Opinião – O Mundo É a Bola: The captains of the World Cup teams lacked courage in the LGBTQIA+ cause

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It was supposed to be outstanding. It was supposed to be imposing. It was supposed to be historic.

The captains of some of the 32 teams participating in the World Cup had decided to enter the field wearing a rainbow armband with the inscription “One Love”.

This expression in English has the meaning of “unity and inclusion”, and can be translated, in my opinion, like this: “Universal love”.

The intention was to show appreciation for the LGBTQIA+ cause and confront Qatar, host country of the World Cup, an absolutist monarchy that considers homoaffective relationships a crime, with imprisonment.

The Middle Eastern nation is also accused of other reprehensible attitudes related to human rights, such as the exploitation of immigrant labor, denounced for years by non-governmental organizations such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, and the disregard for women.

In an event whose expected audience is 5 billion people – much more than the 3.6 billion of the 2018 World Cup, in Russia –, the impact of the multicolored armband had everything to be huge.

It would show that players, many of them world-renowned figures, idols of fans in all regions of the globe, strongly disagree with the Qatari regime on discrimination and diversity.

It had everything to be giant… but it wasn’t. Well, that didn’t happen, after Fifa warned, on the eve of the games, that the arbitration would punish with a yellow card the athlete who used this stripe.

In the Cup, receiving a yellow card is sportingly risky, as two of them suspend the player from the next match. The rule is valid until the quarterfinals game – in the semifinals, the yellow cards are reset to prevent a cautioned athlete from being left out of the decision.

Under this threat from the highest entity of the ball, owner of the World Cup, and which shamefully preferred to “lick the boots” of the leaders of the country that organizes this year’s Cup, the players gave up the “One Love” armband.

This Monday (21), the second day of the competition, the Englishman Harry Kane, the Dutchman Virgil van Dijk and the Welshman Gareth Bale, the most distinguished footballers of their national teams, went to the field against Iran, Senegal and the USA, respectively, with the message “No Discrimination” (“No Discrimination”).

The phrase, correct but much less eloquent, came at the request of Fifa, which handed over to the selections the ornament it considered adequate to be used.

Kane, Van Dijk and Bale possibly surrendered on the orders of their respective federation officials. Neuer (Germany), Xhaka (Switzerland), Kjaer (Denmark) and Hazard (Belgium) are also expected to capitulate.

“We need you more than the LGBTs do”, I imagine they heard from the top hats, more concerned with sporting glory, which comes with millions of dollars, than with the hardships that minorities go through.

An athlete’s mistake. They should have put their foot down. If there was a time to show what you believe in, to pass on the message that humanitarian values ​​outweigh personal interests or those of a restricted group, now is the time.

If players were more worthy, they would honor that commitment. They would unite after the captain was given a yellow card and would say to their superiors: “Either FIFA annuls the card, or we don’t play”.

I doubt that FIFA would not withdraw the punishment. Imagine the damage to the image if a World Cup game did not take place due to WO (the absence of one of the teams), not to mention the legal problems with the holders of the transmission rights, sponsors, fans.

The players’ action was to be striking, imposing, historic. Courage was lacking.

In time: If this text reaches the players of the Brazilian team, the most victorious in World Cups, let them reflect and conclude that they have all the conditions to be protagonists in this theme. May your captain (Thiago Silva, Casemiro, Marquinhos?) do what leaders of other teams have not done. make a difference

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