Women's EURO 2022 semi-finals: Germany vs France match facts, stats, ones to watch

Germany vs France: Head-to-head

• Eight-time winners Germany face France at Milton Keynes in the second semi-final of UEFA Women's EURO 2022, with Les Bleues competing in the last four of this competition for the first time.
• Die Nationalelf overcame Austria 2-0 in their quarter-final at Brentford, while France required extra time to settle their last-eight tie against the Netherlands at Rotherham, Ève Périsset's penalty earning a 1-0 win.
• The winners will face England or Sweden in the final at Wembley on 31 July.
• France are aiming to record successive victories against Germany for the first time, having won 1-0 in a friendly in June 2021 in Strasbourg thanks to Kenza Dali's 30th-minute winner.
• The last two encounters have been settled by a single goal – Germany recorded a 1-0 friendly victory in Laval in February 2019 with Lea Schüller (31) getting the only goal.
• Les Bleues have won two of the last three meetings between the nations, also recording a 3-0 friendly tournament success in the United States in March 2018.
• France had managed just one victory in the previous nine fixtures (L4 D4) against Germany before winning two of the last three encounters.
• This is the first competitive match between the pair since the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup quarter-final in Montreal, when Germany progressed 5-4 on penalties following a 1-1 draw.
• These nations had come up against each other in the World Cup group stage four years previously, hosts Germany sealing a 4-2 success in Mönchengladbach.
• Die Nationalelf are unbeaten in all four major tournament matches against Les Bleues (W3 D1).
• These sides have been paired together in the group stage at a Women's EURO twice previously; Germany triumphed 3-0 at the 2005 edition before a 5-1 win four years later.
• Martina Voss-Tecklenburg's Germany are aiming to lift the EURO trophy for the ninth time, having been victorious in eight of their ten previous appearances. Norway, with two, are the competition's only other multiple champions.
• Germany triumphed in each of the previous six editions of EURO, and had finished in the top four in each of their first nine participations prior to a 2017 quarter-final defeat by Denmark.
• France are in their seventh EURO, all in succession. Their quarter-final appearance in this tournament made it four successive last-eight appearances, having exited at the group stage in their first three finals campaigns; victory against the Netherlands on 23 July took them into the last four for the first time.
• Germany posted a flawless Group I campaign to book their place at EURO 2022, winning all eight of their qualifiers – scoring 46 goals and conceding just once.
• France topped Group G in qualifying for this competition without conceding a goal in their eight games – scoring 44 themselves. Their only failure to pick up maximum points was a 0-0 draw away to eventual runners-up Austria in October 2020.
• This is Germany's tenth appearance in a Women's EURO semi-final; they have reached this stage more than any other side.
• Germany's record in their nine last-four ties is W8 L1; they have won their last six semi-finals since being eliminated on penalties by Italy at the 1993 edition, losing 4-3 on penalties after a 1-1 draw.
• Germany have won 16 of their last 17 matches in the EURO knockout stages, their only defeat in that run a 2-1 quarter-final loss to eventual runners-up Denmark at the 2017 edition.
• That loss to Denmark ended Germany's 15-game winning run in the EURO knockout stages, since a 3-1 defeat by the same opponents in the third-place play-off at the 1993 edition.
• Including penalty shoot-outs, Die Nationalelf have won 19 of their 22 EURO knockout ties. The defeats by Denmark aside, they also lost 4-3 on penalties following a 1-1 draw with hosts Italy in the 1993 semi-final.
• Die Nationalelf have scored in all 23 of their Women's EURO knockout matches.
• Excluding penalty shoot-outs, Germany have lost just three of their 44 EURO matches (W35 D6).
• Germany have scored 99 EURO finals goals; no side has yet reached a century.
• Die Nationalelf have kept a clean sheet in each of their four EURO 2022 outings; they are the first side not to concede in any of their first four matches at an edition of the tournament.
• Germany have conceded just four goals in their last 14 EURO outings, keeping 11 clean sheets.
• Die Nationalelf recorded maximum points in a group stage at a Women's EURO for the fourth time at these finals; they went on to lift the trophy on each of the previous three occasions.
• Germany have won all ten of their Women's EURO matches in England, scoring 30 goals and conceding just three.
• France recorded a first victory in four Women's EURO knockout ties with their 1-0 extra-time win against the Netherlands on 23 July.
• Les Bleues are aiming to become the first side to win on their first Women's EURO semi-final appearance since West Germany at the 1989 edition.
• France's win against the Netherlands ended their run of six Women's EURO matches without a clean sheet.
• Les Bleues have now struck a national record of nine goals at EURO 2022, surpassing the eight they registered at the 2013 edition.
• Périsset's 102nd-minute penalty against the Dutch was France's first goal at EURO 2022 after the 45th minute.
• France have won 17 of their last 18 matches (D1), a run that began with their 1-0 friendly success against Germany in June 2021; the only exception was their 1-1 Matchday 3 draw with Iceland at these finals.
• Germany's record in EURO penalty shoot-outs is W1 L1:
  4-3 v Italy, 1989 semi-final
  3-4 v Italy, 1993 semi-final
• France have lost both their EURO shoot-outs:
  4-5 v Netherlands, 2009 quarter-final
  2-4 v Denmark, 2013 quarter-final

Ones to watch: Germany

Svenja Huth

• The 31-year-old scored twice in Germany's 4-0 friendly win against France in Bielefeld in November 2017.
• The attacker is one of six Die Nationalelf players to have begun all four matches at EURO 2022.
• She was an unused squad member as Germany won EURO 2013.
• Huth is the only Germany outfield player to have started all eight of their 2023 World Cup qualifiers.

Lina Magull

• The 27-year-old was part of the Germany side beaten by France in the 2013 UEFA European Women's Under-19 Championship semi-finals.
• She has managed five attempts on target so far at EURO 2022, more than any other Germany player.
• The midfielder struck the opening goal in the 2-0 quarter-final success versus Austria.
• Ahead of the semi-finals, Magull is the only player to open the scoring more than once at this EURO; she also scored the first goal in the 4-0 Matchday 1 victory against Denmark.

Alexandra Popp

• The 31-year-old struck twice – including the opener – in the 4-0 friendly defeat of France in November 2017.
• The forward has featured in Germany's last two major tournament encounters with Les Bleues.
• Popp has equalled the record of scoring in four successive UEFA Women's EURO matches, set by Germany's Heidi Mohr between 1989 and 1993.
• The striker could become the second German player to hit five goals at a single Women's EURO tournament, Inka Grings having scored six in 2009.

Ones to watch: France

Delphine Cascarino

• The 25-year-old struck the only goal as France beat Germany in the last eight of the 2016 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup.
• The attacker has registered a top speed of 30.9 kilometres per hour at EURO 2022, slower only than Iceland's Sveindís Jónsdóttir (31.7km/h).
• Cascarino made her senior international debut on English soil, in a 0-0 friendly draw against the EURO 2022 hosts in Doncaster in October 2016.
• She was part of the France side that won the FIFA Women's U-17 World Cup in 2012 and the UEFA European Women's Under-19 Championship four years later.

Kadidiatou Diani

• The 27-year-old struck both goals in France's 2-1 semi-final win against Germany at the 2013 UEFA European Women's Under-19 Championship in Llanelli.
• The forward scored the opener in the 2-1 Matchday 2 win versus Belgium, her only goal in eight Women's EURO appearances.
• Diani is one of four France players to have started every game at EURO 2022, along with Charlotte Bilbault, Pauline Peyraud-Magnin and Wendie Renard.
• The attacker has scored six goals in her last 12 appearances for Les Bleues, including two in the 7-0 warm-up friendly triumph against Vietnam on 1 July.

Wendie Renard

• The 32-year-old has played the full match in France's last two major tournament meetings with Germany, at the 2011 and 2015 World Cups.
• Renard converted her penalty in the 5-4 shoot-out defeat against Die Nationalelf in that 2015 encounter.
• The defender was part of the Les Bleues side for their last semi-final match at a major tournament, a 2-1 loss to Japan at Wembley Stadium in the 2012 Olympics.
• She has played the full match in 11 of France's 12 EURO fixtures stretching back to the 2013 edition, missing only the quarter-final defeat by England five years ago through suspension.