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Being the captain of the German national team, Bastian Schweinsteiger has, in a way, become the face of his nation. A certain toy-manufacturing company in China seems to have taken this a bit too seriously.
DiD, a toy-manufacturing firm, based in Hong Kong, has made a doll of a Nazi soldier that suspiciously resembles German football team captain Bastian Schweinsteiger. What raises even more suspicion, is the fact that they decided to name the doll “Bastian”.
The poster of the toy named “Bastian” is seen wearing the Eagle and the Swastika, with a grey Wermacht coat, in a backdrop, that is meant to resemble the desolation of World War II Germany.
The Manchester United player is reportedly planning a legal suit against the use of his image for a Nazi doll, by the Chinese manufacturers.
A spokesperson for DiD, however, clarified to German tabloid Bild, “We don’t sell any figures which resemble footballers. It is a complete coincidence that the figure ‘Bastian’ looks like Schweinsteiger. We think that all Germans look like that. Bastian is also a very common name in Germany.”
In spite of this clarification however, the representatives of the Manchester United midfielder feel that the toy makers are in violation of Schweinsteiger’s image, and could sue the Hong Kong-based company, if they feel that they can produce enough evidence to prove it.