Before the World Cup, FIFA president Gianni Infantino urged the 32 teams bound for Qatar that they should “let football take center stage” and “focus on the football,” but just days into the tournament, that desire hasn’t exactly gone to plan.
First, there was the last-minute ban on alcohol inside and around stadiums. Then, there were scores of empty seats midway through the game as host nation Qatar lost to Ecuador. On Monday, a major row between FIFA and seven European nations has ended with those countries ditching plans for their captains to wear a special anti-discrimination armband at the last minute.
– World Cup teams abandon “One Love” armband amid FIFA row
Just over three hours before England kicked off against Iran in their Group B opener at Khalifa International Stadium, the countries involved — England, Wales, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Switzerland and Denmark — issued a joint statement confirming they would not wear the OneLove armband after learning each captain would receive a yellow card at kick-off.
FIFA has insisted that the yellow card sanction was communicated as a possible consequence prior to the past 48 hours, but regardless of what you believe, a tournament mired in controversy for years in the build-up continues to be overshadowed by off-field problems even after the matches have started.
What is the OneLove armband?
Amid widespread concern about Qatar’s human rights record, various European nations held talks over whether an agreement could be found for a collective gesture during international matches.
Led by the Netherlands Football Association (known as the KNVB), sources have told ESPN that 10 nations were in contact — the seven mentioned above plus Norway, Sweden and France. In September, nine nations (without France) announced the creation of the OneLove armband, designed to “use the power of football to promote inclusion and send a message against discrimination of any kind as the eyes of the world fall on the global game,” as the accompanying news release stated at the time. In response, UEFA confirmed in a statement that it “fully supports” the OneLove campaign, adding it had “also approved the use of the armbands during the September international window, for those associations who reached out to us.”
Significantly, that swift approval — UEFA tend to reject anything from member nations that could be interpreted as a political statement — meant there were no detailed discussions held over possible repercussions when this same plan was applied to the World Cup, a tournament run by FIFA. Sources have told ESPN that the regulations for a Euros, for example, are fairly broad and UEFA would have provided the guidance on the relevant issues relating to the use of “special equipment,” which is how the armbands would have been classified.
So why was it such an issue at the World Cup?
The Qatar Supreme Committee and FIFA have repeatedly insisted “everyone is welcome” amid concerns over the treatment of LGBTQIA+ people in the Gulf state. Same-sex relationships are illegal in the country and in some instances punishable by death, making the use of a rainbow armband an acutely sensitive topic.
