About a month ago, the world witnessed something spectacular during Serbia vs Switzerland match at the FIFA World Cup 2018. Granit Xhaka and Xherdan Shaqiri – two native Albanians – came together for a goal that defeated Serbia, the nation which undertook genocide in their home country and made their families refugees. While Shaqiri’s family had fled to Switzerland when he was young, Xhaka’s moved even before he was born. Both of them found a new home in Switzerland and went on to represent the nation at the highest level.
But, it didn’t change the fact that ‘Xhaka’ and ‘Shaqiri’ – unlike ‘Zuber’ or ‘Lichsteiner’ – are not Swiss, but Albanian names. The two players celebrated the goal with an Albanian eagle gesture in front of the whole world despite wearing the Swiss jersey, a reminder that football is not played in a vacuum.
A month later, five-time German player of the year Mesut Ozil quit international football levelling bitter accusations of racism, levelled at German Football Association (DFB) chief Reinhard Grindel. “In the eyes of Grindel and his supporters, I am German when we win, but I am an immigrant when we lose,” Ozil wrote in a lengthy farewell statement which once again established that racism cannot be taken out of football.
Twenty-nine-year-old Ozil announced his exit on Twitter, after defending the photo taken with Erdogan and Manchester City’s Ilkay Gundogan in May. “It wasn’t about politics or elections, it was about me respecting the highest office of my family’s country,” Ozil wrote to finally break his silence over the event in London.
Ozil was born in Gelsenkirchen to Turkish parents and his talent was discovered by local club Schalke, whom he left for Bundesliga rivals Werder Bremen in 2008. The young German had his international breakthrough at 2010 World Cup and four years later, played an important role in guiding his team to the title. The same year, he also secured a dream transfer to Real Madrid for $21 million.
It was around that time when Ozil had his first encounter with discrimination. The shy midfielder was booed while playing for Germany at Berlin’s Olympic Stadium in October 2010 in a European Championship qualifier against Turkey. The German capital has a large Turkish community and many of them were present in the stands on that day, supporting the away team. There were loud whistles whenever Ozil got the ball – just because he had opted to play for Germany.
Interestingly, three other players who took the pitch on that night – Nuri Sahin, plus brothers Hamit and Halil Altintop – were all born in Germany’s industrial Ruhr region. But, unlike Ozil, they chose to represent Turkey.
In interviews, he has always avoided questions about his heritage and only once, in 2015, did he vent his anger at being referred to as a ‘German-Turk’. “Many forget that I was born in Gelsenkirchen, grew up in Germany,” he had fumed.
However, his latest attack on Grindel is a direct challenge to the DFB. “I will no longer be playing for Germany…while I have this feeling of racism and disrespect,” Ozil wrote.
When Ozil met Erdogan –
Even as the loyal fans try to exhibit that the sport brings people of different cultures together, the truth is that discrimination has been its integral part over the years. It was because of that in 2011, Luiz Suarez had told Patrice Evra that ‘he doesn’t talk to blacks’ and was found guilty of using the word ‘negro’ seven times.
Even the former World Champions Spain haven’t been away from racial engagements. During a training session in 2004, the coach Luis Aragonés, was caught on camera saying the phrase: “Show that you’re better than that black shit” in Spanish.
The problem isn’t just with the players, coaches or the administrators but with every single person who is associated with the sport in any possible way – even as a spectator. A few years later, when Spain played England in a friendly match, the English players of colour (including Ashley Cole as well as Shaun Wright-Phillips) were faced with a hostile environment. Everytime the ball was passed to them, the crowd made monkey noises and hurled abuses at them.
Manchester City midfielder Fernandinho has been targeted by fans after his own goal sent Brazil on their way out of the World Cup. The 33-year-old player has received racist remarks on his social media channels along with death threats. The situation is so bad that Danny Rose had to ban his family from the World Cup in Russia because he feared for their safety. The Tottenham player was pelted with stones and tormented with vile ‘monkey hoot’ noises six years ago while representing the Under-21 side.
In 2014, during the Euro 2016 qualifying match, Serbian fans chanted, “Ubij, ubij, Šiptara,” or “Kill the Albanians.” They threw flares onto the pitch, and attacked Albanian players, as the flames of nationalism burned bright.
Ozil’s statement on Sunday, over three posts on both Instagram and Twitter, was seized upon by Germany’s right-wing party Alternative for Germany (AfD) which has also criticised centre-back Jerome Boateng in the past. “With his farewell tirade #Ozil proves to be a typical example of the failed #Integration of far too many immigrants from the Turkish-Muslim culture,” tweeted AfD deputy leader Alice Weidel.
At 29, he goes down as a casualty of the governing body and fans’ failure to curb racism in football. What is frightening is how discrimination can just not be based on the race or ethnicity of a footballer or the original country of his/her birth parents but also due to the perception of his acts or campaigns.