The Case of Bakery Jatta

Background

Bakery Jatta (the Player), born in Gambia on 6 June 1998, arrived in Germany as a refugee in the summer of 2015. A few days after his 18th birthday (in the summer of 2016), he signed a professional contract with the German Club Hamburger SV (which at that time was playing in the first division).

According to statements made by the Player, he had never played in a football club before and was a pure “street footballer”. Such statements made his career progression sound like a fairy tale - the refugee who rose to stardom.
In the following...