FIFA World Cup 2022: In Qatar, some European nations like England, Germany and others had decided to sport the 'OneLove' armband. However, they have decided against doing so. Here is why.
England and six other football nations were in the news ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, as they were planning on wearing the 'OneLove' armband. The armband represented anti-discrimination of any kind, which intended to promote "inclusion and sends a message against discrimination of any kind". Its significance increased ahead of the competition due to homosexuality being considered illegal in the Gulf country. The International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) had warned that the skippers would be sanctioned if they broke the rule and gave their statement on social issues. After an extensive debate between FIFA and the involved European nations, it has been decided that the armband would not be donned.
In a joint statement issued by FIFA and the involved nations, it was said, "FIFA has been very clear that it will impose sporting sanctions if our captains wear the armbands on the field of play. As national federations, we can't put our players in a position where they could face sporting sanctions, including bookings, so we have asked the captains not to attempt to wear the armbands in FIFA World Cup games."
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"We were prepared to pay fines that would normally apply to breaches of kit regulations and had a strong commitment to wearing the armband. However, we cannot put our players in the situation where they might be booked or even forced to leave the field of play," added the statement.
"We are very frustrated by the FIFA decision, which we believe is unprecedented – we wrote to FIFA in September informing them of our wish to wear the One Love armband to actively support inclusion in football, and had no response. Our players and coaches are disappointed – they are strong supporters of inclusion and will show support in other ways," the statement concluded.
Meanwhile, Dutch Football Association (KNVB) stated, "We wanted to do that at the World Cup together with England, Wales, Belgium, Switzerland, Germany and Denmark. The UEFA working group, of which the KNVB is part, asked FIFA on September 19 to embrace the OneLove captain's armband. Today, hours before the first match, FIFA has [officially] made it clear to us that the captain will receive a yellow card if he wears the OneLove captain's armband."
"We deeply regret that it has not been possible to reach a reasonable solution together. We stand with the OneLove message and continue to carry it out, but our first priority at the World Cup is to win matches. You don't want the captain to start the match by getting a yellow card. That is why we had to decide with pain in our hearts - as a UEFA working group, the KNVB and as a team – to abandon our plan," added KNVB.
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"As previously announced, the KNVB would have paid a possible fine for wearing the OneLove captain's armband, but that FIFA would punish us for this on the field was not expected. This goes against the spirit of our sport which connects millions of people. In the coming period, together with the other countries involved, we will take a critical look at our relationship with FIFA," KNVB concluded.
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