With the FIFA World Cup in its pocket Germany is feeling its social, political, and economic power once again. After organizing a successful World Cup in 2006 and winning it against Argentina in Brazil in 2014, Germany sees a note of confidence, even triumphalism, permeating the country. As a European leader committed to the success of the EU and the Eurozone, Germany is a leading driver of European affairs. It emerged from the recession of 2008 as the strongest economic power in Europe, and German manufacturing, product brand value, and exports are going from strength to strength. What are the implications of this new world confidence for German society itself? In the last few years we have seen East and West Germany come together socially and achieve a greater degree of economic balance as a long-term result of German re-unification.
