Berlin - The leader of the far-right National Democratic Party of Germany (NPD), Udo Voigt, went on trial Tuesday accused of sedition and insult of a black player in Germany's national football team.

The charges, brought by footballer Patrick Owomoyela and the German Football Federation (DFB), relate to a calendar of events published by the NPD ahead of the 2006 World Cup in Germany.

The planner pictured the host country's white football shirt alongside the statement, "White. Not just a shirt colour! For a real NATIONAL team!"

According to the prosecution case, the football shirt bore the number 25, worn at the time by Owomoyela, who is black.

Owomoyela, who is a German citizen, at the time played for the first division club Bremen and now plays for the first-division club Borussia Dortmund. Born in Hamburg in 1979, he has a German mother and Nigerian father.

Voigt is being held responsible for the calendar, distributed as a leaflet and offered for download via the internet, alongside two co-accused NPD party members.

At the time, police seized several thousand of the leaflets after the DFB invoked legal procedures to halt their spread.

The lawyer of the DFB and Owomoyela, Christian Scherz, said on Tuesday they wanted to "set a sign that racism has no place in sport."

The defence argued that Owomoyela was not depicted on the World Cup planner. They further alleged that the trial was merely an attempt to reduce the NPD'S political success in this year's elections.

A general election is due in September, as well as European and state elections throughout the year.

The German crime of sedition includes stirring up hatred against other ethnic groups, and carries a sentence of up to five years' prison. Insult can also be a criminal offence in Germany.

The two aides charged alongside Voigt are Klaus Beier, who is party spokesman and NPD chairman in Brandenburg state, and Frank Schwerdt, a member of the national executive and chairman in Thuringia state.

Judge Monika Pelcz turned down a defence request Tuesday for the trial to be aborted. A judgement is expected on April 7.

The NPD, which is overtly hostile to both immigrants and ethnic minorities, is represented in two of Germany's 16 states, Saxony and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.

An attempt to ban the NPD was quashed by Germany's top court in 2003. (dpa)