The World Cup held a Pride round in Seattle on Friday, featuring Iran and Egypt, two countries not widely known for their acceptance of LGBTIQA+ people.
The match ended in a 1-1 draw. During the post-match media conference, Iran captain Mehdi Taremi made a notable comment when asked about playing during the Pride round.
“We respect all of the LGBT people,” Taremi said during the post-match news conference. “That’s their own idea. It’s not about us. We are here to play football. We respect all of those guys.”
His comments differed from the official positions attributed to both Iran and Egypt, whose representatives had reportedly expressed disappointment at being allocated the Pride round. In the lead-up to the match, officials had suggested the game could be disrupted if Pride flags were displayed in the crowd.
However, when the match took place, many Pride flags were visible among spectators, and the game proceeded without interruption.
The World Cup is being played across Canada, the United States, and Mexico. The final is scheduled to take place in New Jersey on 19 July, with a halftime show featuring Madonna, Shakira, and BTS.n band BTS.
