Mesut Ozil, France's diverse WC squad, and Europe's hypocrisies

“I am German when we win, but I am an immigrant when we lose.” This is what Mesut Ozil had to say in a long statement he released after he decided to quit the German national team last month.

This pendulum that constantly swings from one extreme to the other, depending on the situation -- include-exclude, "you're one of us"-"you're an outsider"-- has been in existence for far too long, and not exclusively in the world of sports. And these men and women are expected to tolerate the abuse after a perceived negative incident followed by immediate celebrations when they've made the country 'proud'.

Mesut Ozil, a footballer born to Assyrian immigrant parents, recently announced his decision to quit the German national team as a result of the racism he endured from the German Football Association (DFB) and the German media. The Turkish-German midfielder faced a lot of criticism for a photo he took with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in May when he met the President with fellow Turkish-German teammate İlkay Gündoğan.

Despite being a world-class footballer who has won titles at the highest level having received the German national team Player of the Year award a record five times, Ozil was still singled out after Germany's disqualification from the World Cup despite it being a team sport. He was not only criticised for his performance at the tournament but most of the criticisms pointed towards his Turkish heritage. In his statement, Ozil mentions he was even called a "Turkish pig" and a “goat-f******”.

These events highlight the uneasy Rassismus among the German public and raise the question of identity and a general acceptance of immigrants, particularly in sports.

Like sports, the racism in it is global. The country I live in, India, has also seen its fair share of racism in the stadium. In 2007, a bunch of people in a Mumbai stadium made “monkey sounds” and scratched their sides to indicate what they thought of Australian cricketer Andrew Symonds. In the first Indian Premier League (IPL) tournament in 2008, two black cheerleaders of King's XI Punjab were taken away from the stage for “being black”. They were told the audience doesn't want to see "dark people.”

Andrew Symonds

In Italy, just recently, black Italian discus thrower Daisy Osakue was wounded in the eye when people in a car sped towards her while she was in a crosswalk and hurled an egg at her. Osakue was born to immigrant Nigerian parents and holds Italian citizenship. She was expected to compete for Italy in the European Athletics Championships next week. It is important to note that there have been at least nine such race-fuelled attacks since Italy’s anti-migrant government took power.

European Athletics U23 Championships 2017

Ozil's criticism served as a warning of what came after the diverse France team won the FIFA World Cup in Russia. Several people playfully claimed the team as “African,” including Kenyan Deputy President William Ruto, who declared that France was the “only African team in the finals.” US-based South African comedian Trevor Noah also got in on the joke announcing, "Africa won the World Cup".

In the midst of the celebrations, particularly of French multiculturalism, the French, in the form of an open letter from Gerard Araud, the French Ambassador to the US, Noah's joke with " Nothing could be less true".

"To us, there is no hyphenated identity", the letter said. While the letter aims to address the fact that 'whiteness' is not the only definition for being French, the statement on hyphenated identity serves to show Europe's inability to accept or process an ethnocultural, dual identity. Players like Paul Pogba, Kylian Mbappe and N'golo Kante are made to ignore their dual identity - their African identity ("They were born in France, they were educated in France, they learned to play soccer in France, they are French citizens").

2018 FIFA World Cup Russia Final

In 2010, the French team was reported to have had disciplinary issues during the World Cup. This led to players having their loyalty to France questioned since they had roots abroad. Roselyne Bachelot, the then minister of sports, stated that they had “tarnished” the image of France. The following year, the French Federation of Football was accused of applying quotas in training schools in order to have fewer players of African background with then-coach Laurent Blanc backing the decision.

There is a failure to comprehend that people who are celebrating the African players' heritage do not intend to take away their French-ness. They are merely celebrating their roots. Together with their roots, they can also celebrate their French heritage. It is possible to celebrate both. A number of players have spoken out about being proud of playing for France despite being of a different heritage. Adil Rami has made his feelings clear when he says he feels both French and Moroccan.

In Ozil's case, his German heritage (whiteness) is associated with the victory while his Turkish heritage (familial origin) is associated with a loss.

It is indeed a terrifying precedent for a society with veiled racist tendencies to let their anger out at an individual. While Europe speaks of integration, especially in national sports, it still appears to pick one identity - one for a win, one for a loss.

“I have two hearts, one German and one Turkish", says Ozil. Whether the reports of such racism in sports are true or not, it's time for multi-culturalism and dual identities to not only be tolerated but also celebrated - together.