Japan beat Germany 2-1 in their Group E opener in another shock World Cup result.
Ilkay Gundogan had put Germany ahead with a 33rd-minute penalty at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha.
Hansi Flick’s side put the ball in the back of the net in added time at the end of the first half – but it was ruled out for offside.
German players cover their mouths in protest – live updates
But two goals in eight minutes turned the game upside down.
Japan’s Ritsu Doan, who plays his football for Freiburg in Germany, equalized in the 75th minute, before a single long ball over the top was cleared by Takuma Asano in the 83rd minute to put Japan ahead.
Germany failed to convert despite having 74% possession and more than twice as many shots on target as Japan.
It was yet another World Cup misfortune for four-time winners Germany, the defeat leaving them with a must-win game against Spain on Sunday, while Hajime Moriyasu’s Japan take on Costa Rica.
The result comes a day later Saudi Arabia beat Argentina 2-1 in one of the biggest shocks in the history of the World Cup.
Before kick-off, German players staged a protest, covering their mouths after they were barred from wearing the rainbow-coloured OneLove anti-discrimination armband following threats of sporting sanctions from FIFA .
Japan’s Kaoru Mitoma, Wataru Endo and Yuto Nagatomo celebrate
The team, like several other European nations, had planned to wear the armbands in Qatar, where homosexuality is illegalin support of the LGBT community.
The German football association, the DFB, tweeted a photo of the gesture and said: “To deny us the armband is to deny us a vote. We maintain our position.”
Read more:
Belgium’s away shirt rejected by FIFA because ‘love’ is written inside the collar
Welsh FA to address FIFA after fans’ rainbow hats confiscated at game
Germany suffered a shock exit from the group stage as defending World Cup champions in 2018, while Japan are competing in their seventh consecutive World Cup.
