It was last Saturday that van Basten made the comment in the TV studio after a German coach was interviewed. The Dutchman later apologized for the program.

Fox Sports today went out and distanced itself from the statement they called "stupid and inappropriate". The broadcaster has shut down van Basten this week and will donate his salary to a Dutch institute working for enlightenment around the Second World War.

van Basten was a prominent striker in Ajax and Milan and one of the stars of the Dutch team that won the European gold in 1988. After his career, 55-year-old van Basten has been the national team for the Netherlands.

Sieg Heil was a greeting phrase in Nazi Germany 1933-45 and especially dedicated to the dictator Adolf Hitler. During World War II, Germany occupied the Netherlands.