German coach Jürgen Klopp ended a press conference last Thursday after being questioned regarding Bastian Schweinsteiger’s controversial statements. The former player had stated, the previous week, that the Ivory Coast team had a “slightly African” style of play, which he described as “wild”, “unpredictable” and less tactical.
Jürgen Klopp was participating in a meeting with journalists when he expressed irritation with the questioning. Visibly uncomfortable, the former Liverpool commander declared he was unable to comment on the matter and closed the question and answer session.
“No, no. I have no chance of answering that question. It’s a serious matter and I don’t even know what would be appropriate to say. For Africans it’s one thing, for other people it’s another, and I’m not here for that,” Klopp declared.
Before leaving the place, the German smiled and made a final observation to the reporter responsible for the question.
“I thought thank God no one would ask me about this. But you found the moment. And, surprisingly, you are German. That surprised me a lot,” he said, moments before leaving the microphone.
The journalist’s question referred directly to the comments made by Schweinsteiger during the broadcast on the German public broadcaster ARD. Before Germany’s victory over Côte d’Ivoire in the 2026 World Cup, the former midfielder analyzed the opponent, describing his way of acting as “a little African”, “savage”, “unpredictable” and with less tactical rigor. These observations generated great repercussion and were criticized for perpetuating stereotypes that have long been associated in a derogatory way with sport in African countries.