My country of birth, folks, and where I grew up playing the game. My first post simply had to be about this. Fully deserved after many many years of hard work by the German Football Federation and countless coaches and players.
Fourteen years to be precise, with the introduction of a revamped youth development system. Germany has always been a soccer powerhouse, but to become true World Cup contenders again required many improvements in player development and coaching.
Here are a couple of articles summarizing some of those improvements:
http://www.theguardian.com/football/2013/may/23/germany-bust-boom-talent
P.S.: I just have to add this 7:1 win over Brazil in the semifinal. Arguably the worst defeat in the history of soccer.
NorCal Soccer Dad 