German police on Friday filed charges against the alleged author of an anti-Semitic tweet sent to Almog Cohen, the Israeli captain of the German second division soccer team Ingolstadt.
Cohen had been given a red card in Ingolstadt’s 2-0 loss to Berlin Union, in the 25th round of the second German division. At the end of the game, Cohen, a midfielder, received an ugly, anti-Semitic tweet which quickly erupted into a great media storm.
The Berlin team’s fan tweeted, among other things, “[Expletive] off our stadium at the old forester, you [expletive] Jews !!!!!!! You got a red [card] so now it’s not annoying to us, but [expletive] you up for [expletive] cuddly cattle; off to the chamber with you.”
Einen tollen Fan habt ihr da, lieber .
Nicht falsch verstehen liebe Unioner, wir scheren hier keineswegs alle über einen Kamm, aber so jemand hat in eurem Verein oder in unserer Gesellschaft nichts verloren. Wir arbeiten an Konsequenzen und hoffen auf eure Unterstützung. pic.twitter.com/FbpEpE5aM5— FC Ingolstadt 04 (@Schanzer)
Of course, the “chamber” referenced that historically significant German product, Zyklon B, which was used in gas chambers in the death camps in Poland under Nazi rule.
Cohen, who has been playing for nine years in Germany, tweeted a thank you message to all his fans who quickly denounced the filthy Nazi tweet.
“As a Jewish professional soccer player in Germany I just want to say: I am very proud of my heritage and of representing my country in the second division and being captain of Ingolstadt,” he wrote, adding, “a big thank you to my club which gives me the support and therefore the strength to master any situation.”
Rainer Koch, vice president of the German Football Association (DFB), issued a statement saying, “We strongly condemn this disgusting, anti-Semitic tweet in all forms and demand that it be prosecuted.” The federation promised to pursue its own investigation of the incident.
Cohen began his career with Beitar Tubruk in Netanya, and signed with the major league team of Maccabi Netanya FC in 2006. In 2010, he made his league debut starting for Nürnberg, and scored a goal against Hamburg (Nürnberg won 2–0, Cohen goal was the second of the match).
In 2013, Cohen joined FC Ingolstadt in a three-year contract, which was later extended.