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<\/div>\nThe captains of\u00a0England,\u00a0Wales,\u00a0Belgium,\u00a0Denmark,\u00a0Germany\u00a0and the\u00a0Netherlands\u00a0will not wear the \u2018OneLove\u2019 anti-discrimination armband in their World Cup openers after confirmation that their captains would be given yellow cards if they took part in the initiative.<\/p>\n
The announcement came just before their World Cup campaigns were scheduled to start. <\/p>\n
The national federations said they were prepared to pay a fine for their captains to wear the \u2018OneLove\u2019 armband, but once it became clear their captains would be sanctioned, they had to change plans.<\/p>\n
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\u201cFIFA has been very clear that it will impose sporting sanctions if our captains wear the armbands on the field of play,\u201d a joint statement from the nations read. \u201cAs national federations, we can\u2019t put our players in a position where they could face sporting sanctions including bookings, so we have asked the captains not to attempt to wear the armbands in FIFA World Cup games.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were prepared to pay fines that would normally apply to breaches of kit regulations and had a strong commitment to wearing the armband. However, we cannot put our players in a situation where they might be booked or even forced to leave the field of play.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are very frustrated by the FIFA decision which we believe is unprecedented \u2014 we wrote to FIFA in September informing them of our wish to wear the One Love armband to actively support inclusion in football, and had no response. Our players and coaches are disappointed \u2014 they are strong supporters of inclusion and will show support in other ways.\u201d<\/p>\n
FIFA announced before the start of the tournament it would have seven different armbands available for each round of the competition, each with various social messaging slogans. But soon after the seven nations announced they would not wear the \u2018OneLove\u2019 armband on Monday, FIFA announced it would make the \u201cNo Discrimination\u201d armband available throughout the tournament, when it was previously set to be worn at the quarterfinal stage.<\/p>\n
\u201cFollowing discussions, FIFA can confirm its No Discrimination campaign has been brought forward from the planned quarter-finals stage in order that all 32 captains will have the opportunity to wear this armband during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022,\u201d the statement read.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is in line with Article 13.8.1 of the FIFA Equipment Regulations, which state: \u2018For FIFA Final Competitions, the captain of each Team must wear the captain\u2019s armband provided by FIFA.\u201d<\/p>\n
READ ALSO<\/strong><\/p>\n The Dutch were the first to announce publicly that\u00a0Virgil van Dijk\u00a0would not wear the armband. The KNVB statement on the decision said: \u201cToday, hours before the first game, it has been made clear to us from FIFA (officially) that the captain will receive a yellow card if he wears the OneLove captain\u2019s armband. We deeply regret that it was not possible to reach a reasonable solution together.<\/p>\n \u201cWe stand for the OneLove message and will continue to spread it, but our No. 1 priority at the World Cup is to win the games. You don\u2019t want the captain to start the match with a yellow card. That is why it is with a heavy heart that we as a UEFA working group, KNVB and as a team had to decide to abandon our plan.\u201d<\/p>\n The KNVB added: \u201cAs previously announced, the KNVB would have paid a possible fine for wearing the OneLove captain\u2019s armband, but that FIFA wants to punish us on the field for this has never been seen. This goes against the spirit of our sport that connects millions of people. Together with the other countries involved, we will take a critical look at our relationship with FIFA in the coming period.\u201d<\/p>\n France, who were also part of the initiative, will also not be wearing the armband. French Football Federation (FFF) president Noel Le Graet had said he would \u201crather\u201d players\u00a0didn\u2019t wear the rainbow armbands, while captain\u00a0Hugo Lloris\u00a0reiterated the team\u2019s position in a news conference on Monday after previously saying there was\u00a0\u201ctoo much pressure\u201d\u00a0on players to protest in Qatar.<\/p>\n Nine nations including Germany, Netherlands and Belgium agreed in September to wear the armband as a symbol of\u00a0diversity, inclusion and anti-discrimination\u00a0amid concerns over World Cup hosts Qatar\u2019s human rights record.<\/p>\n Both FIFA and UEFA do not usually allow teams to make political statements, but European football\u2019s governing body gave dispensation for the armbands to be worn in the their UEFA Nations League matches.<\/p>\n FIFA did not provide clarity on their stance and, just one day before the World Cup began, launched their own armbands for all captains to wear promoting social awareness. The nine nations, of which only seven are present at the World Cup, were ready to accept a fine for making the gesture, but there were suggestions each captain could receive a yellow card at kick-off in each match.<\/p>\n And on the day the European nations were preparing to start their World Cup campaigns, they made a unilateral decision not to wear the armband for fear of their captains being sanctioned<\/p>\n The day before England\u2019s opening match against\u00a0Iran, their captain\u00a0Harry Kane\u00a0said he planned to wear it.<\/p>\n \u201cI think we\u2019ve made it clear as a team, as a staff and an organisation that we want to wear the armband,\u201d Kane said Sunday. \u201cI know the FA are talking to FIFA at the moment and I\u2019m sure by game time tomorrow we\u2019ll have the decision. I think we\u2019ve made it clear we want to wear it.\u201d<\/p>\n The Netherlands manager Louis van Gaal and captain Van Dijk were asked about whether they would wear the armband in the press conference the day before their opener. Van Gaal, the Dutch manager, answered: \u201cI am no longer going to speak about political issues, I\u2019m speaking about this coming match and I put a full stop on all these issues.<\/p>\n \u201cAfter I invited the migrants to watch a practice session, I requested all our players to put a full stop on that and focus on the match against Senegal.\u201d<\/p>\n Other nations had confirmed they were planning to wear the armband, with both Wales and Germany doing so at the weekend.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n