[Archive 2018-07-25] German footballer Mesut Özil announces retirement from international football over 'racism'

Historical archive — originally published 2018-07-25. This report records what was known on that date. It is not current news; subsequent events may have changed the situation. Wikinews closed in May 2026.

On Sunday, German footballer Mesut Özil announced retiring from international football via his official Twitter handle. The 29-year-old gave racism as the reason for his retirement.

Özil and his international teammate İlkay Gündoğan, who are of Turkish origin, met the Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in London in May. The two players took a photo with Erdoğan, after which, many Germans reportedly booed the players prior to this year's FIFA Football World Cup in Russia. Özil said that he received hate mail and threats after meeting the Turkish president.

Özil made his international debut on August 12, 2009, playing against Azerbaijan. Since then, he has featured in 92 matches for Germany, scoring 23 goals. Özil was part of 2014's World Cup winning squad.

Özil's last match for Germany was against South Korea in this year's FIFA World Cup, which ended in a 2–0 defeat for Germany, as the 2014 winners failed to qualify for the knockout phase.

Source and licence

Text adapted from German footballer Mesut Özil announces retirement from international football over 'racism' by Wikinews contributors under CC BY 2.5. Paragraphs have been selected and abridged, and formatting adjusted. Contributor history.