## August 11, 2024, 6:04 PM
A Green politician sparked outrage during the European Championships with a post about the skin color of football players. But with some distance, she also sees positive aspects.
According to Bundestag Vice President Katrin Göring-Eckardt, her controversial tweet about the skin color of players on the national soccer team has sparked outrage and important debate. “At least the excitement surrounding the tweet has focused attention on what it’s really about,” the Green Party politician told the German Press Agency. “The crucial questions: How do we live together? Do we accept that we are different? How do we talk about success stories?”
She added, “Football is, so to speak, the last campfire in this republic, where everyone has a say and talks to each other. We can’t talk enough about the question of togetherness. But I fear that this is still not clear in our society. We are still a long way from achieving the normality of diversity.”
After Germany’s victory over Hungary in the European Championship in June, Göring-Eckardt wrote on the platform X: “This team is really great. Just imagine if there were only white German players.” Following widespread criticism, she deleted the post and apologized: “I regret using those words. It upset me to learn that 21% of Germans would prefer a whiter national team.”
Reflecting on the incident several weeks later, Göring-Eckardt said, “In retrospect, you always see things differently. I now understand that not everyone saw or wanted to see the direct connection to a survey that found 21 percent of Germans wanted more white football players in the national team. That number really affected me.”