A key member of the Germany team which finished third at the last World Cup on home turf and runners-up in Japan and Korea in 2002, Ballack remains the captain and figurehead of the current squad.
Having finished the season strongly following his return from a lengthy lay-off, the Chelsea midfielder is well on course for 100 international caps and looks born to play on the biggest stage of all.
Ballack could be forgiven for a touch of deja vu this campaign as Chelsea were second in the Premier League and lost in the finals of both the Champions League and Carling Cup.
But when he suffered a similar fate with Bayer Leverkusen, he inspired Germany virtually single-handedly to the World Cup final that summer and will hope to repeat the dose in Austria and Switzerland.
Michael Ballack and Jens Lehmann are the only players in the squad who made Premier League appearances last summer, and with the latter leaving Arsenal the former could be the only one in England next season.
Lehmann is leaving the Gunners after five years in London in which he was part of their 'Invincibles' in 2003/04 and an FA Cup winner in 2005, also helping them reach the Champions League final.
Ballack, of course, did likewise with Chelsea this season but endured three near misses trophywise just as he had with Bayer Leverkusen in 2002.
In Thomas Hitzlsperger, Germany have a man who spent five years with Aston Villa, while several of their players - including most recently Bayern Munich's Philipp Lahm - have been linked with moves to the Premier League.
