Drama in the family
“Slap in the face”: Özil sister talks about difficult relationship
03/19/2025 – 7:11 p.m.Reading time: 2 min.
Deniz Kosek actually wanted to use her TV appearance to openly talk about her relationship with her brother Mesut Özil. But nothing came of it.
Except for her father, Deniz Kosek and Mesut Özil hardly combine anything. Radio silence has been living between the two half-siblings for over a year, as Kosek now tells in a conversation with the “Bild” newspaper. “There is more lack of interest than interest,” the 34-year-old described the current situation. The relationship between Özil and her father Mustafa is also heavily burdened. It was particularly painful that the former international had not even invited his father to his own wedding.
The relationship between the Özil family was previously shaped by tensions. Mustafa Özil worked as a manager of his son until 2013 and accompanied him during the most successful years of his career. Kostek recalled money. “My father didn’t have the family thing under control. The money was there,” Kosek continued. A statement by her father in particular remains in her memory: “He said: ‘A celebrity is enough in the family’. For me it was like a slap.”
Despite these stressful experiences, Kosek pursues its own goals. As a bridal style, she is now successful and tries to open another professional chapter in the fashion show “My Style Rocks” (Sport1). There she wanted to speak openly about her tense relationship with her brother – but production decided not to show these scenes.
“I was asked by the production whether I wanted to talk about my brother. I said yes. Nevertheless, everything was cut out,” Kostek continued. In her opinion, this could be related to the political role of Mesut Özil. The former professional, who ended his career in 2023, was recently elected to the board of the party of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
The TV station Sport1 rejected this accusation. A spokesman said the “picture” that “My Style Rocks” was a pure fashion and entertainment format. Scenes would often be removed if they do not fit into the overall concept of the program. A candidate would also not have been invited if certain topics were considered problematic from the outset.
Kosek emphasizes that she wants to differentiate herself from her prominent brother professionally and privately. “I work and earn my own money. But as soon as I can afford something, people think that it comes from Mesut,” she says her everyday life. However, she has had no contact with the ex-world champion for a long time.