Former Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger says Germany flopped in the World Cup because of the players' political obsession.

Wenger was speaking in Doha, alongside Jurgen Klinsmann, and was asked about the shock results seen in Qatar thus far, with Belgium and Uruguay joining Germany in an early exit while the likes of Australia and Japan advanced.

Ahead of their first game, Germany's players covered their mouths during the team photo and wore warm-up tops with rainbow-coloured sleeve stripes in protest over Fifa's ban on the One Love armband.

Wenger attributed Germany's second successive group-stage exit, in part, to such demonstrations.

He said: “You know when you go to a World Cup, you know you can't lose the first game. The teams who have the experience to perform in tournaments like France and England played well in the first game.

“The teams who were mentally ready, with a mindset to focus on competition, and not the political demonstrations."