German international star Giulia Gwinn has spoken out after she rejected an offer to appear in a naked cover shoot for Playboy magazine ahead of the Women's World Cup.
It was reported that the Bayern Munich player was approached by the men's magazine at the start of the year.
The 24-year-old right back is said to have received a 'very tempting proposal from Playboy, but politely declined the offer.
She instead sought to gain fitness ahead of the World Cup - a tournament which she will unfortunately miss due to injury.
Gwinn told reporters, as per AS Sport: 'I respect Playboy as a journalistic product, but then I prefer to present myself as a footballer on the field.
Germany star Giulia Gwinn was approached by Playboy to appear in a naked cover shoot
The 24-year-old right back was said to have received a 'very tempting proposal' by Playboy
The Bayern Munich player decided to focus on recovering from injury, but will unfortunately miss the World Cup after being out of action since October with a cruciate ligament injury
'In general, I think and hope that we will have much more exciting and important issues to discuss, especially now with the World Cup.'
German newspaper BILD claimed that Playboy were hoping to include one of the squad's top players in the shoot when they approached Gwinn.
'Giulia Gwinn is not only an outstanding athlete, but also a beautiful young woman,' Playboy Germany boss Florian Boitin said.
'So a personality like her is naturally interesting for Playboy.'
Gwinn hoped to recover from a cruciate ligament injury she sustained in October, to be ready in time for the World Cup.
She was expected to be among Germany's key players after she was named as the best young player at the 2019 World Cup, before being included in the team of the tournament at the 2022 Euros.
However Gwinn missed out on a place in Germany's squad after failing to sufficiently recover from the injury.
Gwinn wrote to her 534,000 Instagram followers after being left out: 'You can be sad and disappointed for a few days, but then you should definitely be proud of the further successfully completed rehabilitation.
Playboy claimed Gwinn's personality made her 'naturally interesting' for the magazine
Gwinn was named the young player of the 2019 World Cup and also made the team of the tournament at the 2022 Euros - so her absence is a big miss for Germany this summer
'The personal exchange with the national coach in the run-up to the nomination was always at eye level and characterised by great mutual respect.'
Five members of Germany's U20 team posed in a Playboy cover shoot ahead of the 2011 World Cup
Germany coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg admitted she had also received the same offer from Playboy back in 1989.
The 55-year-old said that she did not want women's football to have been impacted by the association to Playboy.
Voss-Tecklenburg also told Bild she would allow her players to make their own decision over whether to agree to a photoshoot.
She said: 'I think Playboy has super aesthetic photos. I would leave it up to each player to decide, but always tell her what the advantages and disadvantages can be.
'Can you endure the consequences? Do they bring you something? If it's fine with it, there's nothing wrong with it.'
Concerns have also been raised over a potential 'Playboy curse', after five members of Germany's Under-20 national team posed in a cover shoot ahead of the 2011 World Cup.
The five players Annika Doppler, Kristina Gessat, Ivana Rudelic, Julia Simic and Selina Wagner were viewed as having struggled to make the breakthrough following the shoot.
Germany's national federation had reportedly been angered by the shoot, while Simic's move to Manchester City allegedly collapsed as a result of the photos.
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