KÖLN, Germany (Interstat) — In a wild, back-and-forth friendly that defied pregame projections, Germany and Belgium played to a thrilling 3-3 draw Wednesday at RheinEnergieStadion.

The match, organized by the Friendlies of Friendlies in World, featured four second-half goals and a dramatic late equalizer, leaving both sides with a share of the points on the final day of 2025.

Belgium struck first and fast. In the 6th minute, midfielder Kevin De Bruyne found Yannick Ferreira Carrasco, who finished to give the visitors an early advantage. Germany responded before the break. In the 44th minute, striker Niclas Füllkrug leveled the score, sending the teams into halftime tied 1-1.

The second half began with another swift Belgian goal. Just three minutes after the restart, Romelu Lukaku Menama converted another assist from De Bruyne to put Belgium back in front, 2-1. The momentum seemed to solidify for the visitors when De Bruyne, the orchestrator of the attack, turned scorer in the 78th minute. Substitute Leandro Trossard provided the helper, and De Bruyne’s goal extended Belgium’s lead to 3-1.

Facing a two-goal deficit with time winding down, Germany mounted a fierce comeback. The rally began just two minutes after De Bruyne’s goal. In the 80th minute, Füllkrug was substituted off for Kevin Schade, a move that paid immediate dividends. Seven minutes later, Schade assisted on a goal by midfielder Serge Gnabry, cutting the deficit to 3-2.

The pressure culminated in the 90th minute, as Gnabry found the net again, completing Germany’s two-goal comeback in the final ten minutes and securing the 3-3 final score. The result contradicted the pregame analytics from Interstat, whose game simulator had projected a 2-1 German victory and whose ELO system gave the home side a 72.7 percent probability to win.

Discipline was an issue for Belgium, which received two yellow cards. Midfielder Amadou Onana was booked in the 37th minute and Lukaku received a caution just before halftime in the 43rd minute.

With the draw, Belgium’s record in this competition moves to one win and one draw, while Germany’s record stands at one loss and one draw. Both teams see their overall records across all competitions shift to one draw apiece alongside their earlier results.