Every match day morning we look back at the past and the coming European Championship, give lessons in European football clichés and let a colleague from abroad take a look at this country. You will also receive these texts as “The Summer Mail” by email in the morning if you subscribe to our “What now?” newsletter here.
The scene of the previous day
The superstar’s sit-in. Kylian Mbappé sat on the pitch in a blood-stained shirt. Defiant, but undefeated. The 1-0 victory against Austria cost the French a lot, writes my colleague Tammo Blomberg. Among other things, Mbappé’s nose. After a collision with an opponent, the striker broke his nose for goal. He had to leave the pitch to get treatment. When, shortly before the end, the referee team did not let him back on the pitch immediately, but did not let the French make substitutions either, Mbappé stomped onto the pitch of his own accord and sat down. He got a yellow card, but gave France the opportunity to make a substitution. Mbappé will probably play the next few games wearing a mask.
The game of the day
Turkey against Georgia (6 p.m., RTL). The unofficial second home team of this European Championship is facing a debutant. So you can expect a lot from more than just the players. The Turkish fans showed in November in Berlin that they can be loud and party-loving. Without bagpipes or kilts. Their team beat Germany 3:2. A mixed qualifying campaign followed, which is why a win today would be all the more important. For befitting motorcades through Dortmund, for example. The Georgians would probably just go along with it. They only qualified for their very first European Championship at the very last moment (penalty shootout in the final of the play-offs). That alone: a reason to honk!
Who will be important today?
Pepe. Because no one should accuse us of age discrimination. After we introduced the youngest player in European Championship history in an earlier summer email, it is now the turn of the oldest. Portugal’s Pepe is 41 years old, something his teammate Cristiano Ronaldo is surely very grateful for. He can point to Pepe when the question arises as to whether he’s had enough at 39. To describe Pepe as an unpleasant opponent is a charming understatement. Even statisticians have trouble documenting all the punishments in his career. There are probably around 200 yellow cards and at least 17 red cards. The opponents’ shins hurt just looking at Pepe. Certainly those from the Czech Republic too (9 p.m., ARD).
Dear Germany, …
(von Mamuka Kvaratskhelia, Lelo, Georgien)
© ZEIT ONLINE
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It is my second football tournament here. In 2006 I wrote a book about the World Cup and learned a lot about the Germans while doing research. After a long day at the Allianz Arena in Munich, for example, I took the very last train to Nuremberg. It must have been around 1 a.m. The compartment was completely empty and I was incredibly tired. I sat down in the first seat I could find and fell asleep immediately. At some point someone shook me awake. “Sorry, I reserved this seat,” the man said to me. I looked around the still completely empty compartment, confused – and sat down in the next row.
Phrase of the day
Watching “Swark” is better than watching this game
(It’s better to watch someone welding than to watch this game. Georgian.)
If a game is so boring that not only the spectators but also the players’ feet are in danger of falling asleep, then in Georgia they say: It’s better to watch someone welding electrodes. Sure, after all, there’s fire in it. (Note from Mamuka Kvaratskhelia)
Who is already European Champion?
France. No one in Europe throws – and most importantly, catches – a boomerang better than 26-year-old Marie Appriou. But her sport has little to do with a relaxed Sunday in the park. In the competitive disciplines, one of the things to be done is to complete as many throws as possible in as little time as possible. The world record is an absurd 81 throws in five minutes. That is a throw of more than 20 meters – thrown and caught – in less than four seconds each. Incidentally, boomerang throwing also has something in common with football: there are linesmen. They check whether the throw reaches the 20-meter mark. There is no offside.
What was the quote of the day?
“Today there are eleven players on the pitch, but at home millions are fighting for victory.”
(Ukrainian striker legend Andriy Shevchenko explains, standing in front of the ruins of the Kharkiv stadium stands on display in Munich, where Ukraine’s priorities lie. In the afternoon, the team lost 3-0 to Romania.)
Every match day morning we look back at the past and the coming European Championship, give lessons in European football clichés and let a colleague from abroad take a look at this country. You will also receive these texts as “The Summer Mail” by email in the morning if you subscribe to our “What now?” newsletter here.
The superstar’s sit-in. Kylian Mbappé sat on the pitch in a blood-stained shirt. Defiant, but undefeated. The 1-0 victory against Austria cost the French a lot, writes my colleague Tammo Blomberg. Among other things, Mbappé’s nose. After a collision with an opponent, the striker broke his nose for goal. He had to leave the pitch to get treatment. When, shortly before the end, the referee team did not let him back on the pitch immediately, but did not let the French make substitutions either, Mbappé stomped onto the pitch of his own accord and sat down. He got a yellow card, but gave France the opportunity to make a substitution. Mbappé will probably play the next few games wearing a mask.
