‘Respect the culture’ – Fifa urged to allow Pride Match

After calling on visitors to “respect the culture” in Qatar four years ago, a member of the advisory committee for the contentious 2026 World Cup Pride Match called on the committee to say he hopes Fifa “does the right thing” by allowing planned celebrations to continue.

The LGBTQ+ community’s celebrations will take place at Lumen Field on June 26 for the World Cup match between Egypt and Iran, according to local organizers in Seattle.

Before the teams for the match were chosen, the plans were made.

The Egyptian FA has publicly demanded that the events be called off and that Fifa, which has no official role in the plans, intervene.

However, Seattle Pride Match Advisory Committee member Eric Wahl claims there hasn’t been any contact with Fifa and that visiting teams should respect the celebrations as a result.

Wahl said, “I am aware that Egypt is petitioning Fifa, but it raises ethical issues.”

The game will take place on Seattle Pride weekend, two days before the Stonewall Riots, which are typically regarded as the start of the LGBTQ+ rights movement.

The death penalty is the maximum sentence in Iran for homosexual relations, but Egyptian morality laws frequently stifle LGBTQ+ rights and relationships.

“I hope Fifa does the right thing,” said Wahl, “I can’t anticipate what they will do.” “We haven’t heard from them, and I’m surprised they’ve not reached out,” Fifa’s tone is generally respectful, which is good.

They won’t participate in discussions of human rights.

The Egyptian FA stated in a formal letter that it had rejected “any activities related to LGBTQ+ support” during the match to Fifa Secretary-General Mattias Grafstrom.

The lengthy Egyptian FA statement called for the initiative to conflict with “the cultural, religious, and social values of Egypt and Iran,” and demanded that Fifa keep the match focused on football.

According to the Fifa statutes on political and social neutrality, matches shouldn’t be used to “promote causes that are”sensitive or contentious,” it said.

Iranian media reportedly criticizes the Pride Match plans.

Wahl said their plans, which emphasize upcoming events more than the game itself, are still in place, for now.

He did, however, claim that there might be LGBTQ+ fan events in the stands when Egypt plays Iran.

Although it is a very Seattle thing to have Pride flags inside the stadium, he said, “We don’t have involvement with things going on inside the stadium.”

Everyone who plays for the soccer teams from Egypt and Iran is welcome at our parades and events, and we are certain they will enjoy it.

“This is something that started coming together more than a year ago. Seattle does a lot of things throughout Pride Month in June, and it’s always important.

Knowing that we only have one chance per generation, we knew we wanted one of these games to be pride-themed, use all the resources available, and highlight all of our visitors in a joyful way.

“We never had the strategic sense to “stick it to anyone,” according to the statement.

Celebrations of the World Cup and the Pride celebrations have significant personal significance, in Wahl’s opinion.

Wahl, a gay man, is Grant’s brother, a late American football writer.

In support of LGBT rights, Grant was briefly detained by Qatari authorities at Qatar 2022 for trying to enter a stadium while wearing a rainbow shirt.

He passed away while documenting Argentina’s semifinal match against the Netherlands at the age of 49.

Grant was Grant, not Grant, as I had instructed him not to poke the bear. He wanted to highlight the hypocrisy because there are queer people in Qatar and the Middle East. He claimed that he enjoyed playing soccer without using blinkers.

“It is very much a bittersweet experience, and it will remain the same for the rest of my and my family’s lives at every World Cup.”

He said the fixture list was “anything but a negative, as it demonstrates to the LGBT community in Egypt and Iran that we welcome you and welcome anyone who enjoys soccer.”

A football fan in Iran, which has a beautiful artistic history, and Egypt, which has an incredible history, would know a lot, he said.