WM 1994 – Elf Helden, ein Albtraum: Story, Cast and Series Facts

Story and premise

For the 1994 World Cup, Germany entered as the favorite and defending champion, but was eliminated in the quarterfinals. Internal conflicts, media campaigns, and public criticism of coach Berti Vogts led the so-called "eleven friends" – players like Lothar Matthäus, Jürgen Klinsmann, Stefan Effenberg, Bodo Illgner, and Matthias Sammer – to maneuver themselves into a collective nightmare within just a few weeks. This documentary takes a behind-the-scenes look at Germany's memorable World Cup and shows how one of the strongest German teams of all time spectacularly failed.

Series details

• Title: WM 1994 – Elf Helden, ein Albtraum
• Format: Documentary
• Language: German
• Genres: Sports
• Premiere date: 2026-06-02
• Final broadcast date listed: 2026-06-02
• Status in TVmaze: Ended
• Web channel listed by TVmaze: ARD Mediathek
• Network country: Germany
• Typical episode runtime: 45 minutes
• TVMaze ID: 92965
• IMDb ID: tt43402281
• TVDB ID: 478760

Seasons in the TVmaze catalogue

• Season 1: premiered 2026-06-02; final listed air date 2026-06-02; episode order: 4.

Source and licence

Adapted from WM 1994 – Elf Helden, ein Albtraum on TVmaze. The synopsis is reproduced as plain text; catalogue facts, cast and season records are selected and reformatted. This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0, following the TVmaze API licence. Network and web-channel credits identify the service listed in this source; they do not establish current streaming availability.