Germany’s midfielder #17 Florian Wirtz (L), Slovakia’s midfielder #08 Ondrej Duda and Slovakia’s midfielder #22 Stanislav Lobotka vie for the ball during the 2026 World Cup qualifiers Europe zone group A first round football match between Slovakia and Germany, on September 4, 2025 in Bratislava. (Photo by Joe Klamar / AFP)
By John Ogunsemore
Germany slumped to a shock 2-0 defeat to Slovakia in their opening World Cup qualifiers in Bratislava on Thursday as Spain thrashed Bulgaria 3-0 in Sofia.
Altetico Madrid’s David Hancko put Slovakia ahead before halftime, firing home the opener after being left unmarked in the penalty box.
David Strelec doubled the lead 10 minutes into the second half.
The Slovakians are chasing their first World Cup qualification since the 2010 tournament in South Africa.
Germany next face Northern Ireland on Tuesday, before entertaining Luxembourg complete Group A.
Luxembourg also fell 3-1 to Northern Ireland.
Only the group winners will qualify automatically for the 48-team tournament in North America.
Meanwhile, European champions Spain cruised to a 3-0 victory over Bulgaria in Group E, courtesy of goals from Mikel Oyarzabal, Marc Cucurella and Mikel Merino.
The Spaniards will next face Turkey, who won 3-2 away to Georgia.
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