Understanding the Roots of Racism in Football: Why African Teams Face Persistent Stereotypes

No African teams progressed beyond the quarter-finals of the 2026 men’s World Cup, yet their strategic and tactical mastery left a profound impact.

The success of African football is the culmination of a long-term evolutionary process. Consequently, it is striking that the continent’s football remains underrated and dismissed by experts, often through ignorance of African sporting history. At times, these critiques carry a deeply problematic racist undertone.

This was evident in the comments of former star Bastian Schweinsteiger, now a prominent commentator for a German network. Ahead of a group stage match against Côte d’Ivoire, when asked about the challenges Germany might face, he remarked:

A bit African football, a bit unorthodox, a bit wild… perhaps also not so conditioned by tactics. We must be prepared for it to be unpredictable.

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Given that the German team often lacked tactical or stylistic superiority, such characterizations are both inappropriate and offensive, relying on outdated colonial stereotypes of Africa.

While Schweinsteiger faced accusations of racism,

as noted by Côte d’Ivoire’s manager, Emerse Fae:

It is odd he would speak that way. We could call it racist… I can only hope it is a clumsy statement, rather than something going on in his mind.

Conversely, many social media users and Schweinsteiger’s broadcaster, ARD, questioned why the statement was deemed racist.

Schweinsteiger offered a weak defense:

I was talking about football, not people. This is a football analysis – nothing more, nothing less.

This type of downplaying is frequent when African football and its people are subtly devalued. As an anthropologist, my research examines the migration of African football players and the forces shaping the continent’s football evolution, specifically focusing on racialization and the racism players experience.

Research indicates that African and Black players face distinct forms of racism.

On social media, they often encounter overt hostility. A recent example involves an offensive post by Paraguayan senator Celeste Amarilla regarding Kylian Mbappé, where she described him as a

colonised Cameroonian, desperately trying to pass himself off as French… resentful, arrogant and ugly.

Furthermore, African players face structural disadvantages within the football industry, including shorter contracts, lower salaries, peripheral playing positions, and limited opportunities in coaching and administration.

They also encounter subtle, everyday racism that devalues their abilities, often reducing their intelligence to mere physical attributes.

This subtle racism is often unrecognized by those making the comments. Therefore, the central issue is not whether Schweinsteiger himself is a racist, but why these stereotypes persist and why they are often perceived as reality.

To understand this, we must examine Africa’s diversity and the continent’s colonial history.

Colonial Stereotypes

First, simplistic generalizations like Schweinsteiger’s dismiss an entire continent. There is no singular “African” style of football, any more than there is a single “European” one; such generalizations reflect either ignorance or indifference.

Second, labeling African football as “wild” or “unorthodox” perpetuates colonial-era stereotypes. My research in Germany shows how African players remain vulnerable to broader structural issues in Europe.

How Europeans perceive African migrant footballers is deeply rooted in colonial logic, which once categorized the “enlightened” European against the “uneducated” African.

In the 1920s, colonial administrators used football as a tool for subjugation, attempting to instill discipline and loyalty in populations they deemed “raw” or “naive.”

While resistance was dangerous, the football pitch became a site of defiance. Studies show how some African players used dribbles and tricks to express a sense of autonomy.

During independence movements, football became a tool for national and pan-African unity, offering a technical and principled alternative to colonial narratives.

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Over time, national playing styles have evolved through cultural values and professionalization. However, the European perception of African football remains stuck in a trope of power and “naivety.”

The Slow Poison

While subtle disparagement may seem less severe than overt insults, it is deeply harmful. Because these ideas are embedded in European social consciousness, they are incredibly difficult to eradicate.

Read more: Racial stereotypes of African footballers persist. A World Cup is a good time to talk about them

These remarks act as a creeping poison, constantly reshaping the collective perception of Africa as a “backward” continent.

To dismantle the colonial imagery of African inferiority, we must actively challenge all forms of racist disparagement in football and beyond.

Christian Ungruhe, Research fellow, University of Passau

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