Antoine Griezmann has landed himself in hot water over his 80’s fancy dress
Monday, December 18, 2017
Antoine Griezmann has apologised after sparking a Twitter backlash by posting a picture of himself on social media in fancy dress as a black basketball player.
The Atletico Madrid and France forward posted a photo on social media on Sunday showing him in an NBA All Stars basketball kit with heavily darkened skin and an afro-style wig.
After a string of angry responses, Griezmann returned to Twitter to post: “Calm down friends, I’m fan of the Harlem Globetrotters and the good times… it’s a tribute.”
But after facing more criticism, he was forced to backtrack and more than 20 minutes after that post, he added: “I recognise it is clumsy on my part. If I have hurt anyone, I apologise.”
After apologising, Griezmann deleted the original image from his verified Twitter and Instagram accounts.
The 26-year-old was linked with a move to Manchester United during the summer and has reportedly been attracting recent interest from Barcelona.
However, he faced a string of angry responses to his choice of costume, with many social media users accusing him of racism and suggesting he delete the initial tweet before he eventually did so.