An in depth view of the ‘ONE-LOVE’ captains armband worn by Georginio Wijnaldum of Netherlands is seen throughout the UEFA Euro 2020 Championship in Budapest, Hungary.
Alex Livesey – Uefa | Uefa | Getty Images
The European teams competing on the 2022 Qatar World Cup walked back their plans to wear “OneLove” armbands in support of LGBTQ rights throughout the tournament, they announced Monday, after warnings from international soccer governing body FIFA that they might be penalized for doing so.
Captains of the teams from the seven European nations competing within the World Cup — England, Wales, Germany, Denmark, Belgium, Switzerland, and the Netherlands — made the announcement in regards to the rainbow armbands, which are supposed to signal support for diversity and inclusion.
In an unprecedented move just hours before matches began, FIFA warned it will issue a yellow card to any player wearing the armband. Two yellow cards in a game mean the player is distributed off the sector.
“FIFA has been very clear that it’ll impose sporting sanctions if our captains wear the armbands on the sector of play,” a joint statement from the countries’ soccer associations said. “As national federations, we won’t put our players ready where they may face sporting sanctions including bookings, so we’ve asked the captains to not try to wear the armbands in FIFA World Cup games.”
“We were prepared to pay fines that will normally apply to breaches of kit regulations and had a robust commitment to wearing the armband,” the statement added. “Nevertheless, we cannot put our players within the situation where they could be booked and even forced to depart the sector of play.” The teams from England, Wales and the Netherlands were all slated to play on Monday.
“We’re very frustrated by the FIFA decision which we consider is unprecedented,” the teams’ joint statement added and pledged to specific their support for inclusion by other means.
Qatar fans are pictured ahead of the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, November 18, 2022.
Marko Djurica | Reuters
The hosting of the World Cup by Qatar, a tiny and religiously conservative gas-rich sheikhdom within the Gulf, was controversial from the outset when it first won this yr’s bid in 2010.
Along with lacking the sufficient infrastructure and capability for such a tournament on the time, critics sounded the alarm over the country’s human rights record, including for migrant staff and the LGBTQ community. Homosexuality is against the law in Qatar, as in much of the remainder of the Muslim world, and men caught in sexual acts with each other can face several years of imprisonment and even the death penalty.
FIFA, which has vocally come to Qatar’s defense on these issues, rejected the “OneLove” campaign and as a substitute has promoted its own “No Discrimination” campaign, which features different armbands.
“FIFA is an inclusive organization that desires to place football to the advantage of society by supporting good and legit causes, however it must be done inside the framework of the competition regulations that are known to everyone,” FIFA said in a press release Monday.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino (2ndR) and Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman al-Saud throughout the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Group A match between Qatar and Ecuador at Al Bayt Stadium on November 20, 2022 in Al Khor, Qatar.
Amin Mohammad Jamali | Getty Images Sport | Getty Images
“FIFA can confirm its No Discrimination campaign has been brought forward from the planned quarter-finals stage so as that each one 32 captains could have the chance to wear this armband throughout the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.”
It added that the organization’s president, Gianni Infantino, supported the LGBTQ community.
“FIFA President Gianni Infantino has reiterated his support of the LGBTQI+ community throughout the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022,” the statement said.
It then quoted Infantino as saying, “I even have been speaking about this subject with the country’s highest leadership. They’ve confirmed, and I can confirm that everyone seems to be welcome. If anyone says the other, well it isn’t the opinion of the country and it’s definitely not the opinion of FIFA.”