Teams from the Fifa World Cup were forced to back down and cease an anti-discrimination campaign against the host nation Qatar on Monday after FIFA threatened to punish players on the field.
Following FIFA’s announcement that the players would receive yellow cards, the captains of seven European countries will not wear armbands in support of the “One Love” campaign during games. The decision was made three days after the Qatari government abruptly prohibited beer sales in stadiums and two days after FIFA President Gianni Infantino launched into an astonishing diatribe in defence of the host country’s human rights record.
A few hours before England’s Harry Kane, the Netherlands’ Virgil van Dijk, and Wales’ Gareth Bale were scheduled to wear the armbands for Monday’s games, FIFA threatened to take action. Additionally pledging to don the armbands in the following days were the captains of Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, and Denmark.
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What is the OneLove campaign?
The OneLove campaign, which was founded in the Netherlands, uses a heart-shaped, multicoloured design as its official emblem in an effort to encourage inclusion and diversity in both soccer and society.
OneLove campaign aims to leverage the power of soccer to encourage inclusion and deliver a message against prejudice of any type.
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The armbands have a heart that represents all backgrounds with colours.
“It’s wonderful to see the nations unite to support the OneLove campaign as we stand together against all forms of discrimination. We know the world will be watching us and this campaign emphasises that everybody in football has at least one thing in common; their love for the game. By working together we can send a unified message that we are against any form of exclusion and discrimination,” Cyrmu captain Gareth Bale in an interview.
