China warns Arsenal of “serious implications” over Ozil’s tweet

BEIJING: Chinese state media warned Monday that Mesut Ozil ‘s criticism of the country’s treatment of its Uighurs will have “serious implications” for Arsenal, stirring a backlash that saw the English football club’s weekend match pulled from Chinese TV.
A Global Times editorial slammed what it called a “clownish performance” from Mesut Ozil, describing him as “confused” and “reckless” and saying he had abused his position as a public figure.
Mesut Ozil, a German national of Turkish origin, condemned China’s crackdown on Muslim minorities in the western region of Xinjiang in a tweet on Friday and criticised Muslim countries for failing to speak up about the alleged abuses. Arsenal has distanced itself from his comments.
Also Read Footballer Mesut Ozil condemns Muslim silence over Uighurs The row, which has potential repercussions for Arsenal and the Premier League in the lucrative Chinese market, follows the opprobrium heaped on basketball’s NBA in October after Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey tweeted his support for Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters.
Clownish performance The response to Ozil’s criticism has been swift in China. On Sunday, state broadcaster CCTV pulled the live Premier League game between Arsenal and Manchester City from its programming.
Leading streaming service PPTV also appeared to have cancelled its screening of the match, which Arsenal lost 3-0.