We told you about this on Monday:
The gay-themed match was already planned before the two teams, Iran and Egypt -- both of which imprison gays, Iran enforcing the death penalty -- were announced as the participants.
The gay stuff is supposedly happening outside the stadium and not inside; but now, as expected, Iran and Egypt are calling on FIFA to drop the gay theme:
A glorious series of events!
The Egypt Football association released a statement on the issue:
From CNN:
[The Egyptian FA] says the planned celebrations 'directly contradict the cultural, religious and social values in the region, especially in Arab and Islamic societies.'
It added: 'While FIFA is committed to ensuring a respectful and welcoming environment for all fans, and in order to maintain the spirit of unity and peace, it is necessary to avoid including activities that could provoke cultural and religious sensitivities between fans present from both countries, Egypt and Iran, especially since such activities are culturally and religiously incompatible with the two countries.'
Iran had similar thoughts:
Meanwhile, the president of Iran's Football Federation, Mehdi Taj, criticized the decision to hold the game in Seattle on that weekend.
'Both Egypt and we have objected, because this is an unreasonable and illogical move that essentially signals support for a particular group, and we must definitely address this point,' Taj said, per AP.
Taj added that Iran would bring up the issue during a FIFA Council meeting next week.
Never thought I'd say this, but the FIFA World Cup is already entertaining and it's not even 2026 yet.
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