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A sign against discrimination: discussion about captain’s armbands at the Qatar World Cup

Several European football associations have announced that they will wear a special captain’s armband at the World Cup in Qatar.

The German team also wants to join the campaign. On Twitter, the “DFB team” wrote that they want to set a sign against discrimination and for diversity.

Criticism of the layout of the bandage

The armband features a heart dipped in bright colours with the inscription “One Love”. National player Jonas Hofmann explained that it was important to make a statement.

The Borussia Mönchengladbach midfielder countered criticism on social media that the armband did not have the original rainbow colours. “A few colours from the rainbow colours are already in it,” Hofmann said. He added that the symbolism was common knowledge anyway.

The English federation tweeted that they want to support the “One Love” initiative and join the message against discrimination and for more inclusion.

World governing body FIFA under pressure

In addition, the associations from the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Wales, France and Denmark want to wear this captain’s armband – not only at the World Cup, but also already at the upcoming UEFA Nations League matches in September. In this competition, the captains of the teams from Norway and Sweden will also wear the armband, but both countries are not qualified for the World Cup.

The DFB explained that the idea came up within the UEFA Working Group. The working group deals with human and labour rights issues in Qatar until the World Cup, which runs from 20 November to 18 December.

FIFA could now come under pressure: This is because the World Football Association prohibits the dissemination of political messages of any kind. Thus, FIFA could either ban an action against discrimination or snub World Cup host Qatar – where homosexuality is forbidden by law.

By Arnold