Abolish penalty shoot-outs, Cameron jokes in Germany

BERLIN (Reuters) - FIFA should not only do away with Sepp Blatter but put an end to penalty shoot-outs as well, British Prime Minister David Cameron joked on Friday at a news conference in Berlin with Germany's Angela Merkel. After telling a news conference that the FIFA president should step aside over allegations of corruption in soccer's world governing body, Cameron offered a self-deprecating joke about England's penalty shoot-out trauma in big tournaments, where they almost always lose -- and often to Germany. "I don't think there's anything else to add on the footballing issue -- though, of course, perhaps it's an opportunity to say that we should have no more penalty shoot-outs," Cameron deadpanned. "I think in future we should just keep playing for as long as it takes so we level the playing field between Britain and Germany - the two greatest footballing nations on earth." Since penalty shoot-outs were introduced in big tournaments, England have lost all three World Cup penalty shoot-outs and three of the four European Championship tournaments. Germany, by contrast, have won all four World Cup shoot-outs and two of the three European Championship shootouts while converting a near-perfect 17 penalties in 18 attempts. In direct match-ups, Germany have inflicted deep pain on England by eliminating them twice in the semi-finals on penalties: At the 1990 World Cup before Germany went on to win the championship, and again at the 1996 European Championship when they knocked out the hosts. (Reporting by Erik Kirschbaum and Josephin Schoettler; Editing by Michael Nienaber/Mark Heinrich)