James Johnson is ‘pretty confident’ Fifa will let players wear armbands about LGBTQ+ and First Nation rights at the Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand
has told thethat he is “pretty confident and optimistic” players will be allowed to wear rainbow armbands at the Women’s World Cup, after holding talks with Fifa. In a highly significant development, James Johnson said there had been “meaningful dialogue” between the hosts and football’s governing body and that it was likely to lead to players having greater ability to express themselves.
Johnson said that part of the discussions included plans to allow players to wear armbands to represent certain issues. “So if we’re talking about Australian players, it’s obviously LGBTQ+ and Indigenous rights, First Nation rights, but that doesn’t necessarily reflect the players all around the world,” he said. “But I think the players will be able to wear armbands around certain issues that they wish to express themselves on.
Johnson said the co-hosts and Fifa were keen to learn from the controversy that marred the men’s tournament in Qatar, where six European countries – including England – abandoned plans to wear the OneLove anti-discrimination armband after being told their captains would be booked if they did so.
Johnson indicated that Football Australia and football’s governing body were both looking to find ways “to ensure that there is some flexibility with how the competition regulations are executed” and “what exceptions could be made”.
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