Rafael Nadal says everybody has the right to express themselves as long as they don’t cause any harm to others amid the ongoing argument surrounding players’ ability to demonstrate their support for human rights causes at the World Cup.
This year’s football event is taking place in Qatar which has been criticized for its treatment of migrant workers and the LGBT community. Homosexuality is a criminal offence in the country and those convicted could be jailed for up to seven years. A group of seven European nations wanted to wear a OneLove armband at the event which features a multi-coloured heart to send an anti-discriminatory message. However, FIFA threatened to punish those who wore it as it was not within regulation which eventually pressured those federations into scrapping the idea. Ironically players can still wear armbands but only the ones which has been approved by FIFA.
The biggest argument has been surrounding rainbow items, which is a symbol commonly associated with the LGBT community, being allowed at games. FIFA had in the past said such items would be allowed at the event, however, there have been multiple examples of this not being the case. The Welsh FA launched a camplaint after some of their fans had their rainbow hats taken away by security. In other incidents, An American journalist was briefly detained for wearing a rainbow t-shirt, one cameraman was briefly denied access into a stadium because he had a rainbow-theme apple watch and even a Brazilian journalist was approached when police mistook his region’s flag of Pernambuco as a rainbow.
Questioned about the debate during his South American Tour earlier this week, Nadal told reporters in Chile that he understands the importance of sport in promoting global rights.
“It is clear that we live in a global world where people have more rights, and I understand that sport is a place of great media exposure to show these kinds of things and in that sense I understand that everyone has to have the freedom to express things and the feelings they have, without harming others.” He said.
Qatar says that everybody is welcome in their country as long as they respect their culture. However, others argue that the country agreed to hold a FIFA event on their home territory and therefore they have to respect all cultures, including the LGBT community.
Whoever is right, 22-time Grand Slam champion Nadal says the principal focus should always be on sport.
“The decisions taken or not taken by FIFA may seem better or worse to me, but in the end they are the rules or attitudes that they want to take. People deserve their space to be able to express themselves and show their disagreement and that is what is happening,” Nadal adds.
“Sport is a place to express yourself because it has global exposure, but beyond that for me it’s important that you end up playing football or tennis, and that everything else is a platform to improve the world, but the main thing is sport.”
Since speaking with reporters in Chile, Nadal has been in Brazil where he beat Casper Ruud 7-6(4), 7-5, in an exhibition match on Saturday evening. Although he didn’t appear to be too tired by the showdown with the Spaniard playing a spot of football at 2am whilst waiting for his next flight.
Nadal will next travel to Ecuador, Colombia and Mexico before his South American Tour comes to an end.
