Ivory Coast coach Fae saddened by Schweinsteiger’s ‘African football’ jab
Key takeaways
- Nicolas Pepe’s brace guided the Ivory Coast to a 2-0 win over Curacao and took his nation to their first-ever World Cup knockout phase on Thursday.
- In his response, Fae noted how he once admired the former Bayern Munich man so much that he sometimes was called “Bastian” by his friends.
- “I think it’s sad,” said the 42-year-old Fae, who is only several months older than the 41-year-old Schweinsteiger. “He was a very, very good player; a great player.
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
Former German player’s comments that ‘African football’ is ‘a bit unorthodox sometimes, a bit wild’ sparked controversy.
xwhatsapp-strokecopylinkgoogle Add Al Jazeera on Googleinfo Ivory Coast head coach Emerse Fae says he admired Bastian Schweinsteiger as a player [Robert Cianflone/Getty Images/AFP]By Reuters Published On 26 Jun 202626 Jun 2026Even in one of the most joyous moments in his country’s footballing history, Ivory Coast manager Emerse Fae found himself managing sadness over the remarks of a former role model that have sparked debate about potential racist connotations.
Nicolas Pepe’s brace guided the Ivory Coast to a 2-0 win over Curacao and took his nation to their first-ever World Cup knockout phase on Thursday.