England fans could not hide their glee today as rivals Germany crashed out of the World Cup in the group stage after losing 2-0 to South Korea.
The defending champions had to beat the Koreans in their final group match or hope Sweden could not get a result against Mexico.
But despite peppering the Korean goals with shots, the Germans conceded two and, after Sweden won 3-0, Joachim Löw’s side were sent home from Russia earlier than expected.
The result sparked joy for fans of the Three Lions, who have often been knocked out of big competitions by Germany in the past, most memorably at Italia 90 and in Euro 96.
The result comes eight years to the day since Germany knocked England out of the 2010 World Cup by beating them 4-1 in Bloemfontein, South Africa.
England fans are celebrating tonight after arch rivals Germany went out of the World Cup
German fans were inconsolable at the final whistle as their team was sent home from Russia
German fans in Berlin cannot believe their eyes as their team is sent home in the group stage
Goalkeeper Manuel Neuer of Germany looks dejected as his team crash out of the competition
After a last minute goal from Toni Kroos saw the Germans edge past Sweden 2-1 on Saturday, the world champions knew they needed a win to go through.
But in the dying minutes of the match the Germans were stunned after Kim Young-gwon netted for South Korea.
And as they piled on the pressure to save themselves from an embarassing exit, Tottenham Hotspur forward Son Heung-min ended their World Cup dream with a 96th minute goal.
England fans piled in on Twitter, with scores of people tweeting ‘auf wiedersehen’, German for goodbye.
Gary Lineker tweeted: ‘Football is a simple game. Twenty-two men chase a ball for 90 minutes and at the end, the Germans no longer always win. Previous version is confined to history.’
But England fans weren’t the only group rejoicing at the German’s early exit on social media as Brazilian fans took the chance to gloat after their 7-1 drubbing in Belo Horizonte back in 2014.
Fox News Brazil simply tweeted: ‘HAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!’
England fans could not hide their glee as Germany crashed out of the World Cup today
In Berlin, fans held the heads in disbelief as they watched the South Korea’s first goal be disallowed by the linesman – then re-allowed by the referee after he consulted the VAR video system
The website of German daily Bild had the huge headline ‘OUT!’ on its homepage after the defeat to South Korea today.
The newspaper’s website added: ‘But we did not deserve anything more’
Meanwhile, the English language version of the official German FA twitter account tweeted: ‘Speechless. Germany are out of the #WorldCup.’
After the historic defeat, the official account of the German national team tweeted: ‘As much as it hurts to bow out this early, congratulations to #SWE and #MEX. We wish you good luck in the knockouts.’
The homepage of the German newspaper Bild ran the headline ‘Aus’ meaning ‘Out’ today
Gobsmacked German fans held their heads after watching their team lose to South Korea
The fans face the trip back to Germany before the knock-out stage of the tournament begins
A German fan finishes her beer in the Kazan Arena before planning her trip home
German fans who had made the trip to Russia sat dejected in the stands of the Kazan Arena