Erdogan travels to Germany after controversy over 'racist' salute to Turkish football players

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will attend Turkey's quarter-final match against the Netherlands in the European Football Championship in Germany on Saturday, amid a growing controversy over a Turkish player's celebratory actions on the pitch.

Erdogan will not attend an informal meeting of leaders of the Turkish states, scheduled for the same day in Azerbaijan, in order to attend the match. He will then travel to Washington for the NATO summit on 11-09-2001.

The move comes as the German foreign ministry summoned Turkey's ambassador today to air its grievances after Ankara accused Berlin of xenophobia.

The row broke out when Turkish defender Merih Demiral gave the grey wolf salute after scoring his second goal against Austria on Tuesday to secure Turkey's place in the quarter-finals. The salute is performed by raising the index and little fingers to form the ears of a wolf while bringing the tips of the other two fingers and thumb together to form a snout. is associated with the Turkish far-right nationalist youth movement, which has its roots in Turkish fascism and is organically linked to the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), Erdogan's coalition partner.

Citing Demiral's inappropriate behaviour, UEFA, the Union of European Football Associations, European football's governing body, launched an investigation into the 26-year-old's actions.

German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, echoing her government's sentiments, said on X: “The symbols of Turkish right-wing extremists have no place in our stadium.”

“Using the European Football Championship as a platform for racism is totally unacceptable,” she added.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry responded in a statement: “The reactions shown to Mr. Demiral by the German authorities are in themselves xenophobic,” and summoned the German envoy on Wednesday to express its protest.

MHP leader Devlet Bahceli, currently under pressure over the 2022 murder of an MHP youth leader that his own lieutenants allegedly ordered, waded into the controversy by tweeting: “The wolf salute by our son Merih after his goal is a message from the Turkish nation to the world. UEFA’s decision to open an investigation,” Bahceli added, “is a malicious act.”

Meanwhile, Demiral showed no remorse and even admitted that the salvation was premeditated.

“I had a goal celebration in mind,” he said. “I am very proud because I am Turkish, so after the goal I felt it deeply and wanted to do it, and I am very happy that I did it.”

If found guilty of inappropriate behaviour, Demiral could face a fine or suspension before Saturday's match.

The wolf salute is banned in Austria and France, two countries that are home to large ethnic Turkish communities whose nationalist fringes have a history of violence against Kurds.

Erdogan played on He has tried to splinter divisions between Kurds and nationalists to rally support for his Islamist Justice and Development party ahead of national elections in Turkey. He has also turned Turks against their host governments and called their leaders Nazis.

The Grey Wolves are formally banned in France, and there has been a long-running debate in Germany about criminalizing the Grey Wolf salute.

Michael Roth, a prominent Social Democrat and chairman of the German parliament's foreign affairs committee, today accused Erdogan of seeking to sow discord in Germany.

Erdogan wants to divide the Turkish community into [Germany]He makes everything a matter of national honour, fuelling [Turkish] nationalism because it rejects the integration of people with [Turkish roots] In [Germany]”, Roth said on X.