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Laura Freigang (left) and Lina Magull on the balcony of the Römer in Frankfurt: "It's unbelievable"
Photo:
Uwe Anspach / dpa
Party mood in Frankfurt: Thousands of fans celebrated the German EM team after their arrival from England at the Römer in Frankfurt.
»This is unbelievable and what we dreamed of.
It's wonderful to see that people are so enthusiastic," said defender Giulia Gwinn.
When Captain Alexandra Popp began to speak, chants chanted her nickname "Poppi".
"We're really happy to be here with you," said Popp.
She thanked the fans, without whom, according to her, it would not have been possible to achieve such a performance.
"Huge thanks from us as a team to you, you're great!" said Popp.
About the fact that Popp was out a few minutes before the final due to a thigh injury, she said: "The disappointment hasn't completely gone away." But she would also have reviewed what the team and she had achieved in the past few weeks and months and " magic on the pitch and that makes me incredibly proud."
The team of national coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg narrowly missed out on the ninth European Championship title after losing 2-1 after extra time in the final against hosts England, but won a lot of sympathy thanks to their great performance in the finals.
Almost 18 million people crossed their fingers in front of the TV sets on Sunday – a record number for the soccer players.
Oberdorf: "I wish we could do that in Germany too"
"Of course we suffered a lot," said Voss-Tecklenburg.
»We actually wanted to be European champions and not winners of hearts.
But if the great performance has helped us win the hearts of the German population, we are happy to win hearts.«
Apparently, the night yesterday was still long despite just missing out on the European Championship title: "I think they're crazy," said Popp, laughing, towards some colleagues who probably hadn't slept at all.
According to Popp, the German team celebrated in the hotel's ballroom, together with families and friends.
These would have given the team support, said Popp.
The game yesterday was "unique" for everyone, said Lena Oberdorf, the team enjoyed it.
The atmosphere at Wembley “does something for you”, especially when so many fans are singing along to the anthem, as is the case with the English women.
"I would wish that we could do that in Germany too."
She thanks the fans for the support.
The entire DFB entourage was greeted warmly as soon as they landed in Frankfurt.
The first to get off the plane was national coach Voss-Tecklenburg, followed by Popp.
Later, the players and the national coach signed the city's golden book in the Römer.
Voss-Tecklenburg wants to advance football
“We experienced the end of a tournament on Sunday, but also the beginning of something really big.
We can all look forward to that," said DFB President Bernd Neuendorf, acknowledging the performance at the European Championship and adding: "Of course, we hope that this wonderful tournament will attract many women and young girls to football."
Voss-Tecklenburg said at the celebration at the Römer in Frankfurt that she still had one big wish: "We represent all girls, all women who play football," she said.
“Do me a favour: take all your friends with you, go to the Bundesliga stadiums” – you can be a fan there too.
According to the trainer, it is now a question of advancing the sport.
"We promised ourselves that we want to push this now," said Voss-Tecklenburg.
»Olaf Scholz promised me that we will also meet to tackle future issues.«
kko/dpa
