Lede:
When he was ten years old, kicking a soccer ball on a field in Berlin, Nabil Rayk could already sense the divide. The opposing team’s parents, “the Proper Germans” as he puts it, would shout insults from the sidelines. “Kick that Arab, kick that N-word” he recalled, their racist comments disguised as team spirit. “For them,” Nabil said, “sometimes sport is a replacement for war.”
Nutgraph:
A decade later, the same hostility Nabil once felt on the soccer field continues to persist far beyond the boundaries of sport. Divisions along racial, ethnic, gender, and religious lines that have been present in playgrounds and smaller soccer clubs are now making their way into parliament debates and campaign rallies, as far-right parties like Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) gain traction and anti-immigrant rhetoric grows louder across Germany.
For many immigrants and people of color, this prejudice is forcing their ethnic, religious, or racial identities and even their gender or sexual orientation into the spotlight. It leaves them questioning whether Germany truly sees them as part of the nation or as outsiders.
In response, a renewed wave of protests and activism condemning far-right extremism has taken place in recent months, particularly within the stands of numerous football clubs’ stadiums. In Germany, football reputations carry political weight, which are largely created by the fans. East German football clubs have long been associated with right-leaning ideology, while those in the West have been labeled as left-leaning.
