- Authorities are urgently investigating incidents involving Welsh Football Association staff and Welsh fans who had their rainbow-colored Panama hats confiscated ahead of the opening Group B match against the United States.
- FIFA and the Qataris were in talks on the matter on Tuesday where FIFA reminded their hosts of their pretournament guarantees that everyone would be welcome and rainbow flags would be allowed.
- The Guardian also understands that FIFA is deeply concerned by several match-related incidents, including Welsh staff and supporters being confronted by security for wearing baseball caps at the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium and an American fan holding the FIFA flag. rainbow. he crashed into the subway. The Qatar Supreme Committee is expected to make a statement in the next 24 hours.
FAW issued a statement expressing its disappointment. “Cymru returned to the World Cup on Monday for the first time in 64 years, which was a historic moment for the team, respected fans, The Red WallY Wal Goch and the nation.
“However, the FAW was extremely disappointed by reports that members of Y Wal Goch, including FAW staff, were asked to remove and discard their Rainbow Wall bucket hats in front of the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium. These bucket hats were created in collaboration with FAW.
“FAW has collected information on these alleged incidents and will be addressing the matter directly with FIFA.”
Among those confronted was former Welsh footballer Professor Laura McAllister, trustee of the FAW Trust and former FIFA council candidate, who said it was a “small moral victory” when she finally managed to bring her hat into the stadium.
“I noted that FIFA made a lot of comments about supporting LGBT rights in this tournament and I told them that, coming from a country where we are very passionate about equality for all people, I am not going to take my hat off. said McAllister, professor of public policy at Cardiff University. “They insisted that until I took off my hat, they would not let us into the stadium.”
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Others had to turn in their hats. The Rainbow Wall, a Welsh LGBTQ+ fan group, tweeted: “Not men, only women. FIFAcom YOU ARE SERIOUS!!
Earlier, American journalist Grant Wahl said that he was detained by security after he wore a rainbow jersey to the game. The guard told him that they were protecting him from fans who might attack him for wearing it.
It was also reported that an American fan was threatened on the stadium-bound subway for carrying a small rainbow flag, with the assailant threatening to “kill” the man because “this flag is banned in this country”.
Last week, Jerdyn Lindhout, FIFA’s director of experiential marketing and promotion, promised that LGBTQ+ fans would be safe. When asked what he would like to say to those who want to bring rainbow flags to the fan festival, he smiled. “Come on,” she said. “This event is dedicated to the holiday.”
Meanwhile, issues with the FIFA ticketing app that caused hundreds of English fans to miss the start of their 6-2 victory over Iran have still not been resolved.
Some fans were queuing for paper tickets at the Doha convention center after realizing that having logged out of their app in the previous 24 hours, they could no longer gain access. It is understood that these issues were still being worked out on Tuesday.
