Germany’s Olympic soccer team walks off the pitch during friendly match over alleged racial abuse
By John Sinnott and Jaide Timm-Garcia, CNN
Germany’s Olympic soccer team walked off the pitch during a friendly match against Honduras after one of the German players was racially abused, according to the German Football Association (DFB).
“The game has ended 5 minutes early with the score at 1-1. The Germany players left the pitch after Jordan Torunarigha was racially abused,” tweeted the DFB.
Torunarigha, who is Black, plays as a defender for Germany.
The Honduran Football Federation did not respond to CNN’s request for comment via email and phone, but the organization said in a tweet that the “alleged racial insult” had been a “misunderstanding” on the pitch.
The match against Honduras took place in Wakayama, Japan and was the final practice for the German side before their first Olympic match on July 22, according to the DFB.
The friendly was set up to be three 30-minute games, but at the end of the third match Germany’s coach Stefan Kuntz and his team left the field early.
“When of our players is racially abused, playing on is not an option,” Kuntz said in a statement.
On Sunday, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said in a statement sent to CNN that the organization has contacted both world football governing body FIFA and the National Olympic Committee of Honduras.
“We understand that the two teams resolved their differences after the match,” said the IOC statement. “Any kind of discriminatory behaviour is absolutely unacceptable. If it were to take place at the Olympic Games, the IOC would act immediately.”
READ: Two South African footballers test positive for Covid-19 in Olympic Village
In February 2020, Hertha BSC player Torunarigha was racially abused by fans of an opposing team in a German Cup match.
The DFB fined Bundesliga club Schalke roughly $59,000 over the incident.
The Olympics run until August 8.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2021 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved.
