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The Premier League’s Rainbow Laces campaign, an annual show of support for the LGBTQ+ community, was overshadowed this week.
Ipswich Town captain Sam Morsy twice refused to wear the associated rainbow armband during matches, citing his religious beliefs, while Crystal Palace skipper Marc Guehi opted to write two pro-Christian messages on the armbands he has worn in the past two matches wore.
The Athletics Wednesday morning also reported that Manchester United had abandoned plans to wear rainbow-themed Adidas warm-up jackets ahead of Sunday’s 4-0 win over Everton after defender Noussair Mazraoui refused to join the initiative. The Moroccan international, like Morsy, pointed to his Muslim faith as the reason for his reluctance.
A well-intentioned Premier League campaign has become the center of a wider, divisive debate that is not unique to English football.
The Athletics analyzes the origins of rainbow laces and whether the initiative can maintain a place on the game’s calendar.
What is the Rainbow Laces campaign and why was it introduced?
The campaign dates back to 2013, when Stonewall, the LGBTQ+ charity, initially teamed up with British bookmaker Paddy Power to send rainbow-coloured laces to all professional footballers in England and Scotland.
Players were encouraged to show their support for LGBTQ+ communities by wearing them and their success led to the Premier League formally partnering with Stonewall in a bid to improve inclusivity at the top level of English football. A report from Stonewall last month found that one in four LGBTQ+ people still don’t feel welcome at live sporting events.
It has become customary for the Premier League to dedicate two matchweeks to the Rainbow Laces campaign each season, giving all twenty clubs the opportunity to mark the event with a home match. The Premier League is handing out rainbow logo corner flags, ball skirting boards, handshake boards and substitution boards to its clubs, as well as laces and captain armbands.
A rainbow-coloured change board is one of the other ways the Premier League is marking the campaign (Michael Regan/Getty Images)
In the wider period, this season between November 29 and December 5, clubs are also encouraged to highlight the work they are doing to “embed equality, diversity and inclusivity”.
This typically includes content featuring managers, players and supporters to celebrate LGBTQ+ communities. An example this year was Southampton and England goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, who spoke out about the challenges faced by his brother Oliver, who is openly gay.
Why has it emerged as a talking point this year?
Morsy’s decision not to wear a rainbow armband for Ipswich’s 1-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest on Saturday made him the only one of 20 Premier League captains not to do so. A club statement released on Monday confirmed the “religious beliefs” of Morsy, a Muslim, who were behind the move, with Ipswich saying they would “respect” the midfielder’s actions.
Also on Saturday, Guehi, a devout Christian, wore the rainbow armband during the 1-1 draw against Newcastle United after writing ‘I (heart) Jesus’ across it. This was contrary to the rules of the Football Association, which prohibit the distribution of religious messages on uniforms.
Coincidentally, Morsy and Guehi were in the opposition on Tuesday evening when Palace won 1-0 against Ipswich. Morsy once again chose not to wear the rainbow bracelet, while Guehi had the written message on his changed to “Jesus (heart) you”.
Marc Guehi and Sam Morsy have both made their own statements surrounding the Rainbow Laces campaign (Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
Speaking to Sky Sports on Wednesday, Guehi explained his thoughts behind writing the messages.
“I think the message was pretty clear, to be honest,” he said. “It’s also a message of love and truth and a message of inclusivity, so it speaks for itself.”
On Wednesday, The Athletics revealed United’s plan to wear rainbow-themed warm-up jackets ahead of Sunday’s match with Everton was scrapped after Muslim Mazraoui refused to take part.
Is this the first time this has caused controversy?
This is the second year that the captain of a Premier League side has chosen not to wear the rainbow armband, after Sheffield United international defender Anel Ahmedhodzic of Bosnia and Herzegovina did so last December.
Ahmedhodzic, a Muslim, wore the standard Premier League armband for a 2-0 defeat at home to Liverpool, in what was his first match as captain of the team. Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder told reporters after the match that he was unaware of Ahmedhodzic’s decision, and when asked by Swedish outlet SVT Sport why he had chosen not to wear a rainbow armband, the defender replied: ” Guess what.”
Are players not allowed to wear rainbow bracelets or laces?
Neither the laces nor the armband are considered mandatory, but there is an unwritten expectation that all players will help promote the campaign. No Premier League captain had shown any resistance to the pro-LGBTQ+ messaging until Ahmedhodzic did.
What are the rules for footballers promoting political symbols or messages on their kit?
In short, that’s banned by the FA, which has specific kit requirements for players at all levels of English football. “Equipment may not contain political, religious or personal slogans, statements or images,” Law 4 outlines.
The theory is that football and a player’s kit should not be used to promote any belief, keeping religion and politics at bay.
However, those lines can be blurred.
The annual poppy appeal, which raises money for veterans of the British Armed Forces, sees clubs wear the charity’s logo on their kits, but James McClean, now of Wrexham in League One, has long regarded it as a political symbol and declined to commemorate the occasion, due to his roots as a Catholic who grew up in Northern Ireland.
McClean distances himself from his Wrexham teammates during the minute’s silence on Remembrance Day in November (Gary Oakley/PA Images via Getty Images)
“The poppy represents a very different meaning to me than what it does to others,” McClean posted on Instagram in November. ‘Am I offended if someone wears a poppy? No, absolutely not, but what does offend me is that the poppy… is being forced on me.’
The same position was taken by Nemanja Matic as a Manchester United player, due to Britain’s historic involvement in a military campaign in his home country of Serbia.
It’s not just players either. Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola was fined £20,000 by the FA in 2018 for wearing a yellow ribbon – a symbol of solidarity with members of the independence movement in Spain’s Catalonia region, where Guardiola is from, who were arrested by the Spanish authorities – during an FA Cup match against Wigan Athletic.
What has been the response from football’s governing bodies and LGBTQ rights groups?
The FA have been in contact with Palace since Guehi wore his custom rainbow armband to remind them of the kit rules, but no formal action will be taken. Palace manager Oliver Glasner told reporters on Tuesday evening that he had spoken to Guehi ahead of the Ipswich match. ‘He’s not a child. He is mature and has an opinion,” Glasner said. “We respect that and accept every opinion.”
While the FA and Premier League have yet to make any formal comments on Morsy’s refusal to wear a rainbow armband or on Guehi’s posts, Stonewall released their own statement this week. “It was incredible to see so many football teams at all levels supporting our Rainbow Laces campaign to make sport safer and more inclusive for everyone. “When clubs like Ipswich Town FC show their support it helps people feel safe and welcome, both on and off the pitch,” a spokesperson said. “It is up to individuals to choose whether and how they express their support for LGBTQ+ inclusion in sports.”
GO DEEPER
‘We Deserve Our Rights’: What LGBTQ+ Fans Think About the Rainbow Laces Controversy
Is the campaign likely to continue?
There is no indication that the actions of Morsy and Guehi, or the events at Manchester United, will lead to changes in the Premier League’s alliance with Stonewall. It is a long-term partnership designed to welcome LGBTQ+ communities and increase inclusivity. Opposition to the campaign was nominal.
Ahead of this year’s event, league CEO Richard Masters suggested it would remain a long-term commitment.
“Significant progress has been made to make football a more inclusive environment for the LGBTQ+ community since the Rainbow Laces campaign was launched ten years ago,” Masters said. “We are determined to maintain this momentum to ensure that football is welcome for all and to send a clear message that discrimination of any kind will not be tolerated.”
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium lit up in rainbow colors in support of the initiative (Getty Images)
Are there similar campaigns in other sports?
The Rainbow Laces campaign is not limited to football in England. Stonewall says “more than a million” people have taken part since its launch 11 years ago, including top athletes from the worlds of rugby union, rugby league and cricket.
Other countries have taken similar initiatives and, like the Premier League, are running into problems.
Clubs from the top divisions of French football wear rainbow shirts once a season to promote LGBTQ+ causes, causing some players to make themselves unavailable for that match.
Midfielder Idrissa Gueye, now in the Premier League with Everton, was twice left out of Paris Saint-Germain’s squad after refusing to wear the modified shirt. Mauricio Pochettino, the club’s manager at the time, said in 2022 that Gueye had missed a particular match for “personal reasons” and there was support from Palace’s Cheikhou Kouyate and Watford’s Ismaila Sarr (now a Palace player herself) on social media. All three play at international level for Senegal, where homosexuality is illegal.
Toulouse and Morocco forward Zakaria Aboukhlal also decided not to feature for his French club in 2023, when rainbow kits marked the International Day against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia. Monaco-Mali midfielder Mohamed Camara was handed a four-match ban at the end of last season after concealing an anti-homophobia message on his shirt during a match in Ligue 1, the top division of club football in France. Amelie Oudea-Castera, the country’s sports minister, called Camara’s actions “unacceptable behavior.”
The rainbow colors also caused a problem last year in the NHL, the best ice hockey league in North America. The NHL has overturned a ban on players wrapping multi-colored “Pride” tape around their hockey sticks in support of LGBTQ+ communities.
(Top photo: Plumb Images/Leicester City FC via Getty Images)