Fan protests against Nmecha deal
German international splits BVB
By Tobias Nordman
06/26/2023, 4:09 p.m
Borussia Dortmund is apparently on the verge of signing a national player for midfield. Felix Nmecha from Wolfsburg should come. BVB fans are protesting the transfer because of the player’s possibly homophobic beliefs. The club is threatened with a stress test.
Borussia Dortmund is looking for solutions to compensate for the loss of world star Jude Bellingham. There is no affordable one-to-one replacement for the young Englishman, despite the transfer fee of over 100 million euros. Mexican Edson Álvarez is said to be part of the solution. A classic six that should cost between 40 and 50 million euros. That’s the easy part of the solution.
The complicated one is Felix Nmecha, the one-time DFB international at VfL Wolfsburg. In terms of sport, the deal with the midfielder (central and offensive) could join the ranks of the most recent BVB top deals. A young player (he’s 22) comes for a reasonable price (somewhere between €25m and €30m, maybe even less), develops, increases his market value and (maybe) moves on. But there is another side to Nmecha. He represents beliefs that challenge BVB’s core values.
Video shared by right-wing populist
Nmecha is considered a strictly religious Christian. He makes no secret of it on his Instagram profile. He regularly publishes pictures and videos and includes his faith. After the season with VfL Wolfsburg, which made him interesting for the national team and BVB, he thanked Jesus. In his most recent post he writes: “Lord, you give me peace, we don’t get any restrictions.” So far, so uncritical. But Nmecha has also posted other things in the past. In February, he shared a video of US right-wing populist Matt Walsh repeatedly showing off his transphobia and rejection of LGBTQ rights. And with the start of the Pride month of June, he had shared a video from an account called “Reformedbychrist”. In the post, the term “Pride” is associated with the devil. A line has been crossed for BVB fans. There are heated discussions in forums and in real life. Some fans are even threatening to give up their club membership.
Nmecha himself had denied allegations of being homophobic in April. “I definitely don’t hate anyone, I love everyone,” he told the “Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland”. He regrets sharing Walsh’s post, “mainly because I don’t know if he’s a Christian,” he said. “I don’t agree with the way he conveys his beliefs, nor do I agree with everything he says.” In Wolfsburg, sharing the posts attracted attention, but not an escalating debate. Unlike BVB.
A BVB sponsor also has doubts
The bosses of the club have taken up the issue. They are excited about the qualities of the player and the details of the deal. They, above all near-champion coach Edin Terzić, absolutely want to bring them to Dortmund. However, because the protests online and in the real world have become more and more vehement in recent days – a banner was shown in front of the stadium, for example, a major sponsor was also not enthusiastic – the BVB bosses met the 22-year-old and rattled off whether his Christian beliefs are compatible with the leitmotifs of BVB. It was only last year that these were adopted in a code of basic values. Core element: Borussia is clearly opposed to any form of discrimination. This has been practice for a long time.
The basic code of values states: “We will always work for social success. By this we mean club life and a society without racism, anti-Semitism, LGBTI+ hostility, sexism, violence and discrimination. (…)” So how is that supposed to fit together , many Dortmunders ask themselves. The love of the fans for the club, for the players and for the coach is the glue that makes BVB something special, as became evident once again after the failed championship. Now signing a player – the deal is said to be imminent according to media reports – who is already causing a lot of unrest in advance could be a major stress test for the Black and Yellows.
Even Nmecha’s reconciliation course after several controversial contributions hardly calmed the black and yellow scene: “On my football trip I met people from all imaginable backgrounds, ethnicities and beliefs. It’s important that I make it clear that I really love ALL people and don’t discriminate against anyone,” he wrote on Instagram a few days ago. He shared a photo with the post with Josha Vagnoman, with whom he made his senior debut in March. The man from Stuttgart wore a shirt with a colorful chest ring, a statement for the LGBTIQ+ movement. That didn’t seem credible in BVB fan circles. The club bosses see it differently. According to media reports, the professional was able to convince the BVB delegation with Managing Director Hans-Joachim Watzke and President Reinhold Lunow that he supported the club’s code of values.
The national team is also involved
What applies to BVB also applies to the German Football Association. He also sees himself exposed to the debate of nominating the player and continuing to live his own canon of values. In the Code of Ethics The DFB says: “We respect and promote this diversity on and off the field and do not tolerate any discrimination, harassment or insults, whether due to gender, ethnic origin, skin color, religion, age, disability or sexual orientation.”
Football has been caught up in a moral debate for months, perhaps already overtaken. Since the World Cup in Qatar, football/the footballer has no longer been the focus, but has been used for messages, mercilessly weighed against convictions. In France, for example, several players refused to support a homophobia campaign in the spring. Bayern professional Noussair Mazraoui showed solidarity with a colleague from the Moroccan national team. FC Bayern fans were up in arms afterwards and called on the supplementary player with a banner in the Allianz Arena to respect the club’s values. BVB faces the same scenario. In an even more violent intensity. Because the club is defined by love and emotions. And because Nmecha should play a central role at BVB.