Mesut Özil
Mesut Özil

A key member of Germany’s World Cup 2014 winning team, this former Real Madrid and Arsenal playmaker of Turkish descent was awarded the Bambi award in 2010 for being a prime example of successful integration into German society. In 2018, after receiving criticisim for posing with Turkey’s President and Germany’s poor World cup performances, Ozil announced his retirement from international football. He said “I am German when we win, but I am an immigrant when we lose,”. He has a massive social media following—with a staggering 112 million online fans. He received backlash from the Chinese government after vocally speaking out against mistreatment of the Uyghur population. In 2021, after joining Fenerbahçe on a free transfer, he was vocal in his for Palestine, wearing a “Free Palestine” T-shirt along with other Fenerbahçe footballers.

Source of Influence: Celebrities & Sports

Status: Not featured in current year