Germany lost focus at the World Cup due to political demonstrations, according to the manager of the team.
The Germans were knocked out of the World Cup for the second year in a row after covering their mouths in protest against the ban on OneLove.
The gesture came after the German football association told captain Neuer not to wear the rainbow armband for the game against Japan.
England, Wales, Netherlands, and many other nations did not wear an arm band.
The Germans did not face any punishment for their pre-game gesture, but the head of global football development suggested they might have lost focus.
"You know when you go to a World Cup, you can't lose the first game," said the Frenchman. In the first game, the teams with the experience played well.
The teams with a mindset to focus on competition were the ones who were mentally prepared.
Some teams have voiced concerns about the host's treatment of migrant labour, its approach to LGBTQ+ rights, and its threats to penalize players for political statements.
The German FA was the most vocal in pushing for "OneLove" armbands to be worn by players and said "extreme blackmail" led to Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Wales, England and Switzerland abandoning plans to wear them.
The interior minister of Germany wore a OneLove armband in support of the national team.
REWE ended its sponsorship deal with the DFB last week due to the armband dispute.
Lionel Souque is the CEO of REWE. I am the CEO of a diverse company, as well as a football fan, and I am appalled by the scandalous behavior of the sport's governing body.
England, who were the first team to wear it, had been threatened with multiple sporting sanctions, according to the media director of the German football association.
Last month, the Danes wanted to use training kit with slogans in support of human rights.
The federation dismissed as a media misunderstanding rumors of a threat by the Danes to withdraw from the sport's governing body.
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