search

German soccer players to visit Auschwitz after match against Israeli team

German Jewish community leader will accompany players; English team to visit camps in early June

The Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp (Ilan Ben Zion/Times of Israel)
The Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp (Ilan Ben Zion/Times of Israel)

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — German soccer players and officials will travel to Poland Friday to visit the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz-Birkenau, after a friendly match against Israel ahead of the European Championship.

Germany captain Philipp Lahm, Poland-born players Miroslav Klose and Lukas Podolski, coach Joachim Loew, German Soccer Federation (DFB) president Wolfgang Niersbach and other officials will tour the death camp along with a German Jewish community leader before the squad travels to Poland that is co-hosting the Euro 2012 with Ukraine.

Jewish leaders in Germany have been urging the country’s soccer federation to have the squad visit Auschwitz during the tournament that runs from June 8-July 1.

English Soccer Association said Tuesday that England squad will visit Auschwitz soon after their arrival June 6 to their training base in Krakow.

Copyright The Associated Press 2012

read more:
Never miss breaking news on Israel
Get notifications to stay updated
You're subscribed
image
Register for free
and continue reading
Registering also lets you comment on articles and helps us improve your experience. It takes just a few seconds.
Already registered? Enter your email to sign in.
Please use the following structure: example@domain.com
Or Continue with
By registering you agree to the terms and conditions. Once registered, you’ll receive our Daily Edition email for free.
Register to continue
Or Continue with
Log in to continue
Sign in or Register
Or Continue with
check your email
Check your email
We sent an email to you at .
It has a link that will sign you in.