Germany printed 5 million victory stamps before World Cup final even started (PHOTO)

Germany printed five million stamps commemorating their fourth World Cup title before the final against Argentina even started on Sunday.

The 60-cent stamps are due to go on sale this week after the first commemorative copies are offered to the players and staff.

While this bold decision ended up being a supreme example of German confidence (vertrauen), it could have been a regrettable embarrassment (peinlich) for the Deutsche Post. 

If Germany had lost the final, the stamps would have had to be pulped.

The stamps were ordered by Germany's Finance Ministry, which holds 21 per cent of Deutsche Post's shares through the state-owned KfW bank.

"This year I dared to hope very early on that our team would take the title," Finance Minister Wolfgang Scaeuble told AFP after understandably sweating out the extended play victory.

"It's wonderful that the team turned this dream into a reality. I hope that this stamp will remind many citizens of the immense joy the team has given us."