Germany national under-21 football team

The Germany national under-21 football team represents the under-21s of Germany in the UEFA European Under-21 Championship and is controlled by the German Football Association (DFB), the governing body of football in Germany.

Germany Under-21

Association	Deutscher Fußball-Bund
Head coach	Antonio Di Salvo
Captain	Eric Martel
Most caps	Fabian Ernst (31)
Top scorer	Pierre Littbarski (18)
First colours Second colours
First international
U-23: West Germany 3–3 Yugoslavia (Frankfurt, West Germany; 25 June 1955) U-21: Poland 1–0 West Germany (Toruń, Poland; 10 October 1979)
Biggest win
U-23: West Germany 3–0 Turkey (Augsburg, West Germany; 24 April 1971) U-21:  San Marino 0–11 Germany  (Serravalle, San Marino; 17 November 2009)
Biggest defeat
U-23: Soviet Union 3–1 West Germany (Yerevan, Soviet Union; 29 April 1972) U-21:  Portugal 5–0 Germany  (Olomouc, Czech Republic; 27 June 2015)
UEFA U-21 Championship
Appearances	14 (first in 1982)
Best result	Winners (2009, 2017, 2021)

Before the reunification of Germany, East Germany and West Germany played as separate entities — the two teams played separately until summer 1990. Following the realignment of UEFA's youth competitions in 1976, international under-21 football in Europe began. A West German team, however, did not compete in the U-21 European Championship until the qualifying round (beginning in 1980) of the 1982 competition.

West Germany competed in the first two under-23 competitions, which finished in 1972 and 1974. The first under-21 competition finals were in 1978, and since the under-21 competition rules state that players must be 21 or under at the start of a two-year competition, technically it is an under-23 competition.

The current Germany team can be legitimately considered as the current incarnation of the West German team, since the West Germany flag, uniform, and football association all became those of the unified Germany. In effect, the West German team absorbed the East German team to become 'the Germany national under-21 football team'.

For these reasons, the record of West Germany for the U-23 and U-21 competitions is shown below.

Competitive record

For the East Germany team record, look here.

• 1972–1990 as  West Germany
• 1994–present as  Germany

  Champions    Runners-up    Third place    Fourth place  

UEFA U-23 Championship record

UEFA European Under-23 Championship finals record										Qualifications record
Year	Round	Position	GP	W	D*	L	GF	GA		GP	W	D	L	GF	GA
1972	Quarterfinals	8th	2	0	1	1	1	3		6	5	1	0	11	1	1972
1974	did not qualify									4	2	1	1	7	3	1974
1976	did not enter									did not enter						1976
Total	Quarterfinals	1/3	2	0	1	1	1	3		10	7	2	1	18	4	Total

UEFA U-21 Championship record

UEFA European Under-21 Championship finals record										Qualifications record
Year	Round	Position	GP	W	D*	L	GF	GA		GP	W	D	L	GF	GA
1978	did not enter									did not enter						1978
1980																1980
1982	Runners-up	2nd	6	4	0	2	15	9		6	5	0	1	15	5	1982
1984	did not qualify									6	3	3	0	13	4	1984
1986										6	3	1	2	9	6	1986
1988										6	3	0	3	12	9	1988
1990	Quarterfinals	6th	2	0	1	1	2	3		6	4	2	0	10	2	1990
1992		6th	2	0	1	1	4	5		4	4	0	0	12	1	1992
1994	did not qualify									8	5	0	3	20	8	1994
1996	Quarterfinals	7th	2	0	1	1	1	4		8	6	1	1	22	5	1996
1998		5th	3	2	0	1	3	2		8	6	2	0	20	3	1998
2000	did not qualify									8	4	1	3	9	7	2000
2002										8	5	1	2	18	7	2002
2004	Group stage	6th	3	1	0	2	4	5		8	5	2	1	13	6	2004
2006		7th	3	1	0	2	1	4		12	9	3	0	27	5	2006
2007	did not qualify									4	2	0	2	8	6	2007
2009	Champions	1st	5	3	2	0	8	1		10	6	3	1	26	4	2009
2011	did not qualify									8	3	3	2	26	10	2011
2013	Group stage	6th	3	1	0	2	4	5		12	10	2	0	43	11	2013
2015	Semifinals	3rd	4	1	2	1	5	7		10	8	2	0	30	5	2015
2017	Champions	1st	5	3	1	1	8	3		10	10	0	0	35	8	2017
2019	Runners-up	2nd	5	3	1	1	15	7		10	8	1	1	33	7	2019
2021	Champions	1st	6	3	3	0	9	4		8	6	0	2	22	10	2021
2023	Group stage	15th	3	0	1	2	2	5		10	9	0	1	32	9	2023
2025	Runners-up	2nd	6	5	0	1	17	7		10	8	2	0	35	10	2025
Total	3 titles	15/25	58	27	13*	18	98	71		186	132	29	25	500	148	Total

Individual awards

• Golden Player: Rudi Völler (1982)
• Golden Boot: Luca Waldschmidt (2019), Lukas Nmecha (2021), Nick Woltemade (2025)
• Silver Boot: Kevin Volland (2015)
• Bronze Boot: Marco Richter (2019)

EURO Under-21 dream team

On 17 June 2015, UEFA revealed an all-time best XI from the previous Under-21 final tournaments.^[1]

Included players from Germany:

• Goal: Manuel Neuer
• Defence: Mats Hummels
• Midfield: Mesut Özil

UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship

2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification

Main article: 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification Group D

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Germany	10	8	2	0	35	10	+25	26	Final tournament		—	3–1	2–1	0–0	4–1	2–0
2	Poland	10	7	1	2	24	10	+14	22			3–3	—	0–1	3–0	5–0	2–1
3	Bulgaria	10	4	3	3	17	12	+5	15			2–3	1–3	—	1–1	6–0	1–0
4	Kosovo	10	3	3	4	10	17	−7	12			0–3	0–4	2–2	—	2–0	3–1
5	Estonia	10	2	1	7	7	31	−24	7			1–10	0–1	1–1	3–1	—	1–0
6	Israel	10	1	0	9	5	18	−13	3			1–5	1–2	0–1	0–1	1–0	—

Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

Results and fixtures

  Win   Draw   Loss

Israel  v  Germany

4 September 2024 2025 UEFA EC Q	Israel	1–5	Germany	Győr, Hungary
	Yehoshua 64'	Report	Tresoldi 5', 35' Adeyemi 15', 61' Knauff 90+4'	Stadium: Ménfői úti Stadion Referee: Henrik Nalbandyan (Armenia)
Note: The match, originally scheduled for 17 October 2023, was postponed due to the Gaza war.[2]

Estonia  v  Germany

10 September 2024 2025 UEFA EC Q	Estonia	1–10	Germany	Tallinn
18:00	Sapovalov 69'	Report	Woltemade 23', 47' Tresoldi 31' Adeyemi 35', 44', 61' Martel 39' Rosenfelder 59' Lemperle 87' Knauff 90'	Stadium: Kadriorg Stadium Referee: Antoine Chiaramonti (Andorra)

Germany  v  Bulgaria

11 October 2024 2025 UEFA EC Q	Germany	2–1	Bulgaria	Regensburg
18:00	Beier 9' Woltemade 66' (pen.)	Report	N. Iliev 37'	Stadium: Jahnstadion Attendance: 8,586 Referee: Ben Mcmaster (Northern Ireland)

Poland  v  Germany

15 October 2024 2025 UEFA EC Q	Poland	3–3	Germany	Łódź
17:00	Marczuk 17' Kałuziński 49' Fornalczyk 59'	Report	Tresoldi 3' Wanner 21' Arrey-Mbi 30'	Stadium: Widzew Stadium Attendance: 11,496 Referee: Dario Bel (Croatia)

Germany  v  Denmark

15 November 2024 Friendly	Germany	3–0	Denmark	Aachen
18:00	Tresoldi 5' Brown 48' Moukoko 81'	Report		Stadium: New Tivoli Attendance: 11,872 Referee: Alex Bos (Netherlands)

France  v  Germany

19 November 2024 Friendly	France	2–2	Germany	Valenciennes
18:15	Tel 63' (pen.) Tchaouna 90+3'	Report	Beier 5', 50'	Stadium: Stade du Hainaut Attendance: 6,111

Slovakia  v  Germany

21 March 2025 Friendly	Slovakia	0–1	Germany	Trnava
18:00		Report	Gruda 34'	Stadium: Anton Malatinský Stadium Attendance: 1,721 Referee: Marek Radina (Czech Republic)

Germany  v  Spain

25 March 2025 Friendly	Germany	3–1	Spain	Darmstadt
20:30	Woltemade 3', 56', 79'	Report	Veiga 19'	Stadium: Merck-Stadion am Böllenfalltor Attendance: 16,267 Referee: Vassilis Fotias (Greece)

Germany  v  Slovenia

12 June 2025 2025 UEFA Euro	Germany	3–0	Slovenia	Nitra, Slovakia
21:00	Woltemade 19', 42', 82' (pen.)	Report		Stadium: Štadión pod Zoborom Attendance: 2,708 Referee: Jakob Sundberg (Denmark)

Czech Republic  v  Germany

15 June 2025 2025 UEFA Euro	Czech Republic	2–4	Germany	Dunajská Streda, Slovakia
21:00	Arrey-Mbi 61' (o.g.) Spáčil 66'	Report	Tresoldi 34' Nebel 41' Woltemade 54' Martel 59'	Stadium: MOL Aréna Attendance: 7,870 Referee: Alexis Herrera (Venezuela)

England  v  Germany

18 June 2025 2025 UEFA Euro	England	1–2	Germany	Nitra, Slovakia
21:00	Scott 76'	Report	Knauff 3' Weiper 33'	Stadium: Štadión pod Zoborom Attendance: 5,624 Referee: Sander van der Eijk (Netherlands)

Germany  v  Italy

22 June 2025 2025 UEFA Euro	Germany	3–2 (a.e.t.)	Italy	Dunajská Streda, Slovakia
21:00	Woltemade 68' Weiper 87' Röhl 117'	Report	Koleosho 58' Ambrosino 90+6'	Stadium: MOL Aréna Attendance: 6,503 Referee: Manfredas Lukjančukas (Lithuania)

Germany  v  France

25 June 2025 2025 UEFA Euro	Germany	3–0	France	Košice, Slovakia
21:00	Weiper 8' Woltemade 14' Gruda 90+5'	Report		Stadium: Košická futbalová aréna Attendance: 11,913 Referee: Nick Walsh (Scotland)

England  v  Germany

28 June 2025 2025 UEFA Euro	England	3–2 (a.e.t.)	Germany	Tehelné pole, Slovakia
21:00	Elliott 5' Hutchinson 24' Rowe 92'	Report	Weiper 45+1' Nebel 61'	Stadium: Tehelné pole Attendance: 19,153 Referee: Sander van der Eijk (Netherlands)

Albania  v  Germany

5 September 2025 Friendly	Albania	v	Germany
		Report

Germany  v  Latvia

9 September 2025 2027 UEFA EC Q	Germany	v	Latvia	Rostock
20:30		Report		Stadium: Ostseestadion

Germany  v  Greece

10 October 2025 2027 UEFA EC Q	Germany	v	Greece	Jena
		Report		Stadium: Ernst-Abbe-Sportfeld

Northern Ireland  v  Germany

14 October 2025 2027 UEFA EC Q	Northern Ireland	v	Germany
		Report

Germany  v  Malta

14 November 2025 2027 UEFA EC Q	Germany	v	Malta	Fürth
		Report		Stadium: Sportpark Ronhof Thomas Sommer

Georgia  v  Germany

18 November 2025 2027 UEFA EC Q	Georgia	v	Germany
		Report

Germany  v  Northern Ireland

27 March 2026 2027 UEFA EC Q	Germany	v	Northern Ireland
		Report

Greece  v  Germany

31 March 2026 2027 UEFA EC Q	Greece	v	Germany
		Report

Players

Current squad

Players born in or after 2002 are eligible for the 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.

The following players were called up for the 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.^[3]

Note: Names in italics denote players that have been called up to the senior team.

Caps and goals correct as of 28 June 2025, after the match against England.^[4]

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Noah Atubolu	(2002-05-25) 25 May 2002 (age 23)	22	0	SC Freiburg
12	1GK	Tjark Ernst	(2003-03-15) 15 March 2003 (age 22)	2	0	Hertha BSC
23	1GK	Nahuel Noll	(2003-03-17) 17 March 2003 (age 22)	0	0	Greuther Fürth
2	2DF	Nnamdi Collins	(2004-01-10) 10 January 2004 (age 21)	10	0	Eintracht Frankfurt
3	2DF	Nathaniel Brown	(2003-06-16) 16 June 2003 (age 22)	14	1	Eintracht Frankfurt
4	2DF	Bright Arrey-Mbi	(2003-03-26) 26 March 2003 (age 22)	17	1	Braga
5	2DF	Max Rosenfelder	(2003-02-10) 10 February 2003 (age 22)	11	1	SC Freiburg
13	2DF	Lukas Ullrich	(2004-03-16) 16 March 2004 (age 21)	4	0	Borussia Mönchengladbach
14	2DF	Tim Oermann	(2003-10-06) 6 October 2003 (age 21)	10	0	VfL Bochum
15	2DF	Jamil Siebert	(2002-04-02) 2 April 2002 (age 23)	8	0	Fortuna Düsseldorf
21	2DF	Elias Baum	(2005-10-26) 26 October 2005 (age 19)	2	0	SV Elversberg
6	3MF	Eric Martel (captain)	(2002-04-29) 29 April 2002 (age 23)	30	3	1. FC Köln
7	3MF	Ansgar Knauff	(2002-01-10) 10 January 2002 (age 23)	30	4	Eintracht Frankfurt
8	3MF	Merlin Röhl	(2002-07-05) 5 July 2002 (age 23)	13	3	SC Freiburg
11	3MF	Jan Thielmann	(2002-05-26) 26 May 2002 (age 23)	20	1	1. FC Köln
16	3MF	Caspar Jander	(2003-03-23) 23 March 2003 (age 22)	3	0	1. FC Nürnberg
17	3MF	Brajan Gruda	(2004-05-31) 31 May 2004 (age 21)	17	3	Brighton & Hove Albion
18	3MF	Rocco Reitz	(2002-05-29) 29 May 2002 (age 23)	17	2	Borussia Mönchengladbach
20	3MF	Paul Nebel	(2002-10-10) 10 October 2002 (age 22)	14	2	Mainz 05
22	3MF	Paul Wanner	(2005-12-23) 23 December 2005 (age 19)	8	1	1. FC Heidenheim
9	4FW	Nicolò Tresoldi	(2004-08-20) 20 August 2004 (age 20)	16	6	Brugge
10	4FW	Nick Woltemade	(2002-02-14) 14 February 2002 (age 23)	18	13	VfB Stuttgart
19	4FW	Nelson Weiper	(2005-03-17) 17 March 2005 (age 20)	11	4	Mainz 05

Recent call-ups

The following players have previously been called up to the Germany under-21 squad in the last 12 months and remain eligible for selection.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Johannes Schenk	(2003-01-13) 13 January 2003 (age 22)	0	0	Preußen Münster	2025 Euro
GK	Felix Gebhardt	(2002-03-01) 1 March 2002 (age 23)	0	0	Jahn Regensburg	v.  Spain, 25 March 2025
GK	Jonas Urbig	(2003-08-08) 8 August 2003 (age 22)	8	0	Bayern Munich	v.  Slovakia, 21 March 2025
DF	Finn Jeltsch	(2006-07-17) 17 July 2006 (age 19)	0	0	VfB Stuttgart	2025 Euro
DF	Joshua Quarshie	(2004-07-26) 26 July 2004 (age 21)	0	0	Fortuna Düsseldorf	v.  Spain, 25 March 2025
DF	Hendry Blank	(2004-08-21) 21 August 2004 (age 20)	3	0	Red Bull Salzburg	v.  France, 19 November 2024
DF	Leandro Morgalla	(2004-09-13) 13 September 2004 (age 20)	4	0	Red Bull Salzburg	v.  France, 19 November 2024
MF	Marcel Beifus	(2002-10-27) 27 October 2002 (age 22)	2	0	Karlsruher SC	v.  France, 19 November 2024
DF	Tom Rothe	(2004-10-29) 29 October 2004 (age 20)	2	0	Union Berlin	v.  Poland, 15 October 2024
DF	Tim Oermann	(2003-10-06) 6 October 2003 (age 21)	2	0	VfL Bochum	v.  Poland, 15 October 2024
DF	Luca Netz	(2003-05-15) 15 May 2003 (age 22)	17	0	Borussia Mönchengladbach	v.  Poland, 15 October 2024
DF	Kenneth Schmidt	(2002-06-03) 3 June 2002 (age 23)	4	0	SC Freiburg	v.  Israel, 4 September 2024
DF	Linus Gechter	(2004-02-27) 27 February 2004 (age 21)	2	0	Hertha BSC	v.  Israel, 4 September 2024
MF	Aljoscha Kemlein	(2004-08-02) 2 August 2004 (age 21)	2	0	Union Berlin	v.  Spain, 25 March 2025
MF	Frans Krätzig	(2003-01-14) 14 January 2003 (age 22)	3	0	VfB Stuttgart	v.  France, 19 November 2024
MF	Tom Bischof	(2005-06-28) 28 June 2005 (age 20)	0	0	TSG Hoffenheim	v.  Denmark, 15 November 2024
MF	Umut Tohumcu	(2004-08-11) 11 August 2004 (age 21)	2	0	TSG Hoffenheim	v.  Poland, 15 October 2024
MF	Tim Lemperle	(2002-02-05) 5 February 2002 (age 23)	10	2	1. FC Köln	v.  Poland, 15 October 2024
MF	Armindo Sieb	(2003-02-17) 17 February 2003 (age 22)	2	0	Mainz 05	v.  Estonia, 10 September 2024
FW	Derry Scherhant	(2002-11-10) 10 November 2002 (age 22)	2	0	Hertha BSC	2025 Euro
FW	Youssoufa Moukoko	(2004-11-20) 20 November 2004 (age 20)	15	13	OGC Nice	v.  France, 19 November 2024
FW	Maximilian Beier	(2002-10-17) 17 October 2002 (age 22)	8	5	Borussia Dortmund	v.  France, 19 November 2024
FW	Karim Adeyemi	(2002-01-18) 18 January 2002 (age 23)	6	5	Borussia Dortmund	v.  Estonia, 10 September 2024
FW	Keke Topp	(2004-03-25) 25 March 2004 (age 21)	1	0	Werder Bremen	v.  Estonia, 10 September 2024

Past squads

• 1996 UEFA European Under-21 Championship
• 1998 UEFA European Under-21 Championship
• 2004 UEFA European Under-21 Championship
• 2006 UEFA European Under-21 Championship
• 2009 UEFA European Under-21 Championship
• 2013 UEFA European Under-21 Championship
• 2015 UEFA European Under-21 Championship
• 2017 UEFA European Under-21 Championship
• 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship
• 2021 UEFA European Under-21 Championship
• 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship

Player records

Most caps No. of caps Player U-21 career 31 Fabian Ernst 1998–2001 30 Levin Öztunalı 2015–2019 Ansgar Knauff 2021–2025 Eric Martel 2021–2025 27 Andreas Beck 2007–2009 26 Mike Hanke 2003–2005 25 Dennis Aogo 2007–2009 24 Christian Tiffert 2002–2004 Daniel Schwaab 2007–2010 Lewis Holtby 2009–2013 Moritz Leitner 2011–2015 Nadiem Amiri 2016–2019

Most goals No. of goals No. of caps Player U-21 career 18 21 Pierre Littbarski 1979–1982 17 20 Heiko Herrlich 1990–1993 15 23 Benjamin Auer 2002–2004 14 26 Mike Hanke 2003–2005 24 Lewis Holtby 2009–2013 13 21 Rouwen Hennings 2007–2009 15 Youssoufa Moukoko 2021– 18 Nick Woltemade 2023–2025 11 22 Kevin Volland 2012–2015 10 19 Rudi Völler 1979–1982 22 Christian Nerlinger 1992–1996 15 Luca Waldschmidt 2017–2019 17 Lukas Nmecha 2019–2021

Former coaches

• Hannes Löhr (1990–2002)
• Jürgen Kohler (2002–2003)
• Uli Stielike (2003–2004)
• Dieter Eilts (2004–2008)
• Horst Hrubesch (2008–2009)
• Rainer Adrion (2009–2013)
• Horst Hrubesch (2013–2016)
• Stefan Kuntz (2016–2021)
• Antonio Di Salvo (2021–)

See also

• Germany national football team
• Germany national youth football team
• UEFA European Under-21 Championship

Notes