Germany calls fashion police
Friday 20 January 2006
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Pony-tails have been forbidden for World Cup policemen (©AFP)
With most European nations still recovering from Christmas, it has been a quiet week for silly stories, so it is time to look ahead to the summer and the joys of the FIFA World Cup. The hosts are, of course, noted for their discipline, and it seems that there will be a zero tolerance attitude to unconventional haircuts in the German police for the duration of the finals. A spokeswoman for the German interior ministry has confirmed a story published in magazine Der Spiegel alleging that policemen have been told to cut out stubble, piercings, excessive jewellery and visible tattoos and especially silly haircuts. The directive has been specifically aimed at stamping out "so-called Lagerfeld ponytails" - a popular hairstyle modeled on that of fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld - but dire warnings have also been handed to those who wear hairstyles "which may be perceived as an expression of a marked individualist demeanour". In addition, policemen who like wearing a bit of eyeshadow or lipstick while on duty have been told that makeup was only allowed if "socially appropriate for a policeman or policewoman".
Mind what you wear
Meanwhile in the Netherlands, the Royal Netherlands Football Association (KNVB) are eager to stamp out a craze which could see thousands of Dutch fans turn up for the finals wearing orange Nazi helmets. Free Time Products have sold 15,000 of the plastic helmets, bearing slogans like "attack", "there he goes" and "go Holland go" with designer Weno Geerts saying: "We just want to support our team and tease the Germans. Nothing else." However, the KNVB have been less than impressed while official supporters club chairman Lloyd Vandenberg said: "They go too far. It has nothing to do with football. We are going in a spirit of friendship and we don't want to hark back to the War." The German police, with their nice new haircuts, may yet have a say in the matter as supporters across the world have recently been reminded that using Nazi symbols or actions is illegal in Germany - even if done in jest. Interior ministry spokesman Christian Sachs said: "It doesn't matter if someone is doing the goosestep, raising their arm in the Hitler greeting or handing out swastikas, these are all crimes in Germany and can be punished with up to three years in jail."
Tiny titans
Finally, a couple of smaller stories. First to South America where Argentinian Football Federation president Julio Grondona has dampened down cries for the national team to take diminutive playmakers Lionel Messi, Carlos Tevez, Javier Saviola and Sergio Aguero to play together in Germany with the words: "The fans who want to see Messi, Tevez, Saviola and Aguero all together should go out and rent Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs." Meanwhile, Spanish referee Miguel Ángel Ayza Gámez has also been picking on those smaller than himself. As Real Betis Balompié clung on to a slender one-goal lead at home to Club Atlético de Madrid on Saturday with six minutes of added time to play, the official became frustrated at attempts to wind the clock down, and decided to brandish the red card. Not for the Betis players, but for the ball boys - all 14 of them. It seemed they were refusing to return the ball to the pitch, allegedly due to orders from on high at the Seville club, and Ayza Gámez had seen enough. The referee can point to a precedent of sorts - in 2000 English club Oldham Athletic FC had their mascot sent off for confusing the assistant referee, who was flagging the blue-shirted seven-foot owl offside. Easy mistake to make.
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