Klopp walks out of interview when asked about Schweinsteiger racism storm at World Cup

Jurgen Klopp walked away from a media interview at the 2026 World Cup after a journalist asked him to weigh in on the racism controversy surrounding former Germany international Bastian Schweinsteiger. Klopp, working as a pundit for Magenta TV in the United States, told DW Sports he had no way to answer the question before making his exit.

Schweinsteiger, 41, has been working as an analyst for German broadcaster ARD during the tournament. While covering Germany’s 2-1 victory over Ivory Coast, the former Bayern Munich and Manchester United midfielder described the west Africans’ playing style as “African football” — characterising it as “a bit unorthodox sometimes, a bit wild, not quite as tactical.” He also suggested Julian Nagelsmann’s side had to be “prepared for it to be unpredictable at times.”

The remarks drew swift and widespread condemnation in Germany and became a major talking point in the country’s football media. When a journalist put the controversy to Klopp, the former Liverpool manager made clear he was unwilling to engage.

“I have no chance to answer this question,” Klopp said. “Everybody likes it, so you bring me into this situation. It’s not my job that everybody likes it, but this is a serious subject. I don’t even know what is appropriate to say. For African people it’s one thing, for other people it’s another thing.”

Klopp then walked away, with several reporters audibly saying “no, no” as he left.

The backlash against Schweinsteiger has been given prominent voice by Phillip Awounou, a Black sports journalist and author based in Germany. Writing in Spiegel news magazine, Awounou argued that the language used carried deep historical weight. “Behind attributions like ‘wild’ and ‘unpredictable’ are stereotypes which are older than football and which have racist, colonial roots,” he wrote. “In the past, Black people of African heritage were stigmatized as uncivilized (‘wild’), different (‘unorthodox’) and potentially dangerous (‘unpredictable’).”

Sports content creator Patrick Schnitzler echoed those concerns to his 50,000 Instagram followers, referencing academic research showing that commentators and fans are statistically more likely to describe Black footballers in terms of physical attributes rather than tactical or technical qualities — a pattern critics say Schweinsteiger’s commentary reflects.