Mesut Özil resigns from Germany national team, citing racism and disrespect

Several weeks after his controversial photo shoot with Turkish President Erdoğan, Germany international football player Mesut Özil has broken his silence. In the aftermath of an early exit from the World Cup, it had above all been Özil who had been blamed for the team’s poor performance. The racially charged recriminations against Özil mostly focused…

Share Button
Read More

Football players’ meeting with Erdogan causes uproar in Germany

Germany is a nation crazy for football. As the country gears up for this year’s world cup in Russia, the national team’s coach, Joachim Löw, announced his preliminary squad on May 15, signalling the onset of the countdown to the tournament. Two footballers posing with President Erdoğan Yet the squad presentation was overshadowed by politics: On…

Share Button
Read More

A Model of Successful Integration

Ilkay Gündogan is a rapidly rising star in German football. German born, but with Turkish roots, he has won the German Championship and the DFB Cup with Borussia Dortmund, has been selected for the German squad for UEFA Euro 2012, and is “Integration Ambassador” for the German Football Association. André Tucic sends us this profile…

Share Button
Read More