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It’s no secret that the decision to make Qatar the host of the 2022 World Cup was a controversial one. Still, FIFA president Gianni Infantino says players should not protest during games to “respect football.”
“It is 211 football teams and their fans who want to come and enjoy football, and this is what we are here for,” Infantino said during a press conference on Friday. “Honestly, I believe that we are defending values, we are defending human rights, we are defending the rights of everyone in FIFA, in the World Cup.
“But I also believe that those fans who come to the stadium … and all those billions of fans who are watching the World Cup on TV, maybe we should think about that. And I say this candidly to everyone: everyone has their own problems.
“We have to give to all these people a moment of time in their lives to forget about their own problems and enjoy football. … Outside of the match and the field of play, everyone can express his views and opinions the way he want, but lets give this moment of joy to those who want to enjoy the game.”
Ahead of the World Cup, seven captains of European countries were prepared to wear rainbow “One Love” arm bands during their opening matches as a form of protest against anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination laws in the host nation of Qatar. However, this didn’t happen because FIFA said any player who wore the band would get a yellow card.
One form of protest that did happen was when Germany’s players covered their mouths during a team photo ahead of their game against Japan. Meanwhile, England took a knee before all its matches, which is something the team has been doing since 2020 as part of an anti-racism movement — not necessarily related to Qatar.
Infantino said on Friday that the point of football and FIFA was to bring everyone together, and that this isn’t always an easy thing to do because different countries have different cultures and don’t always see eye to eye on every issue. He said FIFA has to “take care of everyone” and does not want to discriminate anyone based on their countries’ legislations.
“It’s not about prohibiting or not prohibiting,” Infantino said. “It’s about respecting regulations. We have regulations which say on the field of play, you play football, and that’s what we did.
“Everyone is free to express his views, his opinion, his beliefs and the way he believes, as long as it’s done in a respectful way. When it comes to the pitch, to the field of play, you need to respect football.”