The JustGiving page set up for her has now raised over £36,000.
The German girl who was pictured crying after her side lost to England in the last 16 of Euro 2020 has asked the money raised for her to go to charity.
The girl was shown in TV pictures crying in the crowd, and received abuse online as a result referencing her nationality and calling her a Nazi.
Joel Hughes, from Pontypridd, decided to set up a JustGiving page for her afterwards, to show that “not everyone from the UK is horrible and that we care.”
No words necessary. pic.twitter.com/8qF4BtJelV
— Stan Collymore (@StanCollymore) June 30, 2021
Whilst the initial aim of the page was to aim £500 for the girl, the fundraiser has surged past that target. Eight days after the match, over £36,000 has been donated by more than 3,200 people.
An update on the page says that the girl and her family have now been found and contacted, and they have thanked people for their “amazing support.” The update added that the girl has asked for the money raised to be donated to UNICEF.
In a statement on the page said: “We are extremely pleased that the family at the heart of this appeal have been found.
“They have very kindly given us this statement: ‘In the interests of our daughter and our family we would like to remain private however we wish to thank everyone for your amazing support. Our daughter would like to request your generous donations go to UNICEF, knowing that your kindness will do good.’
“It is testament to the family’s spirit of kindness and belief that society is better when people are kinder to one another, that they have extremely generously chosen to donate this gift in its entirety to UNICEF. As a result, the legacy of the support from thousands of donors is that thousands of children from around the world will benefit through UNICEF’s work.”
The statement also thanked the work of Hughes, saying: “None of this would have been possible without the actions of one man taking a stand against hate in football. Thanks to Joel, thousands of people from across the UK and Germany were able to show their support for the campaign and for fans from across the other side of the pitch.”
In the update, Joel said: “”I am beyond grateful to all the supporters of this campaign without whose help we would not be where we are today – from the bottom of my heart, I thank you!
“Thanks also to all the warm messages of support from around the UK, Europe, and as far away as Japan. Huge thanks to the JustGiving team for all their invaluable help, and to UNICEF as the worthy charity chosen by the family.
“Finally, I would like to give special thanks to the family at the heart of this campaign, their grace, courage, and generosity is an inspiration.”
