The German team made its debut this Wednesday at the World Cup in Qatar against Japan and did so with a protest gesture during the photo of the starting eleven, in which all the footballers covered their mouths with their hands denouncing FIFA's censorship , which days before had prohibited seven teams from wearing support bracelets for the LGTBQ community .
England, Wales, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland had agreed to wear a bracelet with the motto 'One Love' and a heart in the colors of the rainbow, but FIFA's threat to sanction them sportingly and financially made them march back to the seven teams, amid a strong wave of criticism from the press and public opinion.
The German Football Association (DFB) has explained in a statement the reason for this protest gesture: "We wanted to wear our captain's armband to defend the values we have in the German national team: diversity and mutual respect. Together with others nations, we wanted our voice to be heard.
In a country where homosexuality is illegal, Germany considers that the FIFA ban is the same as "denying them a voice" and that is why they have posed with their mouths covered: "It was not about making a political statement: human rights are not they're negotiable. That should be taken for granted, but it's still not the case. That's why this message is so important to us. Denying us the bracelet is the same as denying us a voice. We stand our ground."
Before Germany's debut, it was rumored that Manuel Neuer, goalkeeper and captain of the team, would wear the armband, in defiance of FIFA, but in the end the Bayern player wore the organization-approved captain's armband.
Who did wear this emblem on her arm was the German Interior Minister, Nancy Faeser, who could be seen in the box with the 'One Love' bracelet. Faeser had publicly denounced FIFA's pressure on the German Federation and the other six nations that had agreed to wear this bracelet in their matches: "In today's times it is incomprehensible that FIFA does not want people to openly defend tolerance and against The discrimination. It doesn't fit our times and it's not appropriate for the people. It is not right how the federations are pressured. These were not the security guarantees he had received from the (Qatari) Interior Minister," she said, referring to her previous visit in November.
