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German players visit Auschwitz ahead of Euros

Low, captain Philipp Lahm and Polish-born Miroslav Klose and Lukas Podolski joined German FA officials as they crossed into the death camp through the infamous "Arbeit macht frei" (Work sets one free) gate.

Many of the 1.5 million, mostly Jewish, prisoners who later perished at the Nazi extermination facility crossed under the same sign during World War II.

Members of the footballing group did not speak to the media but in a note left in the museum's visitors book, they wrote: "For football too Auschwitz represents both a silent tribute and, above all, an obligation to speak.

"To speak about this endlessly sorrowful, hate-filled history and the warning it sends."

Earlier on Friday, Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski welcomed a letter from U.S. counterpart Barack Obama who expressed regret over using the phrase "Polish death camp" this week, which some Poles see as suggesting they were partially responsible for the crimes perpetrated by the Nazis.