Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Sport
Jonathan Gorrie

Mesut Ozil to ‘become an eSports athlete’ when former Arsenal midfielder retires

Dr Erkut Sogut, the agent of Mesut Ozil, has confirmed the former Arsenal playmaker will move into eSports upon his retirement.

A World Cup winner with Germany in 2014, Ozil has endured a difficult time of things over the last few years.

Cast aside by Mikel Arteta at the Emirates Stadium, the midfielder moved to Fenerbahce in 2021 after his contract at Arsenal was terminated.

While the 33-year-old arrived in Istanbul to huge fanfare, the former Real Madrid star was excluded from the first-team squad in March, alongside former Watford loanee Ozan Tufan.

Ozil has only made 36 appearances for the Turkish giants since his move, scoring 8 times and providing 9 assists. Although his contract runs for another two years, manager Jorge Jesus hinted earlier this month that his exile would likely continue.

A frequent gamer, Erkut Sogul confirmed his client would be looking into becoming an eSports athlete at the end of his career during an interview with The Telegraph.

“He will go more into eSports, play himself and maybe become an eSports athlete,” he said.

‘He’s really good, to be honest, at Fortnite and I think one day I wouldn’t be surprised if he is competing.

‘He owns a team – M10 Esports – and he has players. He has a gaming house in Germany. He has football, like FIFA, and Fortnite.’

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.