Qatari TV hosts have appeared to mock Germany's OneLove armband protest following their surprise World Cup exit on Thursday.
Hansi Flick's side were knocked out of the tournament in Qatar - despite beating Costa Rica 4-2 - after Japan scored a controversial winner against Spain in Group E's other game. It's the second successive time they have failed to get out of their World Cup group.
Germany's exit came just eight days after they protested against FIFA's decision to veto the OneLove armband. Manuel Neuer, England skipper Harry Kane and five other World Cup captains wanted to wear the armband to promote diversity and inclusion.
The OneLove campaign gained importance ahead of the World Cup due to Qatar's abhorrent anti-LGBT+ laws. Same-sex relationships are illegal in the Arab country and local authorities have quashed several LGBT+ protests throughout the ongoing tournament.
Seven World Cup skippers were set to wear the OneLove armband before FIFA threatened to sanction players for doing so. All seven participating nations pulled out of the campaign following the threat and the German FA are considering suing FIFA over the row.
Flick's side protested against FIFA's actions by putting their hands over their mouths for their team photo ahead of their World Cup opener against Japan. That protest was noticed by the Qataris after 11 TV hosts appeared to mock it during a broadcast on Friday.
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In the video clip, the TV hosts are copying Germany's protest and waving to the camera. It appears they are waving goodbye to Flick's side following their departure, which is a bit rich considering Qatar were the first team to be dumped out of the tournament.
That wasn't the only incident to follow Germany's exit. After their win against Costa Rica, a group of fans taunted the travelling Germans with pictures of Mesut Ozil. The former Arsenal star quit the national team in controversial circumstances four year ago.
Ozil, who is of Turkish decent, retired from international football and blamed unfair discrimination over his meeting with the Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan in May 2018. "I am German when we win, but I am an immigrant when we lose," claimed Ozil.
Germany fans attempted to grab the pictures of Ozil off those mocking them. It's unlikely supporters nor players will look forward to coming back to Qatar anytime soon after Germany's disappointing campaign and the societal issues that have dominated the agenda.
Flick's side suffered a surprise 2-1 defeat to Japan and were fortunate to secure a 1-1 draw against Spain. Four points is often enough to get through the group stage, yet Spain's 7-0 win against Costa Rica helped them boast a superior goal difference over the Germans.
Japan's winner on Thursday was controversial. Many critics think it shouldn't have stood as the ball appeared to go out of play before it was crossed. The assistant referee initially gave a goal kick before the VAR officials discovered a tiny part of the ball was still in play.
