KEY POINTS
- The United Kingdom's first openly gay sports minister has worn a OneLove armband at the World Cup.
- Qatar's World Cup chief has criticised the campaign, describing it as sending "a very divisive message".
- FIFA has threatened captains who wear the band with a yellow card.
The United Kingdom's first openly gay sports minister has worn a OneLove armband at the World Cup in Doha amid ongoing controversy over a crackdown by FIFA on captains who had intended to wear the band.
Sports minister Stuart Andrew wrote on Twitter that he had decided to wear the armband to support LGBTIQ+ people.
"Sport has the power to unite & inspire so it’s vital that all sporting events, such as the #FIFAWorldCup, are open & inclusive," he tweeted.
"I’m wearing the #OneLove armband to support the LGBT community & send a positive message that everyone should feel welcome at all sport tournaments."
In an with UK media outlet The Evening Standard on Monday, Mr Andrew said he would wear the armband at Tuesday's match between England and Wales.
“I’m not going to shy away from who I am. Our message very much is that no one should have to hide who they are," he said.
Captains of seven European national teams had planned to wear OneLove armbands at the World Cup, a , but subsequently backed down following a warning from FIFA.
Prior to the start of the tournament, football's world governing body warned captains of all competing nations against wearing telling them they would be met with a yellow card on the pitch.
According to FIFA rules, team equipment must not have any political, religious or personal slogans, statements or images, and during competitions, the captain of each team "must wear the captain's armband provided by FIFA".
FIFA said last week all captains of all 32 teams "will have the opportunity" to wear an armband with the slogan "No Discrimination" in the group games.
England's Harry Kane with the OneLove armband. Seven captains of European nations had planned to wear OneLove armbands at the World Cup in Qatar, a nation where same-sex relations are illegal. Source: AAP / (Nick Potts/PA Wire)
'Divisive message': Qatar hits back at OneLove campaign
Qatar's World Cup chief accused European teams of promoting a "divisive message" and disrespecting Middle Eastern culture through the OneLove campaign.
Hassan Al-Thawadi, Secretary General of the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy of the Qatar World Cup said he was not involved in FIFA's decision to ban the armband, but "took issue" with the statement that he viewed as "specifically addressed to Qatar, and by extension the Islamic world".
Hassan Al-Thawadi, Secretary General of the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy. Source: Getty / Michael Regan - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images
“It goes back to the simple fact that this is a part of the world that has its own set of values. It is a part of the world, not Qatar, I’m talking about the Arab world. For teams to come and preach or make statements, that is fine, but what you’re essentially saying is you’re protesting an Islamic country hosting an event. So where does that end?
“Does that mean Islamic countries can never host events? There will be different values and different views coming in. So if you’re making a statement here in Qatar or specifically addressed to Qatar, and by extension the Islamic world, of course I take issue with that. It leaves a very divisive message."
Mr Al-Thawadi reiterated the message that "everybody is welcome" at the tournament.
What does the OneLove armband mean?
The OneLove campaign was started in the Netherlands in 2020, with the band intended to promote diversity and anti-discrimination under the slogan "Football has the power to unite people".
The phrase was inspired by anti-apartheid champion Nelson Mandela, who in 2000 said: “Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does.
"Sport can create hope where once there was only despair. It is more powerful than governments in breaking down racial barriers. It laughs in the face of all types of discrimination.”
The United Kingdom's first openly gay sports minister Stuart Andrew will wear a OneLove armband at the World Cup in Doha amid ongoing controversy over a crackdown by FIFA on captains who had intended to wear the band. Source: Getty, Press Association / Martin Rickett
Netherlands captain Virgil van Dijk described it as "an important message which suits the game of football: on the field everybody is equal and this should be the case in every place in society".
Craig Foster, Josh Cavallo criticise FIFA over OneLove crackdown
accused FIFA of "disgracefully" shutting down "players' freedom of speech" at the Qatar World Cup by threatening to yellow card captains wearing the OneLove band.
The comments followed an on-field at a match between Portugal and Uruguay at Qatar's Lusail Stadium on Tuesday.
"They have the right to speak about human rights, whether they're on the field or off or in warm-ups or in press conferences," SBS analyst Foster said on air following the protest.
"And very much like the [International Olympic Committee], the Olympics and [IOC president] Thomas Bach, whose crackdown on Olympic athletes' right to speak, so too disgracefully has FIFA for in this tournament, and even to the extent of wearing an armband, which is simply standing for non-discrimination of the LGBTI community, which is quite unprecedented, extraordinary," he said.
Foster accused FIFA of double standards, saying football's governing body was "taking this discretionary approach to Black Lives Matter or Ukraine advocacy, and then that's okay, but LGBTI is not okay, for example".
He decried "censorship that has occurred" of national teams and players at the tournament, describing it as "something that simply shouldn't be acceptable".
Foster's comments echoed those of Australian footballer Josh Cavallo — who became the first top flight professional player to come out as gay.
Last week, Cavallo said FIFA had shown his sport "isn't a place for everyone" by vowing to penalise players wearing OneLove armbands at the World Cup.
"FIFA you have lost my respect," Cavallo posted on social media.
"All the work we're doing to make football more inclusive you have shown that football isn't a place for everyone."
"It's not the first time we've heard 'Stick to football'," Cavallo wrote in a post on Twitter.
"The attacks on the LGBTQ+ community from World Cup leaders affects so many who live in silence because of your draconian ways."
In an interview with SBS News earlier this year, a doctor dubbed 'Qatar's first openly gay man', who fled his home country for the United States, said that teams, players and FIFA should be advocating loudest for LGBTIQ+ rights during the World Cup in Qatar.
“They’re not going to be harmed,” , telling attendees they should focus on their own safety first.
“Big and unapologetic visibility is the responsibility of the teams, players and FIFA.”
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