USA fans launch petition asking Barack Obama to fast-track Zelalem's citizenship for World Cup

Published on: 03 March 2014
USA fans launch petition asking Barack Obama to fast-track Zelalem's citizenship for World Cup
Gedion Zelalem

USA fans have launched a petition to president Barack Obama to expedite the citizenship application process for Arsenal kid Gedion Zelalem in order to make him eligible for the US national team for the World cup. 

Zelalem is the promising 17-year-old midfielder who made his debut for Arsenal during an early-round FA Cup match in January.

He also happened to live in the United States from the time he was nine years old until he turned 16 and moved to London, which is where the intrigue comes into play.

He also happens to be German and Ethiopian — two countries for which he already holds passports, thus the ability to play for those respective national teams — which is where the problem, and need for the petition, comes from.

Back to Thursday, once the petition launched, its efforts didn't go unnoticed.

At this point, though, regardless of all the chatter and urging, Zelalem appears more likely to opt for Germany. After all, he has represented them at the youth levels.

So might the president, a man who has never shied away from expressing his sports fanaticism, be influenced by the power of the ubiquitous online petition?

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