FIFA World Cup 2026: 'Stop Blaming VAR, We Just Weren't Good Enough,' Says Germany Captain Kimmich

German captain Joshua Kimmich has made it clear: don't blame the referee or bad luck for their FIFA World Cup exit. He said if a team can't win in 120 minutes, it fully deserves to be knocked out.

NEW YORK: After former champions Germany crashed out of the World Cup, captain Joshua Kimmich said there's no point blaming the controversial VAR decision or the referee. Germany lost to Paraguay in a penalty shootout. A last-minute header from defender Jonathan Tah was disallowed after a VAR check, which caused a huge uproar. But speaking to the media after the match, Kimmich put the blame squarely on the team's poor performance.

'Nobody should blame the referee or bad luck in the shootout for this loss. If you can't beat a team in 120 minutes, you absolutely deserve to go home,' Kimmich said bluntly. 'We shouldn't need luck to win against a team like Paraguay. We should have shown the quality to beat them properly.' When asked if this result could lead to coach Julian Nagelsmann's resignation, Kimmich was clear. He said the players on the pitch are responsible for such losses, and it was their job to defeat Paraguay.

At VAR mener dette er en clear and obvious mistake er helt sjanseløst. At dommeren annulerer for angrep på keeper etter å ha studert den på video er ufattelig svak spilleforståelse. 🤯🤦‍♂️ pic.twitter.com/nADftHp8bb

— Daniel Vassbund (@Smoothedan) June 29, 2026

For Kimmich, this defeat as captain hurts more than their group stage exit at the Qatar World Cup. The Bayern Munich star called Germany's current downfall 'unbearable'. He remembered the golden days when German teams were regulars in semi-finals and finals. He disappointedly admitted that for the last eight years, they haven't been able to give their fans back home anything to cheer about. 'As captain, I take full responsibility for this failure. I won't try to save myself by blaming someone else,' Kimmich stated.

germany goal was disallowed for this 😭😭 pic.twitter.com/oyJ1swovmn

— Taxx (@taxxfcb) June 29, 2026

Germany was knocked out in the Round of 32 by Paraguay, a team that just about scraped through the group stage as one of the best third-placed teams. This is the third World Cup in a row where Germany has failed to clear even the first hurdle of the knockout stage.