A nation rediscovers itself

The signs of nationalism range from the overt, such as wearing the German team shirt, flying the flag from cars, houses and shop windows, and chanting 8220;Stand up if you8217;re German8221; is the most popular one, to more subtle shows of pride in one8217;s country. Germans are going out of their way to be helpful8212; literally so, walking bemused foreigners, struggling with the complexities of the transport system, to their train or bus or even the road to the hotel.

For years, being German meant a certain sense of shame stemming from the past; you could always rely on English football fans, for example, to loudly ignore the dictum, 8220;Don8217;t mention the war8221;. Not any more; the newspaper headlines say Jubel Deutschland and the young Germany stands up in approval. One programme, WM Total WM is the German acronym for the World Cup, had, after Germany8217;s last win, a large woman of African origin sing a song whose only words were Ich Liebe Deutschland. Indeed, given that cricket8217;s world cup is only a few months away, the TV channels should get some tips from here on how to wave the flag.

So what8217;s changed things?

8220;Maybe it8217;s because the team is so young, so fresh and creative8221;, says freelance journalist Frank Hellman, as surprised as the outside world at the feelings football has aroused.

Indeed, this is the age of reform in Germany. On the larger platform, the 8220;grand coalition8221; government of Angela Merkel, whose Agenda 2010 aims at sweeping changes in labour laws and the social services. Her reforms are yet to kick in, though her government is less than a year old.

More topical are the reforms initiated by Juergen Klinsmann, coach of the German team and, as player in the 1990s, one of its golden boys. Having taken over the reins in 20048212;none of the front-runners wanted the job8212;he has proceeded to change the way German football was run, off the field and on it.

Almost every decision smelt of change anathema to the fossilized, Frankfurt-based federation: Replacing the veteran captain Oliver Kahn with the younger, more creative Michael Ballack like Merkel, an 8220;Ossi8221;, from East Germany. He brought in a Swiss talent scout and an American fitness trainer and appointed the national hockey coach as the football federation8217;s director of sport. More visibly, he liberated the team from the traditional tactics of stealth and solidity and plumped for speed and style.

Also, this team is more representative of today8217;s German youth: There are players of Polish origin, two Blacks, an Ossi, young stars with attitude and a captain with a knack of taking hard decisions.

Germany is now three matches away from doing what seemed impossible till a few days ago. Hotel room rates are soaring, beer is being downed by the barrel and Angela Merkel is smiling.

Now for that unemployment rate.