Germany's Giulia Gwinn celebrates after scoring a goal during the bronze medal game against Spain at the Paris Olympics, on Aug. 9.Laurent Cipriani/The Associated Press
Ann-Katrin Berger saved a last-minute penalty and Germany won the bronze medal at the Paris Olympics with a 1-0 victory on Friday over Women’s World Cup winner Spain.
Berger dove to stop Alexia Putellas’ penalty attempt in the ninth minute of stoppage time, then raised her hands in victory. Putellas – a two-time Ballon d’Or winner – was in tears as the match ended.
Giulia Gwinn had converted a second-half penalty for Germany that proved to be the game winner.
It was Germany’s fourth bronze medal in women’s soccer at the Olympics. The Germans won the gold medal at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games but didn’t qualify for Tokyo three years ago.
Spain, ranked No. 1 in the world after the World Cup win, was making its Olympics debut.
Gwinn, was fouled by Spain goalkeeper Cata Coll, confidently struck her penalty in the 64th minute after a scoreless first half.
Spain’s Aitana Bonmati, the reigning women’s world player of the year, had the best chance in the opening half but her shot hit the crossbar. Jennie Hermoso’s attempted rebound was blocked by a German defender.
Alexandra Popp started for Germany after missing the semi-final with an illness. Popp was the only current German player who was also on the squad that won the gold medal in 2016.
Lea Schuller, who returned from injury as a second-half substitute, nearly scored in the 71st minute but Coll made a kick save for Spain.
Putellas was the FIFA Best women’s player of the year and the Ballon d’Or winner in both 2021 and 2022. She tore her ACL and required surgery ahead of the 2022 European championships, but returned in time for Spain’s World Cup run.
Spain struggled in the knockout round in France, needing penalties to get past Colombia before losing to Brazil 4-2 in the semi-finals. Spain was vying to become the first team to win an Olympic title after lifting a World Cup.
Spain had a wild ride at the World Cup last summer. Before the tournament started, more than a dozen players quit the team because of what they said was an unprofessional atmosphere that impacted their mental health.
Coach Jorge Vilda was peppered with questions about the mutiny during the World Cup. But the players were unbothered, losing just one match during the tournament before lifting the trophy.
Chaos erupted afterward when Spanish Federation President Luis Rubiales forcibly kissed Jenni Hermoso during the winner’s ceremony. Rubiales resigned in the wake of the scandal, and Vilda was dismissed.
In France, Spain was led by coach Montse Tome, a former national team player.
Germany fell in extra time to the United States. Sophia Smith scored the lone goal in a 1-0 victory that sent the Americans into Saturday’s gold medal match in Paris.
Germany was playing the Olympics under interim coach Horst Hrubesch, who took over after Martina Voss-Tecklenburg was dismissed after the team’s poor showing at the World Cup.
Christian Wuck will take over as the coach of Germany ahead of the 2027 World Cup.