Don't mention the war, is the famous line uttered by Basil Fawlty in British TV series Fawlty Towers whenever a German visitor entered his establishment. How apt when it comes to an England-Germany match in the Fifa World Cup. Why is it that whenever these two European countries, with long-standing, strong economic ties, play a game of football against each other, the unfortunate history of a war three generations ago is brought up? What exactly has it got to do with a football game — World Cup or not?
British tabloids do a great job of stirring up anti-German pro-war sentiments ahead of any England-Germany games, as observed by many opinion columnists in the UK.
Before the England-Germany game of Euro '96, The Daily Mirror (then edited by Piers Morgan) sported the headline ‘Achtung! Surrender! For You Fritz, ze Euro 96 Championship is over', along with a spoof article of the declaration of war between Britain and Nazi Germany in 1939.
Morgan later apologised for the headline and Germany won that game.
The Daily Star, known for its puns, took that bit too far this World Cup, with ‘Job done now for the Hun'.
Miroslav Klose, Polish-born German striker for Bayern Munich, whose father is German, and Lukas Podolski, Polish-born naturalised German, a striker for Koln, both played against England in Sunday's game.
Going simply by history, I'm sure they can't be categorised as the ‘Hun', despite the fact that the term is dubious in modern usage anyway.
I'm also sure that no one alive during the Second World War is working in the tabloid's newsroom.
Change of focus
Thankfully, after England's 4-1 defeat, the tabloids decided to attack Britain's national team and coach Fabio Capello.
During half time, German and English female fans were discussing the game amicably. Both were complimenting the other side politely, and both were excited about what the second half might bring.
"Just one thing," a German fan asked, "Why is it that you guys always bring up the war?"
Good question, I thought. What's it got to do with football? The England fan replied: "I don't know, I wasn't even alive during the war." Good point.
It's not just the press that keeps digging up the past that Germany and the rest of the world have managed to overcome, however.
"England hasn't beaten Germany in a World Cup for 44 years …" the commentators sombrely said. Yet again, bringing up the old rivalry between the two countries. They neglected to mention that England defeated West Germany in 1966, with Germany divided and East Germany still under the grip of Socialism.
As always during a football match, the cameras cut to the crowd, showing people enjoying watching their team play, donning their country's flags proudly. And then it cut to two men dressed as Second World War servicemen, standing sombrely as the last minutes of added time counted down and England's defeat was imminent, as if observing a minute's silence. Personally, I don't see how this could be anything other than insulting.
I was born in Bremen, north Germany, in the late 1970s. My grandparents — who fought Nazi Germany during the war — had no problem travelling to Germany to see their third grandchild. Not once did they bring up the war. I have two birth certificates (one British and one German) and could still apply for dual nationality, which I haven't done as yet, only because I never got round to it. I have many German friends, visit Germany frequently and have always enjoyed spending time in the country — not bringing up the war.
So England is out of the World Cup. Instead of making war puns and dredging up horrific stories from more than 65 years ago, I'll be supporting my next team of choice — Germany — who, after all, played better than England.
