Klopp disgusted by claim his Germany team is not white enough
Jürgen Klopp says he is disgusted by social media claims that his Germany squad is not “white enough”.
The Germany manager called the debate “complete nonsense” at a press conference ahead of Thursday evening’s Nations League match against Serbia. He said there was no point giving room to “such people and their utterances”. The Guardian
He had been asked about online discussion suggesting the national team were “not German enough” or “not white enough”. The comments followed Germany’s 1-0 defeat by Greece on Sunday in the Nations League, UEFA’s competition for national teams played between major tournaments. That loss was the first time Greece had ever beaten Germany.
Klopp refused to engage with the argument itself. He said he has little time in everyday life for idiocy, and even less on social media. Then he turned to his players.
He said the group at the Germany camp, which includes several players with a migrant background, “could not be better united than they are”. It was a short answer. It left little room for doubt.
The abuse has not come only from anonymous accounts. Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), now the largest opposition party in the Bundestag, Germany’s parliament, has criticised the diversity of the national team. The party has described the squad as a “politically correct mercenary force”.
Klopp took over as Germany manager in summer 2026 on a four-year contract that runs to the end of the 2030 World Cup. He has spoken before about identity and the national shirt. When he named his first squad he wore a cap bearing the words “one of 83 million”.
Last month he said Germans should be able to show national pride without being linked to extremism, and that he did not want to leave that pride to the wrong sort of people. Reuters
For fans, this is familiar territory. Club dressing rooms and national squads have long brought together players from different families, faiths and cities. Klopp’s point was simple. Judge this team on how it plays together, starting against Serbia, not on where its players come from.
