The 9th edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup is set to commence on the 20th of July. They will hold it in Australia and New Zealand across 9 cities and there is a great buzz surrounding the tournament.

The United States will be keen on defending their title and make it three in a row, but this edition boasts of more competitive teams. Speaking to the media prior to the tournament, England manager Sarina Wiegman was buoyant about her team’s chances and sounded very confident about their abilities. Similar to the Men’s FIFA WC 2022, this tournament finds itself in a controversy.

FIFA makes stance clear in the World Cup

FIFA informed the ban on the ‘One Love’ armband was applicable to the Women’s World Cup too. It announced eight ‘Unite’ messages players will be able to support during the Women’s World Cup but the ban on the ‘One Love’ armband will remain in place. The media questioned Sarina about the controversy, the mindset in the dressing room, and whether the players had picked an armband.

Sarina stated to the media, “I think the players are happy with the solution. It’s good that there is a solution ahead of the tournament. With the armbands, it’s up to the team what armband they want to wear, and I think we’re in a really good place with that.”

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Last year’s men’s World Cup in Qatar sparked controversy when England and six other participating nations declared their plans to wear the armband during the competition, only to back down under the fear of player sanctions from FIFA. Before and after games, as well as in their separate training facilities, players and teams are free to advocate for social causes of their choosing. FIFA will penalize messages delivered on the field that do not adhere to their rules.

The colours of FIFA’s “unite for inclusion” band are not those of the rainbow or the LGBTQ pride flag; rather, they stand for all gender identities and sexual orientations (pink/yellow/blue) as well as race and heritage (red/black/green). The pansexual and pan-African flags, respectively, served as inspiration for the colour schemes.

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Players and staff react to FIFA’s rule

Georgia Stanway said the Lionesses wanted to wear the “One Love” armband in Australia and would back its message despite FIFA’s decision. Similar to the limitations set during the men’s World Cup in Qatar last year, FIFA has warned of potential fines for teams who do not adhere to the rules. If captains opt to defy FIFA’s directive, they risk receiving cautions or even being asked to leave the pitch.

“I think no matter what the outcome is, whether it goes our way or not, we know that we still stand for exactly the same thing,” said Georgia.

“If we can or we can’t wear the armband, we know that we wanted to and we’ll stand by the fact that we wanted to. Whatever the outcome is, we’ll still stand by whatever we believed in and whatever we wanted to be the resolution.”

Sarina Wiegman kept her focus on the tournament and aiding the players’ performance, but made sure the team resolved the armband issue.  “I think there’ll be a solution, I know there have been conversations. I think and hope we’ll hear very soon what it will be like but I’m very positive that there will come a solution that will fit us.”

The debate over how to strike a balance between sport and activism has been rekindled by the controversy around the suspension. Football should encourage players’ efforts to express their morals and speak out against social injustices, according to supporters. They think that permitting such acts of solidarity can promote harmony and inspire constructive change both on and off the pitch.

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