Oliver Kahn maintained his number one spot for the 2004 UEFA European Football Championship, but Germany were once again eliminated in the group stage. Oliver Kahn gave up his captaincy to Michael Ballack after the tournament. Germany's new manager Jürgen Klinsmann, who replaced Rudi Völler, adopted the strategy of rotating the number one spot between Kahn and his longtime competitor, Jens Lehmann of Arsenal, to stimulate competition between the two. On 7 April 2006, after two years of dispute for the position Klinsmann announced Lehmann was his first-choice goalkeeper for the 2006 World Cup. Kahn decided to stay on as a backup
Oliver Kahn the competition. The "Daily Mail" criticised him for his mistake: "Once again on the big occasion Kahn was undone by a Brazilian, just as he was in the 2002 World Cup Final. Only this time it was a Roberto Carlos free-kick which he let slip, not a Rivaldo shot, for a goal as embarrassing as it is potentially catastrophic for Bayern". Bayern Munich won the next Bundesliga season with Kahn. Prior to a 2006 match against Arminia Bielefeld in Munich, Michael Rensing peppered Kahn with practice shots. One shot hit Kahn squarely in the eye, causing enough swelling and discoloration