BERLIN: The German soccer federation (DFB) want compensation when players opt to represent other countries after representing Germany at youth levels.
“It simply makes no sense to me why a player who has been coached primarily at his club for five years but also by the federation as a junior partner should be able to switch national associations for free,” DFB managing director Andreas Rettig told news agency dpa on Tuesday.
German-born Juventus star Kenan Yıldız is a Turkish international, having played for Turkiye’s youth teams. Eintracht Frankfurt forward Can Uzun also turned down Germany in favor of Turkiye.
Former Hertha Berlin forward Ibrahim Maza, now playing for Bayer Leverkusen, plays for Algeria after appearing for Germany at youth levels.
German youth internationals Muhammed Damar and Nicolò Tresoldi are reportedly being courted by Turkiye and Italy, respectively, and the Frankfurter Rundschau daily newspaper reported on Sunday that Nuremberg defender Fabio Gruber has chosen to represent Peru.
“We’re currently checking whether there’s a possibility of coaching compensation when players switch national associations,” Rettig said. “This issue has not yet been addressed extensively. But coaching must be worthwhile for both sides, the player and the coach.”
Germany have long seen players with one or two parents born abroad opt to represent their country of their roots, while the country has also benefited from immigration as players such as İlkay Gündoğan, Mesut Özil, Sami Khedira and Gerald Asamoah have contributed to the national team’s success.
Cologne teenager Said El Mala was last week called up for Germany’s World Cup qualifiers this week and at least 12 players in the latest squad could have chosen to represent other countries. The injured Jamal Musiala chose Germany after playing for England youth teams.
“In Germany 43 percent of children under five years of age hold dual citizenship. When they’re 10 or 12 years older they can decide, do I prefer the (German) eagle or, for example, the (Turkish) crescent moon?” Rettig said.
“We analyzed the squad lists from the under-15s to the under-21s within the federation. The percentage there is significantly higher than the aforementioned 43 percent. There are age groups in which seven or eight players in the starting 11 have dual nationality.”
FIFA would need to approve and enforce any system of compensation payments. Other countries like France, England, Switzerland and the Netherlands could also expect windfalls from home-grown players’ switches to other teams.