Mehmet Matur just needs to make a lot of calls.
He is a member of the board of the Berlin Football Association and responsible for integration and diversity. When the Turkish national football team saluted a gate to salute the soldiers in northern Syria and there was excitement because the two German national players Ilkay Gündogan and Emre Can liked a picture of it, Matur already sensed that the big politics were also on his Work will be knocked down on a small scale.
"We have to expect that there will be imitators in Berlin squares." The Turkish young people see on television how their idols are greeting them, some want to copy it, we can not close our eyes to it and are prepared for it, "says Matur the MIRROR.
Sports law consequences threatened
Berlin has a large Turkish community and many amateur clubs are Turkish. Some also Kurdish. The conflict on the border between Turkey and the Kurdish region in northern Syria could now be carried out on Berlin football fields by other means. There could be provocations, scorers who also salute. At least that's the fear.
The Berlin Football Association (BFV) sent an appeal via e-mail to its clubs on Wednesday in order to make their players and coaches aware of the issue. And he put this on his homepage. It says: "Imitators of the politically motivated cheering gesture of the Turkish national team must expect sports law consequences." The BFV calls "to renounce any political gestures or statements on the football field and to promote a respectful togetherness."
Matur has spoken personally with many coaches and managers to influence. He has also reported to the FC Amed, a district division, which is marked Kurdish, but in which also Turkish-born and German players kick. "We do not want to make a fuss, but we have to be prepared," says Matur. This also applies to referees.
Last weekend there were no military gestures in Berlin football, so Matur. But that could change after the Turkish national team also saluted on Monday against France. The Uefa subsequently investigated for possible provocative political behavior and announced Thursday's ruling.
Several cases of imitators last weekend
Two imitators reported the Bavarian Football Association. This went on Tuesday as the first national association with the topic to the public and announced that saluting amateur footballers in the sports court to quote. The Württemberg Football Association also reported two cases.
About another at the county league between Türkspor Herne and FC Castrop-Rauxel at the weekend in North Rhine-Westphalia reported "sportschau.de". Herner players would have provoked the opponent before the game with the Salutier pose, it is said there.
Similar incidents occurred in the district Recklinghausen. There, three clubs have to answer for the military salute of some of their players before the Association Sports Court Westphalia. The SG Hillen, Genclikspor Recklinghausen and the second team of DTSG Herten should be affected. "In one case, it was the entire team, the other was about groups of five to six players," said Hans-Otto Matthey, the district chairman of the association. The clubs are now threatened with fines.
There are no orders from above from the DFB
The German Football Association (DFB) had a workshop on integration in Frankfurt on Monday. The subject of military salute was not on the agenda. But it is discussed in the association. SPIEGEL demand states that there will be no orders from above from the DFB. Game operation, refereeing and sports courts are a matter for the state associations. The DFB offers this but help.
The association has already positioned several times, they say. Most recently with a photo of the German national team after the 3: 0 against Estonia and the excitement around Ilkay Gündogan and Emre Can. The message under the picture was: "Together for openness, diversity and tolerance, against any form of violence and discrimination." There was no concrete connection to the case of the saluting Turkish players.
The Berlin Football Association has set out to send game observers to individual games and display possible imitators. The basis is the legal and procedural regulations of the DFB. It reads: "An unsportsmanlike conduct (...) is particularly guilty of who behaves politically, extremist, obscenely offensive or provocative insulting." The sentence ranges from a warning to an exclusion on time.
Mehmet Matur, the BFV Integration Officer, says he has often experienced how big politics was negotiated in smaller squares in Berlin football. For example, in the Israel-Palestine conflict. In a game against the Jewish club TuS Maccabi shirts have been shown with the words "Free Palestine". Mostly such actions were limited.
And then there are other types of imitators. At the Landespokalspiel against Brandenburg 03 on Sunday the players of Türkiyemspor Berlin showed a banner. He was referring to an incident at the match between Germany and Argentina a week ago, when a spectator disturbed the minute's silence for the victims of Halle by singing the national anthem and then was rebuked by another.
The Türkiyemspor banner said, "Shut up, no room for racism, anti-Semitism and Islamophobia."
