Paraguay stuns Germany in a penalty shootout for the biggest upset so far of the 2026 World Cup

(30 Jun 2026) RESTRICTION SUMMARY: ++NIGHT SHOTS++ ASSOCIATED PRESS Asuncion, Paraguay - 29 June 2026 1. Fans watching the winning penalty kick by Paraguay's José Canale and celebrating 2. Fans celebrating 3. Gonzalo Franco, Paraguay fan UPSOUND (Spanish) "We are going to the final, we are going to the final" 4. Fans reacting to the penalty shoot-out 5. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Gabriela Amarilla, Paraguay fan: "Oh my God, we suffer a lot but who doesn't suffer in Paraguay and overcome however we can. Thank you to the guys and Alfaro (coach Gustavo Alfaro), I'm super happy." 6. Various of fans reacting to the penalty shoot-out 7. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Gonzalo Ucedo, Paraguay fan: "It was one of the most terrifying things I've ever experienced in football but when the match started I thought 'we have chances, we have chances.' The Guaraní (Indigenous) strength is there when you need it the most." 8. Various of fans celebrating Paraguay's victory 9. Fans celebrating with a national flag STORYLINE: Paraguay beat Germany in a penalty shootout on Monday, a shocking result early in the World Cup Round of 32. Paraguay's José Canale scored on the first sudden-death penalty kick, Orlando Gill made two key saves in the shootout, and Paraguay beat Germany 4-3 on penalties to earn the biggest upset of the 2026 World Cup. It was a major triumph for the landlocked South American country of 7 million people that's surrounded by soccer giants like Argentina and Brazil. It has caused such joy that the government has declared that Tuesday will be a national holiday. Germany missed three of six tries in the shootout, the last by Jonathan Tah, who blasted his attempt high over the crossbar in the first sudden-death round, setting up Canale for the winner. Tah's miss followed a save by German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer of Fabian Balbuena's attempt that would have won it for Paraguay. Tah also thought he had the go-ahead goal in extra time. He headed in a corner kick by Nathaniel Brown in the 102nd minute, but officials concluded after a video review that Waldemar Anton had pushed Gill to the ground before the shot and the goal was disallowed. The Round of 32 match ended 1-1 after extra time. Paraguay took the lead when Julio Enciso scored on a header late in the first half, but Kai Havertz equalized in the 52nd minute for four-time champion Germany. Paraguay, which entered the match ranked 41st by FIFA, became the deepest betting long shot to win a match in this World Cup. Germany came in as the 10th-ranked team in the world. The Paraguayans will face the winner of Tuesday’s match between France and Sweden in the Round of 16 on Saturday in Philadelphia. In the only previous World Cup match between the teams, Germany beat Paraguay 1-0 in the round of 16 at the 2002 tournament. Nearly a quarter-century later, Paraguay got its revenge. AP Video by Emilio Sanabria =========================================================== Clients are reminded to adhere to all listed restrictions and to check the terms of their licence agreements. For further assistance, please contact the AP Archive on: Tel +44(0)2074827482 Email: [email protected]. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...