Photo Gallery Divided Loyalties
Scenes like this are common in Berlin these days as Turks and Germans gear up for Wednesday's Euro 2008 semi-final match-up.
Germans are gearing up for the country's EURO 2008 semifinal clash with Turkey -- and so are the members of Germany's large Turkish community.
The game has taken on extra significance because of the large Turkish community in Germany and provides an opportunity for an open airing of questions of loyalty -- and affection.
Despite being born and raised in Germany, many people with Turkish origins would never dream of supporting their adopted home country Germany.
However, not everyone feels that way. In fact, some Turkish people will be rooting for Germany on Wednesday.
Here, a woman wearing a head scarf in the town of Göttingen wears a football jersey with the name of German striker Lukas Podolski.
A couple of the Turkish players at EURO 2008 were born and raised in Germany. Both Hamit Altintop (shown here) and Hakan Balta, two of Turkey's top players, grew up in Germany, were trained in German system, and play for successful German teams.
Turkish-German soccer star Hakan Balta: Claudia Roth, co-head of Germany's Green Party, has said that the fact that Altintop and Balta will be playing against Germany on Wednesday is a sign of the country's failed integration policies.
On the other hand, the German side also has a number of players born outside the country, such as Lukas Podolski and Miroslav Klose, both of whom were born in Poland.
Another foreign-born player on the Germany side is Kevin Kuranyi, who was born in Brazil and grew up in Panama.
Regardless of whom they are supporting, one thing is for sure: Both Germans and Turks are hoping for a good game. Celalettin Dagan, a Turkish-born waiter in Frankfurt, told the AP: "If Germany advances, then we will be behind them."
In Berlin, the city has erected a so-called "fan mile" just in time for the big game.
Two years ago, during the 2006 World Cup, the fan mile was the site of huge crowds. Equiped with enormous screens for viewing the games, the area could hold up to 500,000 people.
