Mario Balotelli: On the Record

This page records specific public conduct. It does not claim knowledge of private beliefs or motives.

Documented record

• December 1, 2014: On December 1, 2014, then-Liverpool striker Mario Balotelli posted an Instagram image captioned in part "grabs coins like a Jew"; the English FA subsequently charged him with improper conduct and, on December 18, 2014, suspended him for one match and fined him £25,000. jumps like a black man and grabs coins like a Jew. Source 1 Source 2

Context and response

Balotelli deleted the post and apologized the next day (Dec 2, 2014): "I apologize if I've offended anyone. The post was meant to be anti-racist with humour... I now understand that out of context may have had the opposite effect." He also stated in follow-up posts that his own adopted mother is Jewish.

Where Galil stands

Our opinion: We don't excuse reaching for a "coins like a Jew" punchline, however it's dressed up afterward as a joke gone wrong — words carry weight, apology or not.

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Sources manually reviewed 2026-07-27. Corrections and later context will be appended to this page.