Barcelona forwards Ousmane Dembele and Antoine Griezmann have apologised for a 2019 video showing to mock hotel staff in Japan however denied their feedback had been racist. The video, recorded by Dembele throughout Barcelona’s pre-season tour of Japan forward of the 2019-20 season, was leaked on social media and confirmed each gamers laughing at a gaggle of hotel staff who had been working to repair a tv.
“It all took place in Japan. It could’ve taken place anywhere on the planet and I would`ve used the same expression,” Dembele wrote on Instagram on Monday. “I used to be due to this fact not focusing on any neighborhood. I simply occurred to make use of one of these expression with my buddies no matter their origins.
“This video has since been made public. I appreciate therefore that it could’ve hurt the people present in these images. Because of this, I would like to sincerely apologise to them.”
Watch the viral video right here…
Antoine Griezmann and Ousmane Dembele, in leaked video, seem like mocking asian technicians of their hotel room who got here to repair a technological problem, proceed to mock their appears to be like, language and nation’s supposed “technological advance”. pic.twitter.com/9fiBtyZxej
— +Barca (@plusbarca_) July 3, 2021
Griezmann mentioned he was ‘completely against all forms of discrimination’. “For the past few days, certain people have wanted to paint me as someone that I am not,” he mentioned on Twitter. “I firmly refute the accusations made against me and I’m sorry if I have offended any of my Japanese friends.”
Hiroshi Mikitani, chief govt of Japanese e-commerce group Rakuten Inc, who’re one among Barcelona’s sponsors, mentioned the pair’s feedback had been ‘unacceptable’.
“Regarding the discriminatory comments of the FCB (Barcelona) players, I am very disappointed as a club sponsor and tour organiser,” Mikitani tweeted. “As Rakuten has endorsed Barca’s philosophy and sponsored the club, we find such comments unacceptable under any circumstance. We officially protest and seek the view of the club.”
Dembele and Griezmann not too long ago featured for France at Euro 2020, the place the world champions had been knocked out by Switzerland within the spherical of 16 after a shootout.
(with Reuters inputs)
