UEFA EURO 2008™ runners-up Germany were welcomed home by more than 300,000 fans at a colourful ceremony at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin on Monday.
Huge turnout
Supporters waving black, red and yellow flags packed a fan mile in front of the Berlin landmark, at the start of the public viewing area from which some 600,000 spectators had watched the final. Germany captain Michael Ballack told the crowd upon the team's arrival from Vienna: "It is disappointing to go so far in the tournament, get to the final and then lose. That's always a bitter feeling." Joachim Löw's side went down 1-0 to Spain in Sunday's climax to the EURO.
However, Ballack added that the Mannschaft had been helped along to the final by the huge shows of support from the crowds filling public-viewing venues across Germany throughout the tournament. "I don't think we'd have gone so far without these great fans," the midfielder said. "We all saw the television pictures of what was going on here, and it felt like we had an extra man on the pitch all the time."
Bird's eye view
The squad's plane from the Austrian capital even made a series of low-flying passes over central Berlin to get a closer look at the crowd, which included thousands of children missing school to be present. Coach Löw said: "We were all pretty sad last night but I think we achieved a lot with second place and we can all be proud that we were in the final. Spain were a great team throughout the tournament and they were a class act last night."
Shower of beer
The hour-long tribute to the team featured loud music and short interviews with all 23 players, before concluding with the traditional shower of beer. It was also broadcast live nationwide on several channels. Midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger said of the event, which replicated a similar farewell after Germany's third place at the 2006 FIFA World Cup: "It helps the healing process."
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