It is often said that German football is lacking in real guys. Those who are courageous, both on and off the pitch. Who express their opinion. Thomas Hitzlsperger is one of those people. He proves this again in the book “Samples of Courage”, which he wrote together with the journalist Holger Gertz.
The courage that gives it the title has brought Hitzlsperger far. He grew up on a farm near Munich and became the pride of the family. Until then, this was Emilie, named Germany’s most beautiful cow in 1984. Hitzlsperger’s courage allowed him to fly to Birmingham for trial training at the age of 17 without his parents’ permission and allowed him to become a professional in England, Germany and Italy. His courage enabled him to stand by who he is and who he loves after his career. And with this courage he now not only talks about the highlights of his career – although they could have easily filled the pages.
The fans on the island adored “the Hammer” for his incomparable left foot, whenever he had the ball they would shout “Shoot!” He became German champion with VfB Stuttgart, scoring a dream goal in the last game of the season. In the semi-final of the 2008 European Championship, he artfully set up Philipp Lahm to make it 3-2 in the 90th minute: “As Maradona, you might experience moments like this more often. As a Hitzlsperger, you wish you could ever experience a moment like that.”
Liberating journey
Most people would have woven a flawless celebration story out of this material. But that wouldn’t have required any courage. Hitzlsperger gives more space to the depths than to the triumphs. About the time in Rome where he lived alone in a hotel and played badly. During training he was afraid of being played on, and in games he was afraid of making mistakes: “The fear of not being able to give enough was always greater for me than the feeling: I can be the king of the match day .” In one game, he was substituted on in the 37th minute and then replaced again in the 69th minute in front of his family who had come especially for the game. “Failure in front of thousands of spectators…is an unrivaled feeling of shit,” he writes.
Thomas Hitzlsperger, Holger Gertz: Tests of courage. Kiepenheuer&Witsch 2024, 224 pages. 23 euros: Image: Kiepenheuer&Witsch
He showed the greatest courage after his career. He was the first and so far only German professional footballer to come out. He realized that he loved men as a player. At West Ham he read books about sexual diversity; in Rome he was tormented by invitations from teammates to a sex party. He had to listen to anti-gay talk from his teammates: “You won’t forget that.”
He talks about his liberating trip to San Francisco after the end in Wolfsburg. There he met his first boyfriend – but he had to hide his love for him again at his next stop in professional football. Hitzlsperger offers touching, mostly depressing insights into his inner conflict. He reports how meticulously he planned his public outing. And how afraid he was to tell his parents.
Real guy
The book is a one-two punch between biography and thoughts about the depths of the football business, about sportswashing, the World Cup in Qatar, and hypocritical rainbow posts from the world association FIFA. Hitzlsperger criticizes Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Uli Hoeneß and Rudi Völler. It represents a new, better time in many respects.
His reflections are too clever to be controversial, but they are too rarely articulated and are also so valuable because they come not from the pen of a journalist or fan activist, but from someone who entered professional football and remained unscathed.
Matthias Alexander Published/Updated: Recommendations: 4 Daniel Theweleit Published/Updated: Recommendations: 5 Oliver Jungs Published/Updated: Recommendations: 11
And improved it a little? The book is unexpectedly optimistic. Hitzlsperger gives courage. Shows how much has happened. Several players followed him. But there is still a long way to go before it doesn’t take courage to live openly gay and play professional football at the same time. Thomas Hitzlsperger is fighting for it. He speaks to students, gives lectures – and writes this book. German football needs his voice. It’s that of a real guy.