How dare you. That was the joint response from Muslim-majority Egypt and Iran, two Middle East nations where homosexuality is illegal, venting their fury Tuesday that FIFA has scheduled a 2026 World Cup soccer match in Seattle that overlaps LGBTQI+ Pride events.
The fixture on June 26 next year has been designated by local organisers as a “Pride Match” to coincide with Seattle’s Pride weekend, as Breitbart News reported.
Egypt and Iran are now furiously protesting because that cause affronts their Islamic sensibilities alongside “the cultural and social values” they hold.
Egypt’s soccer federation issued a statement late Tuesday saying it sent a letter to FIFA “categorically rejecting any activities related to supporting homosexuality during the match.”
Seattle PrideFest has been organized in the city since 2007 by a nonprofit which designated the June 26 game for celebration before FIFA made the World Cup draw Friday, AP reports.
The Seattle Pride festival takes place in late June, attracting hundreds of thousands of people every year. This scene is from the 45th annual Seattle Pride Parade, Sunday June, 30, 2019. (Genna Martin/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)
FIFA chose Saturday to allocate the Egypt-Iran game to Seattle instead of Vancouver, where the teams’ group rivals Belgium and New Zealand will play at the same time.
“With matches on Juneteenth and pride, we get to show the world that in Seattle, everyone is welcome,” Seattle’s Mayor-elect Kate Wilson wrote on social media. “What an incredible honor!”
The AP report notes FIFA controls only stadiums and official fan zones in World Cup host cities and should have no formal authority over community events like Seattle PrideFest.
In Iran, where gays and lesbians can face the death penalty, the president of Iran’s Football Federation Mehdi Taj attacked the match during an interview aired on state television.
Taj said Iran would bring up the issue during a FIFA Council meeting in Qatar next week. The longest-serving member of the 37-person council chaired by FIFA President Gianni Infantino is Egypt’s Hany Abo Rida.
“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. State TV on Tuesday confirmed a complaint would be sent to FIFA.
The Egypt soccer federation led by Ado Rida said of the pride events it “completely rejects such activities, which directly contradict the cultural, religious and social values in the region, especially in Arab and Islamic societies.”
The 2026 World Cup is set to be hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico from June 11 to July 19, 2026.
Read the AP report in full here
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