Germany’s men’s Olympic football team walked off during a pre-tournament friendly against Honduras five minutes from time due to alleged racist abuse. Center-back Jordan Torunarigha was the target of the insults.
The game, which was played behind closed doors in three 30-minute periods, did not resume and finished 1-1 with five minutes left to play after centre-back Jordan Torunarigha was allegedly racially abused by an opposition player in Wakayama, Japan.
“When one of our players is racially abused, playing on is not an option,” said head coach Stefan Kuntz. “[Torunarigha] could hardly contain himself and got terribly upset because he said he had been repeatedly racially insulted. It was clear to us then that it violates our values. We couldn’t tolerate that either and we’re backing our player completely.”
The incident was announced by the German Football Association (DFB) on social media, while the Honduras FA have denied the claims citing a “misunderstanding on the pitch.”