The first of two UEFA Nations League semifinals will play out on Wednesday, with either Germany or Portugal reaching the title match by the end of it.
Less than a week after Allianz Arena hosted the 2025 UEFA Champions League final, the same venue welcomes these two national team giants to Munich.
Liverpool fans will be excited to watch potential new signing Florian Wirtz in action, but he will be without a few key teammates due to injury, including the exceptionally talented Jamal Musiala, whose presence likely dissuaded Bayern Munich from swooping for Wirtz this summer.
Portugal, meanwhile, are hoping to put Cristiano Ronaldo in the Club World Cup shop window as the legendary forward hopes to potentially find a new home — even temporarily — for the coming summer tournament.
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Germany vs. Portugal starting lineups, team news
Germany have moved on without retired quartet of Manuel Neuer, Toni Kroos, Ilkay Gundogan, and Thomas Muller. With Neuer out of the picture, it's now time for Marc-Andre ter Stegen to take over in goal for the foreseeable future now that the Barcelona goalkeeper has recovered from his ACL injury that kept him out for most of the season.
They are also down a number of important players recovering from injuries, most notably Jamal Musiala and Antonio Rudiger who both missed critical matches at the end of the club season. Nico Schlotterbeck is also not in the picture as he battles back from a knee injury, which leaves Germany down two of their three starting defenders from the March window.
Left off the roster by head coach Julian Nagelsmann were the likes of Yann Bisseck, Julian Brandt and Emre Can, who both had solid seasons for their clubs and will be disappointed to miss out. Bisseck's exclusion is especially confusing given injuries to Rudiger and Schlotterbeck, as he played a significant role in Inter Milan reaching the Champions League final.
Germany starting lineup (3-4-2-1, right to left): 1. ter Stegen (GK) — 2. Anton, 4. Tah, 3. Koch — 6. Kimmich, 8. Goretzka, 25. Pavlovic, 18. Mittelstaedt — 19. Sane, 17. Wirtz — 11. Woltemade.
Germany bench: Nubel (GK), Baumann (GK), Raum, Kehrer, Nmecha, Gross, Andrich, Gosens, Bischof, Undav, Adeyemi, Fullkrug, Gnabry.
Germany injuries: A. Rudiger (knee), J. Musiala (hamstring), Schlotterbeck (knee).
Germany full roster
Goalkeepers: Oliver Baumann, Alexander Nubel, Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
Defenders: Waldemar Anton, Thilo Kehrer, Josh Kimmich, Robin Koch, Max Mittelstadt, David Raum, Jonathan Tah.
Midfielders: Robert Andrich, Tom Bischof, Leon Goretzka, Robin Gosens, Pascal Gross, Felix Nmecha, Aleksandar Pavlovic, Florian Wirtz.
Forwards: Karim Adeyemi, Serge Gnabry, Niclas Fullkrug, Deniz Undav, Leroy Sane, Nick Woltemade.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Bruno Fernandes put their club uncertainties behind the to take part with the national team. Ronaldo takes charge up front, but won't have Rafael Leao on his left after the AC Milan man was left on the bench.
Instead, Fernandes will take a wide position opposite Pedro Neto, while Francisco Trincao of Sporting is deployed on the right in some capacity. That means there's no room for Joao Felix, Francisco Conceicao, and Goncalo Ramos in this gluttonous attacking unit.
Leao, Diogo Dalot and Vitinha were surprise absences from the XI, left on the bench by Roberto Martinez, maybe to give the latter pair a rest after both enjoyed deep runs in European action.
Joao Cancelo was left out of the squad as he recovers from a muscle injury suffered in early May. Fellow Saudi Pro League player Otavio was not selected despite finishing the season strong for Al Nassr, while Matheus Nunes was also excluded after he faded towards the end of the season with Man City.
Portugal starting lineup (4-3-3, right to left): 1. Costa (GK) — 16. Trincao, 3. Dias, 14. Inacio, 25. Mendes — 18. R. Neves, 15. J. Neves, 10. B. Silva — 20. Neto, 7. Ronaldo, 8. Fernandes.
Portugal bench: Sa (GK), R. Silva (GK), A. Silva, Dalot, Semedo, Veiga, Palhinha, Mora, Vitinha, Felix, Conceicao, Jota, Goncalves, Leao, Ramos.
Portugal injuries: J. Cancelo (muscle).
Portugal full roster
Goalkeepers: Diogo Costa, Jose Sa, Rui Silva.
Defenders: Diogo Dalot, Ruben Dias, Goncalo Inacio, Nuno Mendes, Nelson Semedo, Antonio Silva, Nuno Tavares, Renato Veiga.
Midfielders: Bruno Fernandes, Pedro Goncalves, Joao Neves, Ruben Neves, Joao Palhinha, Bernardo Silva, Vitinha.
Forwards: Francisco Conceicao, Joao Felix, Diogo Jota, Rafael Leao, Rodrigo Mora, Pedro Neto, Goncalo Ramos, Cristiano Ronaldo, Francisco Trincao.
Germany vs. Portugal score prediction
Germany have a strong squad, especially up front, and Florian Wirtz is always dangerous, but Portugal have consistently found a way to secure results even when outmatched, and they should be in a good position to take advantage of the piecemeal Germany back line.
The absence of key defenders for Germany could be a problem, and Portugal should be able to grind out a result, even if it has to come via a penalty shootout.
Predicted score: Germany 1-1 Portugal
Germany vs. Portugal: Live stream, TV channel
Here's how to watch this match across selected areas of the world's major regions:
| Region | Date | Kickoff Time | TV | Streaming |
| USA | Wed, Jun. 4 | 3 p.m. ET / 12 p.m. PT | FS1 | Fubo, ViX, FOX Sports app |
| Canada | Wed, Jun. 4 | 3 p.m. ET / 12 p.m. PT | — | DAZN |
| UK | Wed, Jun. 4 | 8 p.m. BST | — | Amazon Prime Video |
| Australia | Thu, Jun. 5 | 7 a.m. AEST | — | Optus Sport |
| India | Thu, Jun. 5 | 12:30 a.m. IST | — | JioTV, Sony LIV |