Toulouse-Nantes, players against rainbow jerseys: five excluded – Corriere.it

The match between Toulouse and Nantes was the scene of great chaos, which led to the postponement of the match, the absence of several players and a brawl between the managers of the club. The match was already a nervous and difficult atmosphere to manage due to the sporting situation of Nantes: the club was at risk of relegation. It all started with the two teams forced to give up some players for social reasons: they had declared that they did not want to expose themselves, refusing to wear the rainbow shirt that the clubs had instead undertaken to show before kick-off together with a message supporting.

In the official press release from Toulouse, the tenor of the initiative as well as the decision to exclude dissident players are well explained, but there are no names. According to the French media, among the players who have refused to wear shirts against homophobia are Zakaria AboukhlalMoroccan striker protagonist with his national team also in the last World Cup, Said Hamulic And Moussa Diarra. Again according to the French press, too Mostafa Mohamed of Nantes does not appear on the squad list for the match because he too would have opposed his refusal to join the initiative.

This is the press release from the French club: On the occasion of the international day against homophobia on 17 May, the Toulouse Football Club and all of professional football mobilized against homophobia during this 35th day of Ligue 1. However, the players of the professional team have expressed disagreement over the association of their image with the colors of the rainbow representing the LGBT movement. While respecting the individual choices of its players, and after numerous exchanges, Toulouse Football Club has chosen to exclude the aforementioned players from the match scheduled for this Sunday at 3pm at the Toulouse stadium. Toulouse would like to remind you that 18 nationalities and 5 continents are represented within its professional workforce. Openness to the world is an integral part of the club’s DNA. Our players are chosen for their human qualities regardless of their beliefs or convictions. Finally, Toulouse Football Club would like to recall its longstanding commitment to the fight against homophobia and all forms of discrimination. For over two decades, the Club has undertaken and supported numerous projects to promote the values ​​of respect, tolerance and sharing. Through our Foundation, we will continue to engage with our players, our employees, our volunteers, our partners and our community on a daily basis to educate, raise awareness and create a safe, inclusive and tolerant environment.