Tarak the elephant predicts another World Cup win for Germany

First he walked past the footballs, then on his second run stomped onto the ball decorated in German colours: elephant oracle Tarak on Thursday (June 18) once again predicted a victory for the German national team at its next World Cup match.

The 4,5 ton elephant was already spot on with his last prediction, and now German fans are hoping that he’ll be right again this time.

Zookeeper Oliver Reller was relieved: "He slightly drifted towards Germany at first. Of course we all thought 'yeah, Germany!' and then he drifted off completely and ignored the balls altogether and I thought, oh dear", Reller told Reuters TV at Cologne zoo.

Germany will play their second group match on Saturday, this time against Ivory Coast.

After a 7–1 victory over Curaçao, another win could secure their place in the next round.

Tarak the oracle is a 20‑year‑old Asian elephant which moved to Cologne in 2022 and is the zoo’s breeding bull.

According to the zoo, Tarak has a gentle nature.

Production: Stephane Nitschke, Petra Wischgoll/Reuters