Germany's hairdressers are unimpressed by the latest trims on show in the Bundesliga and have asked the German Football Association (DFB) why the country's players have been taking to the pitch with fresh cuts during a COVID-19 lockdown.
Hair salons in Germany have been shut since Dec. 16 as part of strict restrictions imposed by the government to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus.
In an open letter addressed to DFB President Fritz Keller, the German Hairdresser Association said the players' actions encouraged the public to flout health protocols by demanding the same services.
"It is with great amazement we noticed that over the last match days of Bundesliga a vast majority of the professional footballers took to the pitch with new haircuts," the association was quoted as saying by ESPN https://www.espn.com/soccer/german-bundesliga/story/4286199/bundesliga-players-need-hair-cutting-hairdresser-associations-call-to-german-fa.
"The discontent with the top styled football pros is growing. They lead to customers calling and asking for work on the side and breaches of the corona regulations like visits at home."
The association said it was confident players met professional hairstylists, which was unfair to other hairdressers who have been forced to stop their services and are suffering from the economic impact of the pandemic.
"Freshly cut football stars put an entire branch under pressure," the statement added. "Many hairdressers are threatened in their existence."
(Reporting by Manasi Pathak in Bengaluru; Editing by Toby Davis)
