\n
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) \u2014 Egypt and Iran, two Middle Eastern countries that target gays and lesbians, have filed a complaint with FIFA over a soccer World Cup match in Seattle scheduled to celebrate LGBTQ+ pride.<\/p>\n
National soccer federation leaders have publicly denounced the idea of \u200b\u200bplaying the game at Seattle Stadium on June 26, but local organizers say the game will include a “once-in-a-lifetime moment to showcase and celebrate Washington’s LGBTQIA+ community.” <\/p>\n
Seattle organizers have already promoted an art contest for the game, including one depicting a crab goalie aiming at a soccer ball while holding a coffee cup and a rainbow-colored sun rising over Mount Rainier. <\/p>\n
“With Juneteenth games and pride, we can show the world that everyone is welcome in Seattle,” Seattle Mayor-elect Kate Wilson wrote on social media. \u201cWhat an incredible honor!\u201d<\/p>\n
a World Cup Draw in Washington<\/span> selected teams and matches for the first round of the tournament last week, choosing Iran and Egypt as the teams to play in the June 26 match. <\/p>\nAngry reaction in Iran, Egypt<\/h2>\n
Iranian Football Federation president criticizes gays and lesbians could be sentenced to death in Iran schedule a game<\/span> He spoke in an interview aired on state television late Monday. He said Iran would raise the issue at a FIFA meeting scheduled in Qatar in the coming weeks. <\/p>\n“Egypt and we are against it. This is an absurd and illogical move that essentially suggests support for a particular group, and we must clearly address this,” Mehdi Taj said. State television confirmed on Tuesday that it would send a complaint to FIFA.<\/p>\n
Taj had already threatened to boycott the World Cup draw over complaints that Iranian officials had not received visas from the United States to attend the ceremony in Washington.<\/p>\n
Iranians are subject to: travel ban<\/span> Visas imposed by President Donald Trump’s administration and the United States in the past have denied visas to people with ties to Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guards, like Taj. Eventually Iran also participated. <\/p>\nTensions between Tehran and Washington remain high over Iran’s nuclear program, especially after Iran’s nuclear program. American fighter jets bombed nuclear facilities<\/span> It occurred in the country during the 12-day war between Israel and the Islamic Republic in June. However, unlike the 2022 World Cup, Iran is not scheduled to play the United States in the opening game of the World Cup. <\/p>\nIn Egypt, the soccer federation issued a statement online Tuesday night saying it had sent a letter to FIFA “categorically rejecting any activities related to supporting homosexuality during matches between the Egyptian national team and Iran.”<\/p>\n
“Information has been circulated indicating that the local organizing committee has decided and plans to carry out activities related to supporting homosexuality during its matches and completely rejects such activities that are directly contrary to the cultural, religious and social values \u200b\u200bof the region, especially Arab and Islamic societies,” the letter added. <\/p>\n
FIFA called for the celebrations to be canceled to “avoid any activities that may cause cultural or religious sensitivities among spectators in both Egypt and Iran, especially those that are inconsistent with the cultures and religions of both countries.”<\/p>\n
Asked about the complaints Wednesday, Seattle’s organizing committee said, “Community programs outside the stadium throughout Pride weekend and the tournament are proceeding as planned.” <\/p>\n
“The Pacific Northwest is home to one of the largest Iranian-American communities in the country, a thriving Egyptian diaspora, and a rich community representing all of the countries we host in Seattle,” spokeswoman Hana Tadesse said in a statement. \u201cWe are committed to ensuring that all residents and visitors experience the warmth, respect and dignity that characterizes our region.\u201d <\/p>\n
FIFA did not respond to requests for comment. <\/p>\n
Iran and Egypt target LGBTQ+ community<\/h2>\n
Egyptian police have targeted gays and lesbians for years. I’ve also received warnings from the Grindr app in the past.<\/span>. Although Egypt does not technically criminalize homosexuality, authorities frequently prosecute members of the LGBTQ+ community for “debauchery” or “violations of public order.”<\/p>\nIran has also targeted the LGBTQ community, with its theocracy believed to have executed thousands of people for their sexuality since the 1979 Islamic revolution. Former hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad famously went so far as to claim, “There are no homosexuals in your country,” during a 2007 visit to the United States. The crowd at Columbia University reacted by laughing and hecking their leader. <\/p>\n
___<\/p>\n
AP Soccer: https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/soccer<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
\n
Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) \u2014 Egypt and Iran, two Middle Eastern countries that target gays and lesbians, have filed a complaint with FIFA over a soccer World Cup match in Seattle scheduled to celebrate LGBTQ+ pride. National soccer federation leaders have publicly denounced the idea of \u200b\u200bplaying the game at Seattle Stadium on June<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16921,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-16920","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-soccer"},"yoast_head":"\n
Egypt and Iran complain about World Cup 'Pride' match - EPL VIP \u2013 Latest English Premier League News & Updates<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Egypt and Iran complain about World Cup 'Pride' match - EPL VIP \u2013 Latest English Premier League News & Updates\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) \u2014 Egypt and Iran, two Middle Eastern countries that target gays and lesbians, have filed a complaint with FIFA over a soccer World Cup match in Seattle scheduled to celebrate LGBTQ+ pride. National soccer federation leaders have publicly denounced the idea of \u200b\u200bplaying the game at Seattle Stadium on June\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"EPL VIP \u2013 Latest English Premier League News & Updates\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-12-10T09:08:41+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin_ok9yktt6\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin_ok9yktt6\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/\",\"name\":\"Egypt and Iran complain about World Cup 'Pride' match - EPL VIP \u2013 Latest English Premier League News & Updates\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/urlhttps3A2F2Fassets.apnews.com2F502Fb82F11666db6acc917c551bf1bba94682Ff2e8f399d8b744799b2e6c7356692497.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-12-10T09:08:41+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/#\/schema\/person\/6b2ade58a96ab056f743f12490573ae9\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/urlhttps3A2F2Fassets.apnews.com2F502Fb82F11666db6acc917c551bf1bba94682Ff2e8f399d8b744799b2e6c7356692497.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/urlhttps3A2F2Fassets.apnews.com2F502Fb82F11666db6acc917c551bf1bba94682Ff2e8f399d8b744799b2e6c7356692497.jpeg\",\"width\":1440,\"height\":810},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Egypt and Iran complain about World Cup ‘Pride’ match\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/\",\"name\":\"EPL VIP \u2013 Latest English Premier League News & Updates\",\"description\":\"EPL VIP is your ultimate source for all things related to the English Premier League. Get the latest EPL news, live match updates, transfer rumors, team analysis, fixtures, and exclusive insights for true football fans.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/#\/schema\/person\/6b2ade58a96ab056f743f12490573ae9\",\"name\":\"admin_ok9yktt6\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3caa6e0fae133a2d8ebe213abde6eafe85769664d063c8ab6c7960c877d904ea?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3caa6e0fae133a2d8ebe213abde6eafe85769664d063c8ab6c7960c877d904ea?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin_ok9yktt6\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/author\/admin_ok9yktt6\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Egypt and Iran complain about World Cup 'Pride' match - EPL VIP \u2013 Latest English Premier League News & Updates","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Egypt and Iran complain about World Cup 'Pride' match - EPL VIP \u2013 Latest English Premier League News & Updates","og_description":"DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) \u2014 Egypt and Iran, two Middle Eastern countries that target gays and lesbians, have filed a complaint with FIFA over a soccer World Cup match in Seattle scheduled to celebrate LGBTQ+ pride. National soccer federation leaders have publicly denounced the idea of \u200b\u200bplaying the game at Seattle Stadium on June","og_url":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/","og_site_name":"EPL VIP \u2013 Latest English Premier League News & Updates","article_published_time":"2025-12-10T09:08:41+00:00","author":"admin_ok9yktt6","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin_ok9yktt6","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/","url":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/","name":"Egypt and Iran complain about World Cup 'Pride' match - EPL VIP \u2013 Latest English Premier League News & Updates","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/urlhttps3A2F2Fassets.apnews.com2F502Fb82F11666db6acc917c551bf1bba94682Ff2e8f399d8b744799b2e6c7356692497.jpeg","datePublished":"2025-12-10T09:08:41+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/#\/schema\/person\/6b2ade58a96ab056f743f12490573ae9"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/urlhttps3A2F2Fassets.apnews.com2F502Fb82F11666db6acc917c551bf1bba94682Ff2e8f399d8b744799b2e6c7356692497.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/urlhttps3A2F2Fassets.apnews.com2F502Fb82F11666db6acc917c551bf1bba94682Ff2e8f399d8b744799b2e6c7356692497.jpeg","width":1440,"height":810},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/egypt-and-iran-complain-about-world-cup-pride-match\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Egypt and Iran complain about World Cup ‘Pride’ match"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/","name":"EPL VIP \u2013 Latest English Premier League News & Updates","description":"EPL VIP is your ultimate source for all things related to the English Premier League. Get the latest EPL news, live match updates, transfer rumors, team analysis, fixtures, and exclusive insights for true football fans.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/#\/schema\/person\/6b2ade58a96ab056f743f12490573ae9","name":"admin_ok9yktt6","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3caa6e0fae133a2d8ebe213abde6eafe85769664d063c8ab6c7960c877d904ea?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3caa6e0fae133a2d8ebe213abde6eafe85769664d063c8ab6c7960c877d904ea?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin_ok9yktt6"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/eplvip.com"],"url":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/author\/admin_ok9yktt6\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16920","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16920"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16920\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16921"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16920"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16920"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eplvip.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16920"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}