Erdoğan and Özil's big staging show falls apart

Provocations from Turkish President Erdogan give Berlin headaches, but his show fails at an Orange Party in the EU-Quarterfinals. A part of a grand production is also Mesut Ozil. In the end, a sludgy feeling remains.

An innocent scene. And yet it hurts in the heart. Before the Olympiastadion in Berlin, a family lines up, who believe in the Turkish national team, to take a commemorative photo before the EU-Quarterfinal, which the Netherlands eventually won with a score of 2:1 (0:1). From children to grandparents, everyone is present. A few wear jerseys, others casual clothing, a few women wear headscarves, others have their hair uncovered. A normal Berlin family. Everyone smiles for the photo - and suddenly, a roughly nine-year-old girl shows the wolf salute. She does it quickly, and at the same time, she looks around a little uneasily. She knows that the gesture is something forbidden or bad, but exactly what, she certainly doesn't. For that reason, she is too young.

A small scene shows that the political overshadows the entire EU-Quarterfinal between Turkey and the Netherlands. All the provocations of the last days and hours, the hate scenes with Turkish-right-wing wolf-packs - under whose use in Turkey, pogroms against Alevites, Syrian refugees, and other minorities have already been committed - banners, and slogans from Saturday, have won in this moment. They cast a shadow over the many peacefully celebrating fans, such as the little boy in the Spiderman full-body costume with a Turkish flag on his back, who is packing his hip-hop dance steps. Or the girl in the Turkey jersey, who is being filmed by her mother while she dances wildly to Taylor Swift's world hit "Shake it off," which a student band with brass instruments performs perfectly.

Part of this all-consuming provocation is President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The well-known Turkish president, who is known for his productions, cancels a trip to Azerbaijan and flies to Berlin instead to support his national team - and to bask in the attention of the crowd. A perfectly constructed power demonstration of the nationalist autocrat live on German television. In the eyes of millions of viewers around the world.

Power demonstration by Erdogan

At first, everything seems orchestrated for the great Erdogan production. After a contingent of the Turkish embassy picks him and his wife Emine up at the airport, Erdogan is driven to the Olympiastadion in two Maybach limousines. There, Erdogan is warmly welcomed when he arrives 20 minutes before kickoff on the honorary tribune. He throws kisses into the crowd. Holds himself to his heart. Wants to show to the many Turkish fans: I love you all, you are my children, Papa is here.

Provocation is also when Erdogan summons Germany's ambassador to Turkey after the German politics criticized the jubilee of Merih Demiral's wolf salute. That he then flies to the Federal Republic without speaking to Chancellor Olaf Scholz or any other representative of the government is supposed to be a sign that he has the reins in hand and dictates. He doesn't let himself be commanded around, the strong man is. Erdogan demonstrates his power, less towards Scholz and Co. than towards the homeland and electorate.

Ultimately, the UEFA ban against Demiral also served as a delegitimization of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) since the Wolfsgruss is their symbol, making them a government partner of Erdogan. This was something the President couldn't ignore. The MHP is the political arm of the Grey Wolves and a part of the Turkish government alongside Erdogan's AKP. Kamal Sido, a representative of the "Society for Threatened Peoples," told ntv.de: "I hold the view that the ideology of the Grey Wolves is also the unofficial ideology of the Turkish state." Grey Wolves refer to the supporters of the ultranationalist ULKUCU movement, which is monitored by the German Constitutional Protection Agency in Germany.

Eren Guvercin, co-founder of the Alhambra Society, which advocates for an open inter-Muslim dialogue, stated before the match on ntv.de that Erdogan's attendance at the Turkish national team's football game was not a normal visit. "He uses every opportunity to stage a show of strength for his supporters," Guvercin explained. "After the debate about the Wolfsgruss following the round of 16 match, it was clear that Erdogan would use this opportunity to position himself as the leader of Turkey."

Erdogan's Show Continues

The fact that Erdogan canceled all his engagements abroad to be present at the game indicates that he is using provocations, either directly in the stadium or through statements surrounding the match. "I believe he wants to convey messages to the nationalist segment of the Turkish population through symbolism or gestures," Sido further stated.

Symbolism reaches its peak when the Turkish national anthem is played. Ultra and nationalist groups had called on Turkish fans to display the right-wing Wolfsgruss gesture during this time. Thousands oblige, and Erdogan visibly enjoys it. This provocative gesture is threatening for all minorities - be they Kurds, Armenians, Jews, or Yazidis - who view the right-wing extremist Grey Wolves in Turkey and Germany as enemy images.

In the sea of Wolfsgruss gestures, not far from Erdogan on the honorary podium are tournament director Philipp Lahm, Dutch football legends Edgar Davids and Clarence Seedorf, and Federal Minister of Economy and Climate Protection Robert Habeck. "We always try to ensure that representatives of the German government are present," Chancellor Olaf Scholz had previously stated about Erdogan's visit to the EM.

Mesut Ozil sits closer to Erdogan, exactly in a row behind the President. Both of them listen to the anthem without making the Wolf's Salute. Although Erdogan has done this before and Ozil presented himself on social media with a tattoo of the Grey Wolves on his chest. The former German national player flew to Berlin shortly and shared a picture on Instagram of Merih Demiral celebrating the Wolf's Salute after the Austria game. He announced his arrival with a photo from the plane, "I am coming" is written on the image, which shows his striped suit and an expensive watch. Ozil kept up with Erdogan in terms of staging.

That the Wolf's Salutes go unchecked is due to the fact that neither the Wolf's Salute nor the Grey Wolves are banned in Germany, although since 2020, a ban review is ongoing in the Federal Ministry of the Interior. "The problem of Turkish right-wing extremism," says Guvercin, "is often not taken seriously enough by politics. If we speak of a wall against right-wing extremism, it must also include Turkish right-wing extremism, as the Grey Wolves are very well organized in Germany." The biggest problem, which becomes visible in Berlin every Saturday, according to the journalist and author, is: "Ankara tries to spread nationalist ideology among young Turkish immigrants in Germany through aggressive diaspora politics."

The Kurdish community in Germany also demands a ban on the gesture. "Fans adopt such signs, being right-wing extremist is considered cool among Turkish youth in Germany," said the Federal Chairman Ali Toprak in a statement. "Imagine an Austrian player had made a Hitler salute after scoring a goal."

UEFA turns a blind eye in the face of mass Turkish right-wing extremist gestures. They do not intervene, although they could have stopped the game before the kick-off according to their Three-Step Plan for discriminatory incidents. Instead, the TV images of UEFA do not show the hateful scenes. Only in the stadium and on the internet do people see them. The association shows with this that it cannot take its anti-discrimination campaign seriously, according to information from the "Tagesspiegel," but also wanted to avoid escalation.

Oranje crashes the Turkey party

Erdogan won a provocation round. For him, who the Grey Wolves see as a leader, the arms were raised to the sky with the Wolf's Salute in the evening. Just like at the demonstrations before the game, when the Berlin police intervened and initially stopped and then completely broke up a fan march. A group of black-clad Ultras chanted the slogan in the videos on social media: "We don't want refugees in our country."

The sporting event causes Erdogan and Ozil's staged show to deflate more and more. During the leadership walkthrough by Samet Akaydin (he kisses the emblem on the jersey, makes no wolf gesture) in the 35th minute, the mood on the Erdogan tribune is still good: The President briefly places his arm around his wife's shoulders, knowing how he must present himself to the cameras. Then he waves to the crowd in delight, pats his heart. Mesut Ozil distributes high-fives.

However, in the second half, Orange snatches the game with a double blow through Stefan de Vrij (70.) and an own goal by Mert Mudur (76.) from Turkey. Now the fans dance in orange, the entire block hops from left to right, while at Erdogan and Co., distorted mines and silence reign. With the loss and elimination, the effect of Erdogan's power demonstration is significantly reduced.

"Turkish football fans in Germany, who are passionate about their team, are facing a dilemma," Guvercin had said before the game. "You can't just enjoy football peacefully due to the politicization of football by Turkish right-wing extremists. You always have a slimy feeling." This is now over with this EM.

However, the slimy feeling remains. For example, when a nine-year-old girl makes a right-wing gesture, which she doesn't even know what harm it signifies.

Despite Erdogan's attempts to use the European Football Championship 2024 as a platform for political demonstrations, his actions resulted in a backlash. Mesut Özil, the German-Turkish footballer, was present at the match, but he and Erdogan remained uncritical towards the right-wing extremism displayed by some Turkish fans, including the wolf salute. This gesture, associated with the Grey Wolves, a Turkish nationalist group, is controversial and controversial in Germany. The Turkish president's support for the national team and his actions during the match were widely criticized, particularly by German and Kurdish communities, who view the Grey Wolves as a threat. In the end, the Netherlands came out victorious with a score of 2:1, leaving Erdogan's power demonstration largely unsuccessful.