World Cup 2022 - Is Allyship Political?
by Helen Bet
Unless you’ve been under a rock for the last 12 years, you will know that Qatar was awarded the 2022 World Cup, despite concerns over human rights violations, including the treatment of the LGBTQ+ community.
In September 2022, the pledge of nine countries’ football teams to wear the One Love wristband whilst playing in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, rang out as a hugely positive and welcome act of LGBTQ+ allyship.
On Monday 21st November, however, England was the first team to back down from their pledge to wear the One Love armband after FIFA ruled that to do so would be in contravention of rules against kit carrying ‘political’ slogans or imagery. To refer to the LGBTQ+ community’s response as grief and disappointment would be an understatement.
Many LGBTQ+ people advocate that ‘ally’ is a verb. This means that one must be active in one’s allyship, supporting, speaking up for, and protecting the LGBTQ+ community, rather than simply waving a flag and allowing injustices to continue. If ‘ally’ is a verb, then ‘political’ is a shield. It is used to kick important conversations down the road and to avoid having them in order to protect institutions from having to make a decision and maybe getting something wrong.
On Wednesday 23rd November, the German team posed for a photograph with their hands over their mouths - an important gesture from the players. As the matches play out over the next few weeks, the world will be watching for those who are willing to raise their heads above the parapet, to make the first move in committing explicitly to their allyship. I feel confident that it is not a matter of if this will happen, but when, and I’ll be cheering when it does, not just for myself, but for all the LGBTQ+ community, who will finally be able to stop holding their breath.
The fear of getting it wrong is pervasive, and it is motivated by a desire for cohesion, and to protect the status quo. It can be frightening to have caused offence, especially if we did not intend that offence. But right now, the fear felt by the LGBTQ+ community is palpable and all too well grounded in recent tragedy. One Love isn’t political; it is communicating welcome and acceptance, something that FIFA claims it wants for all at its matches.
The impact of FIFA’s move cannot be underestimated: by choosing to frame a message of love and harmony as political, it sends a very clear message to all LGBTQ+ people. Acts of allyship have the opposite effect: they create a sense of relief and safety.