Sam Morsy and Marc Guehi
Sam Morsy and Marc Guehi's decisions over rainbow armbands has caused a stir
A controversy over an elasticated band and a few scrawled words has got the Football Association in knots and has split football fans.
For a decade, football has run the Rainbow Laces campaign in collaboration with Stonewall, the high-profile LGBTQ+ charity. And while it was not officially connected with Rainbow Laces, the biggest controversy came when captains were told not to wear multi-coloured armbands at Qatar 2022.
But over the past week, one Premier League captain - Ipswich Town’s Sam Morsy - refused to wear a rainbow armband while Marc Guehi, of Crystal Palace, TWICE wrote religious slogans on his.
Here, Mirror Football looks at what is behind the controversy.
Marc Guehi breaks silence to explain decision to write on Rainbow armband
[
Ipswich star Sam Morsy doubles down on Rainbow armband refusal after Premier League stance](https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/breaking-sam-morsy-rainbow-armband-34239679)
Do captains have to wear the rainbow armband?
The simple answer is NO. The armbands and other ‘rainbow’ equipment are provided by the Premier League and clubs are strongly encouraged to take a full part in the campaign which was introduced to show footballers’ support for the rights of LGBTQ+ people and to promote equality and diversity.
Captains are not compelled to wear a rainbow armband and can wear the plain standard-issue version instead.
Why have Marc Guehi and Crystal Palace been spoken to by the Football Association?
Guehi, a devout Christian, wore the rainbow armband in support of the LGBTQ+ community but wrote ‘I ‘heart’ Jesus’ on it.
Despite being reminded that it was a regulation breach, he then wrote ‘Jesus ‘hearts’ you’ on his rainbow armband in the next game he played. While Guehi has a lot of support, he has gotten off lightly because his breach of IFAB’s rule on slogans is clear.
The rule reads: “Equipment must not have any political, religious or personal slogans. For any offence, the player and/or the team will be sanctioned by the competition organiser, the national association or by FIFA.”
Guehi wrote the message 'I love Jesus' over his Rainbow armband for the draw with Newcastle (
Image:
Getty Images)
Why has Sam Morsy escaped any censure?
The Ipswich Town captain has chosen not to comment on his decision not to wear a rainbow armband but, in a statement, his club said the 33-year-old Egypt international, who is a Muslim, made the choice based on his religious beliefs.
“We proudly support the Premier League’s Rainbow Laces campaign and stand with the LGTBQ+ community in promoting equality and acceptance,” read the Ipswich statement. “At the same time, we respect the decision of our captain Sam Morsy.”
The Football Association cannot take any action because even though 19 Premier League captains wore the rainbow armband, it is a matter of personal choice.
The FA cannot take any action against Sam Morsy for refusing to wear a rainbow armband (
Image:
Shaun Botterill)
Are players consulted over the armbands?
While the final decision of what they do or do not wear rests with the players, the scale of consultation prior to these types of campaigns is not huge.
Players’ union representatives at the clubs will be told but, generally, players will be presented with brief details of what a particular campaign is about and asked to take part.
Players and managers wearing symbols of other campaigns - such as the fight against racism and the push to increase health awareness - is relatively common.
There was lenience towards Guehi, a devout Christian
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Image:
Getty Images) Don't Miss
Will the Guehi and Morsy controversies force the authorities into a rethink?
Absolutely not. If anything, the rules on what players can and cannot have on their shirts will get stricter.
There will be eyebrows raised by some at FIFA over the FA’s apparent leniency in the Guehi case.
And some clubs might think Ipswich should have been criticised for their support of Morsy. Previously, several players in France who did not want to wear rainbow-themed shirts to support the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia were left out of the games by their clubs.
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