The German football federation DFB has rejected accusations of racism in the case of Mesut Oezil but says it regrets his decision to quit the national team.
"We clearly reject that the DFB is associated with racism with regard to its representatives, employees, the clubs and the performance of millions of volunteers," it said in a statement. "The DFB has been heavily engaged in integration work in Germany for many years."
The DFB presidential board have issued a statement regarding Mesut Özil 👉 https://t.co/NIgYFg1pKX pic.twitter.com/RrJWh0y4KF
— Germany (@DFB_Team_EN) July 23, 2018
The DFB admitted "self-critically" to having contributed to the poor handling of the Erdogan picture affair but said it was "important that Mesut Oezil, like Ilkay Guendogan before him, gave answers in view of this photo, regardless of the sporting outcome of the [World Cup] tournament in Russia."
It said Oezil made a "decisive contribution" to the World Cup win in 2014 and the DFB remained "very thankful for his outstanding performance in the shirt of the German team."