GERMAN FOOTBALLERS PLAY NAKED IN PROTEST

Two German football teams participated in a naked match organised by artist Gerrit Starczewski.

The 22 men took to the pitch at Stimberg Stadium on the Ruhr, wearing nothing but their boots and socks. Their numbers were painted on their backs.

The match was part of the artist’s protest to showcase the lack of authenticity in modern-day football with his "naked actions", reports the BBC.

"I want to set an example of naturalness against the… influence of social media and false ideals of beauty", Starczewski told 11 Freunde magazine ahead of the match.

"With my nude actions, I also want to set an example of diversity and naturalness and against the dependence and influence of social media and false ideals of beauty. Body authenticity is something that is absent in modern football and that is reflected in how the sport sells a certain kind of body image. Everything has to be perfect too, and in the end it’s all about commercialisation."

Watch the Ruptly video here to see how the match went down.

Image credits: New York Post and Twitter