Hopes high ahead of first World Cup match

German defense contractor Rheinmetall has warned that a German tank project is facing possible headwinds amid French plans to cut funding.

“There is always a risk, but nothing has been decided yet,” chief executive Armin Papperger told the Welt am Sonntag newspaper in comments released on  Saturday.

The newspaper cited him as saying that France was planning to dramatically reduce funding for the joint Main Ground Combat System (MGCS) tank project.

“If you have less money available, you don’t get any faster, and we are already very slow,” Pappberger was quoted as saying.

The MGCS project would replace the German Leopard 2 and French Leclerc main battle tanks with a cross-platform ground combat system by 2040, earlier statements have said.

Pappberger said the long timeframe made him anyway doubt “whether there will even be an MGCS,” according to the paper.

His comments come after German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron this week announced the end of a planned joint fighter jet project, citing disagreements between the companies Dassault and Airbus during the negotiations.

Germany is set for its first World Cup match on Sunday against Curacao, thus pitting a four-time champion against a team playing in the tournament for the first time.

With Germany in need of some optimism amid a host of gloomy challenges, could a success by the national team bring some relief — and even boost the popularity of its beleaguered government?

This DW video explores the connections between politics and sports:

Einen schönen guten Tagfrom the DW newsroom on the bank of the Rhine in Bonn.

You join our coverage as excitement mounts ahead of Germany’s first appearance at this year’s World Cup, despite the fraught run-up to the tournament.

We will also be looking at figures from the government showing an uptick in crime against homeless people.

And French-German defense cooperation seems under threat in the face of financial and administrative challenges.

You can read about these and other stories in this blog from June 13, 2026.