Bastian Schweinsteiger has come under fire for comments he made ahead of Germany’s 2-1 victory over the Ivory Coast at the 2026 World Cup.

Germany were the favourites to win their match against the African side at Toronto Stadium. However, Ivory Coast led 1-0 with 25 minutes remaining courtesy of Franck Kessie’s opener.

Julian Nagelsmann sent on Deniz Undav in the hope that he could turn the game on its head, and that’s exactly what he did.

The 29-year-old levelled proceedings in the 68th minute before giving his side the victory when he netted his second in the fourth minute of stoppage-time.

Schweinsteiger, who is covering the tournament as pundit for the German public broadcaster ARD, sparked backlash with his comments ahead of the game.

REUTERS/Heiko Becker

Ahead of the match, Schweinsteiger praised Ivory Coast as he talked about how athletic they are. He then described the Elephants’ style of play as ‘African football’, adding that it was ‘sometimes unorthodox, a bit wild, and not quite as tactical.’

According to French publication L’Equipe, the word ‘wild’ has sparked outrage in Germany due to its racist and colonialist connotations ​​​​​​.

Among those on social media that have slammed Schweinsteiger is X user Jonas Di Andrade, who said his comments were ‘disgusting’ and ‘revolting’, added that they ‘show remnants of an old European mindset that is definitely racist.’

Schweinsteiger has not yet spoken out amid the backlash, while he has also not been sanctioned by his employers, ARD.

He was very complimentary of Ivory Coast following the game, saying on X that they were, as expected, a ‘tough opponent and showed their technical quality and physicality.’

REUTERS/Annegret Hilse

Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is also commentating on this summer’s World Cup for German TV. The 59-year-old was not impressed at all when he was asked about Schweinsteiger’s comments.

While the reporter was asking him to give his thoughts on the controversy, Klopp interrupted: “And now you want to carry on this subject. I have no chance. I have no chance to answer this question.

“Everybody likes it, so you bring me into this situation. It’s not my job that everyone likes it. But this is a serious subject. And I don’t even know what is appropriate to say.

“For African people it’s one thing. For other people it’s another thing. Thank god I thought nobody asked me about that. You found a moment.”

Klopp sarcastically added: “And surprisingly, you are German! That surprised me so much! Thank you very much,” before walking away.

Germany have already secured top spot in Group E. They play their third and final group match against Ecuador on Thursday, June 25. They will contest their last 32 match at Boston Stadium on Monday, June 29. Their opponents are not yet known.

Tottenham Hotspur are now in advanced talks to complete a club-record deal to sign West Ham United midfielder Mateus Fernandes, according to GIVEMESPORT senior correspondent Ben Jacobs.

Even though they only avoided relegation to the Championship on the final day of the Premier League season, Tottenham are showing huge ambition in the transfer market.

Spurs have already announced four signings that offer huge Premier League experience in Andy Robertson, Marcos Senesi, Martin Dubravka and Jan Paul van Hecke for a combined fee of just over £50m, but now they are set to go one step further.

Tottenham are now lining up an audacious double swoop for their midfield to sign Newcastle United’s Sandro Tonali and Fernandes, who are valued at around £185m combined by their clubs.

When interest first broke in Fernandes, some may have assumed that it would either be Tonali or the Portugal international, but it quickly became clear that De Zerbi wants the north London outfit to get both as he looks to transform Spurs’ engine room.

Tottenham are also looking to make additions to their frontline too in what looks set to be one of their biggest and most important summer transfer windows in years, and potentially ever.

Jacobs: Tottenham in Advanced Talks for Fernandes Deal

via Reuters

According to Jacobs, posting on X on Wednesday evening, Tottenham are now in advanced talks over a deal to sign Fernandes from their London neighbours.

The 21-year-old has emerged as one of the club’s top transfer targets in recent weeks, and now they are looking to push a deal over the line and beat Premier League rivals Manchester United to his signature.

Separate reports have suggested that the north Londoners are ‘very close’ to an agreement on personal terms with the Portuguese star, who is keen to avoid playing in England’s second tier next term.

West Ham are in a strong negotiating position thanks to an incoming £90m cash injection, with the club seeking £80-85m for their prized asset this summer even though they are a Championship club.

That fee would smash Tottenham’s current transfer record, which is the £65m they paid to sign Dominic Solanke from Bournemouth last summer.

United also remain in talks with the player and West Ham over a deal.

Tottenham Also Targeting Alex Scott

via Reuters

According to Jacobs, Tottenham remain strongly in the race to sign Tonali from Newcastle, although they face competition from Manchester City for the Italian’s signature, even though City are also working on a deal for Nottingham Forest star Elliot Anderson.

It isn’t just Tonali and Fernandes who Spurs have an interest in though, as they also have Bournemouth star Alex Scott on their radar.

The Cherries are hoping to tie the England international down to a new contract, but he is also attracting interest from Arsenal and Manchester United alongside Tottenham.

In the world of Formula One, the Red Bull stable has long been the scene of several games of hot potato between drivers since the energy drink took over the Jaguar team and began operations in 2005.

It’s a place where even three or four poor results place substantial pressure on a driver in either the top team or sister outfit, VCARB (Visa Cash App Racing Bulls).

As standard, rumours of another switch have begun, as another contender from the feeder series, Formula Two, is being touted for a seat in the second team. This means one of those currently filling those two seats could soon find themselves out of a drive. For the driver that would likely get the chop, it would be a harsh call after their recent performances.

Red Bull Ruthless With Drivers

Red Bull showed they weren’t afraid to experiment with drivers from the moment they first entered the paddock in 2005.

In their first season, the second seat was alternated between Christian Klien and Vitantonio Liuzzi as David Coulthard kept his place as team leader. From then on, driver switches became a regular occurrence. Notable changes included Sebastian Vettel being drafted in from BMW Sauber to replace Scott Speed for 2007 and Jaime Alguersuari taking the seat of Sebastien Bourdais in the middle of the 2009 season, becoming the youngest driver to ever participate in an F1 race at the time.

The most famous one, however, came just four races into 2016, as Daniil Kvyat was ousted by fast-rising 18-year-old Max Verstappen, who won his very first outing for the senior team at the very next race in Spain. In 2019, Verstappen saw teammate Pierre Gasly be demoted for Alex Albon, who himself was dropped for Sergio Perez at the end of 2020.

Another reason those in the second team crave the top job is that holding a seat in VCARB is a much more perilous state to be in. This is because there is always a constant stream of Red Bull-affiliated drivers in the lower categories that want a crack at the big time and who the bosses want to assess. Verstappen is again relevant here, as Red Bull were that desperate to have him that he skipped F2 completely and jumped straight into the Toro Rosso seat in 2015.

The driver who is seemingly next to roll off the production line may not have had that luxury, but is causing enough of a stir to get the decision makers in Milton Keynes thinking about a potential seat for him in 2027, according to SoyMotor.

F2 Driver ‘Secured His Seat’ in F1 For 2027

Teenager Nikola Tsolov is currently driving for Campos Racing in F2. He has earned multiple race victories since arriving in the series, currently sitting second in the standings.

Consequently, should the Bulgarian get the seat, it leaves one of the incumbents looking over their shoulder. Arvid Lindblad’s contract may be expiring at the end of this season, but there is an option for another year, and with him only being 18, it is unlikely that he will be the one who makes way.

That, of course, leaves only one person.

This year has been a bit of a resurgence for Liam Lawson so far. The man from New Zealand has been getting a lot out of his car, securing several points finishes and currently lying in 10th place in the standings with 15 more points than his rookie teammate.

His reputation and career was at rock bottom in the early stages of last season, having to give up his Red Bull seat to Yuki Tsunoda after just two races, where he failed to score points and failed to make it to the second part of qualifying both times.

It got even worse during the season, as rumours emerged he’d be dropping off the grid entirely to free up a seat for Lindblad, but with Isack Hadjar being promoted, he held on and has improved.

However, how the Red Bull machine works means that if someone is seen as having more potential than you, it is often out of your hands, regardless of performance. It could be the situation Lawson finds himself in at the end of this year, as he may have to begin another career rebuild.