Instead of summer fairytale, Germany got first chapter of promising story

Germany wanted to relive the excitement and success of the 2006 World Cup when they launched their Euro 2024 campaign on home soil but instead got a bitter quarterfinal exit, though they did put down a marker for the future.

The 2006 tournament saw them reach the semifinals with the entire nation riding an unprecedented wave of enthusiasm that led to their run being dubbed 'the summer fairytale'.

Friday's last-eight exit to Spain courtesy of a 119th-minute winner by Mikel Merino ended their best tournament performance in eight years in disappointing fashion but the team left with plenty of promises for the future.

The Germans, four-time World Cup winners and three-time European champions, last won a major international title in 2014 and since then their tournaments had been a disaster almost every time.

They suffered first-round World Cup exits in 2018 and 2022 while also leaving the Euros in 2021 in the round of 16. Their semifinal appearance at Euro 2016 was their best result since their 2014 World Cup victory in Brazil.

While those appearances exposed an inability to compete at the highest level against top teams, their Euro 2024 run to the last eight was different.

"I won't experience another Euro on home soil and it hurts to have to wait two years before becoming world champions," Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann said in reference to the 2026 World Cup.

"What do you want me to say, that we will lose in the first round? Of course we want to become world champions," he added boldly.

Those are fighting words his predecessors Joachim Loew and Hansi Flick would not have dared to utter after their disastrous campaigns at the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

With a string of young and talented players, including Jamal Musiala and Florian Wirtz who emerged during the tournament as the team's new leaders, Germany fans can now have hope for the future, more so than in the past decade.

"Football Germany now has again the hope and the demand to be better," said retiring Germany midfielder Toni Kroos. "I am absolutely convinced that the team will succeed in that."

The Germans put behind them past disappointments and performed at the highest level at these Euros, deservedly earning the tag of title contenders.

They were unlucky not to have advanced past Spain after hitting the woodwork, missing several more late chances and having a reasonable claim for a penalty in extra time turned down.

"I see it as our task to give something to the people in Germany that they can be proud of," fullback Joshua Kimmich said. "We tried. You could see people across the country were proud again, they got their flags out again like 2006. That makes us very, very proud."