Calling Out FIFA

"FIFA today prohibited a statement for diversity and human rights -- those are values to which it is committed in its own statutes."

"From our point of view this is more than frustrating and, I think, an unprecedented action in World Cup history."

Bernd Neuendorf, president, German soccer federation

"Today we feel contempt for an organization that has shown its true values by giving the yellow card to players and the red card to tolerance."

Football Supporters Association, Great Britain

"As national federations we can't put our players in a position where they could face sporting sanctions, including bookings [as threatened FIFA penalties, should World Cup team captains wear rainbow armbands]."

Seven European soccer federations' joint statement

England's Harry Kane is seen wearing a rainbow-coloured 'One Love' armband during an UEFA Nations League football match in London's Wembley Stadium on Sept. 26, 2022. The captains of seven European nations will not wear the armbands in World Cup games after threats from FIFA to show yellow cards to the players. (Carl Recine/Action Images/Reuters)

"This is FIFA's fault. FIFA were the ones who awarded the World Cup to Qatar in the first place, knowing the stance that they take on human rights."

"Because it's not just about how LGBT fans are treated. It's also how the migrant workers who built the infrastructure that's been needed for the World Cup have been treated. And also how women are treated in Qatar. It's not just about our community. It's about basic freedoms."

"One of the things that we've seen, first-hand, is that once you get engagement from the players, the attitude of the media and of the fans around you changes completely. Once it's not just you and your group standing up for what's right, and it's the players here on the pitch as well, saying, "Actually, yeah, we support them and we stand with them," it opens all sorts of doors. It enables conversations to happen at a much faster rate. And it enables real change to happen."

"So to see the opportunity for that show of solidarity on the biggest stage that football has taken away from us is, it's horrible."

Rob Sanderson, member, Pride In Football, a network of LGBT+ fan groups in the U.K., and 3 Lions Pride, an LGBT+ fan group for England.

Rob Sanderson is a member of Pride In Football, a network of LGBT+ fan groups in the U.K., and 3 Lions Pride, an LGBT+ fan group for England. (Submitted by Rob Sanderson)

 

All is not rosy in Doha, Qatar as the Wold Cup of Soccer taking place in Doha, continues to be controversial. Seven European soccer team captains had let it be known prior to arrival in Qatar that their intention was to wear rainbow armbands in solidarity with the LGBTQ-2+ community discriminated against in Qatar as in most Islamic-majority countries as offensive and a sin against religious verities. 

FIFA was moved to threaten on-field penalties for players should the captains persist in support of the armbands reflecting the "One Love" campaign. Soccer's governing body gave warning that players would be shown yellow cards, two of which would lead to expulsion of players from their game of the momet and one to follow. 

That threat served to force abandonment of the armband=wearing intention. They had foreseen that the wearing of armbands might result in some rejection, but their conjecture went no further than a nominal fine. FIFA, however, cited the conspicuous nature of the armbands to be a violation of official FIFA rules. A last-minute 'reminder' that seemed to take the teams by surprise in its severity.

 

Three days previous to this condemnation and the announcement, the sale of beer was peremptorily banned under pressure from the government of Qatar. Prior to that surprise announcement FIFA president Gianni Infantino delivered a peculiar speech of solidarity with ethnic and religious differences and the plight of the underprivileged, proclaiming himself to be in total sympathy, chastising any element of criticism from the international community over the venue. 

The heart-shaped multicoloured logo of the "One Love" campaign promoting inclusion and diversity in soccer and society, in their opinion, was a universal statement of brotherly acceptance and support of an oppressed community which has finally received the recognition due it in the west, with the Middle East lagging far behind. 

The decision spurred Gurchaten Sandhu, of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association based in Geneva to criticize the fact that FIFA placed "athletes in a very, very awkward" position. "You've bound the hands of the national teams. They're there to compete", he stated in exasperation and frustration.

Captain Harry Kane gestures wearing a FIFA-approved black armband with a sign 'No discrimination' during a World Cup group B soccer match between England and Iran at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha, Qatar, on Monday. (Pavel Golovkin/The Associated Press)