Many Welsh football fans wearing rainbow bucket hats were prevented from entering the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium on Monday night, following the brief detention of a US journalist for entering a World Cup stadium in Qatar while wearing a rainbow shirt. The Guardian reported that some spectators had their hats confiscated while others were confronted by security for wearing them inside the stadium. Welsh fan hats in the rainbow colour scheme show support for the LGBTQ+ community. However, Qatar forbids homosexuality.
Former Wales footballer Laura McAllister was one of those who had a rainbow-colored bucket hat removed before entering the stadium. According to BBC Wales, video has emerged online showing officials asking her to take off the rainbow hat and telling her that it was a restricted item and would need to be turned in. Despite earlier promises that fans would be permitted to wear them, the incident still occurs.
Sharing her experience, she took to Twitter and wrote, ‘So, despite fine words from @FIFAWorldCup before event @Cymru rainbow Bucket hats confiscated at the stadium, mine included. I had a conversation about this with stewards – we have video evidence. This #WorldCup2022 just gets better but we will continue to stand up for our values.’.
In order to validate the reports that the supporters had their caps stolen from them, Wales’ Rainbow Wall, an organisation of LGBTQ+ supporters, also posted on Twitter. ‘ Our bucket-hat rainbow. We are extremely proud of them, however as of this evening, reports from the ground indicates that our Welsh female fans who were wearing them in Qatar were having them removed’. The message was then modified to include the information that the men’s Rainbow Hats had also been seized.
Former Sports Illustrated reporter Grant Wahl, who now runs his own website, claimed that World Cup security ordered him to remove his rainbow T-shirt and refused to let him into the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan for the United States’ opening match against Wales. ‘ Change your clothing right now. You can’t do that, ‘Grant Wahl tweeted that he received a message. After tweeting about the event, he allegedly claimed that his phone had been confiscated. Eventually, a security commander came up to him, apologised, and let him enter the area, according to a Reuters story.
On the Metro ride to the stadium, a second US supporter received threats for carrying a small rainbow flag. According to a story by Express.co.uk, the guy, who looked to be a supporter of Qatar, threatened to ‘murder’ the man and warned that the flag ‘was not authorised’ and that ‘that flag is outlawed in this nation’.
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