The disappointment was great: after 120 hard-fought minutes, the German national soccer team had to admit defeat to host England in the women's European Championship final. The Lionesses won 2-1 after overtime.
Even while the winners were celebrating exuberantly on the Wembley lawn, frustration was boiling up among many German spectators: On Twitter, numerous users expressed displeasure at a decision made in the 27th minute of the game: The English defender Leah Williamson got the ball after a tumult in the penalty area the hand.
The scene was checked by video evidence, there was no penalty for Germany. A justifiable decision: the player was shot at close range. Nevertheless, comparisons with 1966 were quickly made, when England were awarded an illegal goal in the World Cup final against Germany. Back then, Geoff Hurst hit the underside of the bar in overtime, from where the ball bounced onto the line but didn't fully cross it.
After the lost women's European Championship final, many users now believed they could see parallels to this decision and sensed fraud. The "Bild" newspaper also headlined online: "Wembley fraud again". A discussion that ARD reporter Claus Lufen also joined: Who addressed the scene during the half-time break and brought Wembley 1966 into play after the final whistle.
In conversation with national coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg, he discussed the scene and played it to her. Although she admitted that this was actually a clear penalty, she refused to see this as the reason for the defeat: "It's no use trying to catch up," said the team boss. But she doesn't want to harp on about the situation. It just wasn't enough for the title.
In the hour of the bitter defeat, Voss-Tecklenburg showed more greatness than many fans on social media.
