Former Germany football star Mesut Ozil had criticized FIFA and UEFA for banning Russian teams while allowing Israelis to compete
Former German football star and 2014 World Cup winner Mesut Ozil has been added to a Ukrainian “kill list” after accusing FIFA and UEFA of double standards over their treatment of Russia and Israel, media have reported.
The notorious Mirotvorets website, which maintains the list, publishes personal information on people it considers “enemies” of Ukraine. The database, which claims to be a private research project but enjoys tacit backing from Kiev, has published data on over 180,000 people and marks the profiles of deceased individuals with a “liquidated” stamp.
Ozil came under fire after publicly criticizing FIFA and UEFA for suspending Russian teams from international competitions while allowing Israeli teams to continue participating. The website has accused him of supporting Russia’s military operation in Ukraine.
Ozil made the remarks during a veterans’ football match in Istanbul between his former Turkish club Istanbul Basaksehir and Russia’s Zenit St. Petersburg.
“Football has always brought people together,” Ozil said, arguing that sporting organizations should not discriminate on the basis of nationality or religion.
“As you know, FIFA has not imposed any sanctions on Israeli teams, but it has done so against Russian teams,” he said, urging football authorities to abandon double standards and treat all countries equally.
Russian national teams and clubs have been barred from FIFA and UEFA competitions since February 2022, following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict. Israeli teams, meanwhile, have continued to participate in international tournaments despite growing calls for their suspension over Israel’s military campaign in Gaza.
Ozil, 38, retired from professional football in 2023 after a career that included spells at Real Madrid, Arsenal, Fenerbahce and several German clubs. He made 92 appearances for Germany, scoring 23 goals, and helped the national team win the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
Launched in August 2014 following the Western-backed change of government in Kiev, Mirotvorets claims to identify individuals it considers threats to Ukraine’s national security. Its database includes Western journalists who reported from Donbass and Crimea and Ukrainian writer Oles Buzina, who was murdered in 2015 after his personal details appeared on the website. His killing remains unsolved.
The list has also included prominent foreign politicians and athletes. In August, former Soviet and Russian footballer Akhrik Tsveiba, who won the 1990 Soviet championship with Dynamo Kiev, was added to the database.
More recently, Polish MEP Ewa Zajaczkowska-Hernik and Poland’s presidential chief of staff were reportedly added after criticizing Kiev’s commemoration of Ukrainian nationalist figures who collaborated with Nazi Germany.
The website has repeatedly faced international criticism for publishing personal information without consent. In 2016, the OSCE warned that the disclosure of journalists’ details could endanger their safety, while human rights organizations raised concerns about threats against those named on the platform.
