Germany to honor retiring quartet in October match vs. Netherlands

It is the end of an era in German football. When Julian Nagelsmann and Die Mannschaft take the field at the FIFA 2026 Men’s World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, no less than four icons, all part of the EURO 2024 squad played on home soil in Germany, will be retired from the international game.

That quartet — Manuel Neuer, Thomas Müller, Toni Kroos, and İlkay Gündoğan — will get their honors next month in a Nations League tilt vs. the Netherlands:

That the match will take place at the Allianz Arena will have special significance for the two Bayern Munich men, Neuer and Müller, who are still carrying on strong for their clubs.

Kroos retired from Real Madrid after last season, making the EUROs his send-off campaign. Gündoğan, who has returned to Manchester City after one year at FC Barcelona, was a key clog in that EUROs midfield alongside Kroos — and now replacing them both will be the big task for Nagelsmann ahead of the next tournament.

Neuer, Müller, and Kroos have history dating back to the third-place 2010 World Cup squad, when Müller in particular ran riot — five goals, three assists in six appearances, collecting the Golden Boot and Best Young Player awards along the way. Gündoğan made the EUROs in 2012 but missed out in 2014 with injury. That was the year Germany won the World Cup, forever cementing this generation’s place in world football.

Now it is on to the new era, one which will be shaped by Nagelsmann, the former Bayern coach, and an exciting new generation of talent — led by Leverkusen ace Florian Wirtz and Bayern star Jamal Musiala, among others. The youngsters showed enormous promise at EURO 2024, but the first Nations League match vs. the Netherlands this month resulted in a draw.

With the legends in the stands, can Germany take its next strides forward in October?