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European football federations have expressed their desire to equip their captains with a rainbow armband featuring heart design during World Cup games in Qatar in order to show their stand against discrimination. However, the move has put FIFA in a spot of worry as the FIFA rules prohibit teams from bringing their own armband designs to the marquee tournament.
According to fresh reports, France and Germany were among eight of the 13 European football teams going to Qatar who joined the "One Love" campaign, which started in the Netherlands. Armbands are the latest mode of the battleground for players to convey the political messages linked to the World Cup hosted in Qatar.
Notably, homosexuality is illegal in Qatar and the treatment of migrant workers building projects for the tournament has been decade-long controversy.
"Wearing an armband on behalf of our teams will send a clear message to the world,” England skipper Harry Kane said in a statement. In its released statement, Welsh Football federation confirmed that a request to FIFA has also been submitted and mentioned that permission should be granted for captains to wear the armbands. FIFA is yet to comment on the matter.
Notably, the "One Love" campaign was launched one day after the Emir of Qatar spoke at the United Nations General Assembly in New York promising a World Cup without discrimination. “The Qatari people will receive with open arms football fans from all walks of life,” Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani said in a speech to other world leaders.
Poland skipper Robert Lewandowski, a two-time FIFA World player of the year confirmed that he would wear the armband featuring Ukraine flag in order to show his solidarity with war-torn Ukraine. Earlier, Poland refused to play Russia in a playoff match in March. Prior to the game, FIFA and the European football body UEFA banned Russian teams from international competitions because the country invaded Ukraine.
