Football Players in Focus

In many European countries, football players were persecuted by the Nazis during World War II. As Jews or political opponents, they were deported to German camps. This publication includes various biographies of athletes who were persecuted in this way – some more well known than others – and provides an opportunity to learn about the history of individual camps and Nazi occupation in Europe through their individual stories of persecution. Short biographies provide insights into the life of football players in the pre-war period and an overview of the early years of European football. Documents from the Nazi era promote a questioning approach to learning about Nazi persecution and the suffering of different groups of victims who had only one thing in common: they were football players. These educational materials are suitable for use in schools and other educational contexts. They have been compiled with fan initiatives and fan clubs especially in mind. They include information on how to design a project day in order to learn about the history of Nazi persecution from the perspective of football. Source materials are explored with the help of online tools. Additional information is provided to encourage people to do research on persecuted athletes from their own city or on the role of their own club during the Nazi era.