayern Munich star went on: &#8220;We players who were out on the pitch messed this up. It wasn\u2019t the coach, it wasn\u2019t the media, it wasn\u2019t the referee and it wasn\u2019t the opposition. It was solely us.&#8221;Most fans on X also take a far more critical view of the World Cup exit, as the performance against Paraguay was poor and culminated in the first lost World Cup penalty shoot-out in German football history.At least Karl Lauterbach (SPD) assesses the World Cup exit in a way that is just as original as the chancellor:The international press is also less impressed than Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU). The daily WELT quotes Spanish sports newspaper Marca as follows: &#8220;Germany is no longer Germany. At two consecutive World Cups they have been knocked out in the group stage \u2013 an unprecedented feat. (&#8230;) As we said: Germany is no longer what it once was.&#8221; The Italian specialist journal La Gazetta dello Sport is quoted by WELT as writing: &#8220;Germany flop. Nagelsmann failure.&#8221;Verdict on Merz\u2019s initial post on X: it was a flop. The tabloid Bild sums it up accordingly: &#8220;Merz makes himself look ridiculous with his posting.&#8221;In the meantime, people around the chancellor have offered an explanation for the heavily criticised post. According to the Tagesspiegel, government circles are portraying it as a mistake. The federal press office had prepared several possible social media reactions to the match. However, the version that was published overnight was not the one actually intended, but the wrong post.According to the Tagesspiegel, the chancellery said: &#8220;Wrong tweet, wrong timing, wrong button.&#8221; The incident had therefore been &#8220;unfortunately very annoying&#8221;.Twelve hours after his first post and the many negative reactions, the chancellor spoke up again. On X he wrote: &#8220;We celebrate victories together. And in defeat we stand together. That makes us strong. Anyone who wears the eagle on their chest deserves our backing and not our mockery.&#8221;The chancellor\u2019s X debacle and the national team\u2019s World Cup disaster &#8211; for many people in Germany, both are likely to be symptomatic of the state of the country as a whole.<\/div>\n<p>[analyse_source url=&#8221;https:\/\/www.euronews.com\/my-europe\/2026\/06\/30\/merz-on-x-post-about-world-cup-exit-causes-confusion-then-another-follows&#8221;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/81\/85\/15\/1200x675_cmsv2_c402b3e4-1d3f-5bab-8edc-901ade7775b9-9818515.jpg&#8221;] EU.XL EU slaps \u20ac3 duty fee on SHEIN, Temu and AliExpress imports Culture news International Joke Day: What is the funniest joke in the world? No Comment Drone captures rivers of lava flowing down Mount Etna Europe News Ukrainian volunteers in Poland support front despite war fatigue EU.XL EU slaps \u20ac3 duty [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[90],"tags":[226,36],"class_list":["post-2020565","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-international","tag-crawlmanager","tag-euronews-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2020565","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2020565"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2020565\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2020565"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2020565"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2020565"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}