Germany's World Cup Loss: 'Incredibly Shocking, But Not at All Surprising'
*By Christian Smith*
Germany's hopes of winning a second consecutive World Cup were dashed Wednesday in a shocking stoppage-time loss to South Korea.
Korean defender Kim Young-gwon and striker Son Heung-min both scored in the game's ten minutes of injury time. The upset shocked soccer fans all around the world, but not everyone was surprised.
"Germany is a fantastic team, and they've never been knocked out this early in a World Cup," said Jeffrey Marcus, publisher of the World Cup newsletter jointhebanter.com. "It's not surprising because Germany is actually the fourth defending World Cup champion to be knocked out in the first round in the past five tournaments."
France won it all in 1998 but failed to make it to the Round of 16 four years later. Italy faced that same fate after its 2006 World Cup win, as did the 2010 champion, Spain.
Brazil is the only one of the last five World Cup winners to make it out of the tournament's group stage following its win in 2002.
Germany's loss means that Sweden and Mexico will advance to the Round of 16. Sweden topped Group F thanks to a resounding 3-0 win over *El Tri*.
For the full segment, [click here.](https://cheddar.com/videos/defending-world-cup-champs-germany-fail-to-make-round-of-16)
March Madness is heading to the Sweet 16 without a handful of top teams. Two No. 1 seeds, Kansas and Purdue, No. 2 seed Arizona and No. 4 seed Virginia are all gone — and gone with them are millions of busted brackets.
A total of 33 states and the District of Columbia now allow at least some form of sports wagering, but the prospects are mixed for expanding sports betting to additional states this year.
March Madness isn’t just about filling out — and later trashing — brackets. There are more ways to bet the field in the NCAA Tournament, an event that will consume basketball fans over the next three weeks.
The University of Alabama is the men's college basketball No. 1 seed overall for March Madness after CBS and the NCAA held their annual Selection Sunday.
Fill out your brackets because March Madness is here! Here is what college basketball fans (and the millions playing office pools) need to know, including the favorites and underdogs, key games and how to watch the women’s NCAA tournament.
Fill out your bracket because March Madness is here! Here is what college basketball fans (and the millions playing office pools) need to know, including the favorites and underdogs, key games and how to watch the men’s NCAA tournament.
