Another Take on Immigration & European Soccer

Photo of Mesut Ozi by joshjdss

Trevor Noah isn’t the only one thinking about what it means for famous soccer players to be both European and the children of immigrants. The Wall Street Journal has an interesting look at Mesut Ozil – A German national, son of Turkish immigrants, who plays professionally on an English team (Arsenal).

Ozil, the WSJ reports, has accused “soccer authorities and some media and politicians of racism” following months of criticism after Ozil met with Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan (and gifted him a jersey inscribed with “for my president, with great respect”).

Ozil wrote: “I am German when we win, but I am an immigrant when we lose.”

That really echoes with what Trevor Noah said about the Malian immigrant who scaled a wall to rescue a falling baby in Paris and subsequently received French citizenship: “So, when he was on the ground, he was African. And then he climbed up and as soon as he rescued the baby, now he’s French. So if he dropped the baby? The African dropped the baby.”

The interesting conversation continues!

-KitJ