Russian MPs call for FIFA 17 to be banned over rainbow kit
By Will Stroude
Russian MPs have called for a ban on FIFA 17 after accusing the popular football video game of violating the country’s anti-LGBT ‘propaganda’ laws.
According to The Guardian, Communist MPs sent a letter to the the country’s state communications oversight agency agency calling for them to take action after developers EA Sports offered players a free rainbow kit for use in FIFA Ultimate Team.
The kit pro-LGBT kit was created in support of Stonewall’s Rainbow Laces campaign, which encourages players to use rainbow-coloured boot laces in matches in a show of LGBT solidarity.
While the giveaway ended on 28 November, MP Valery Rashkin has said that Russian authorities should order the game’s developers to “introduce changes to the programming code or the age classification of this information product, and if it refuses, adopt corresponding restrictive measures”.
Russia’s anti-LGBT ‘propaganda’ laws are similar to Britain’s now-repealed Section 28, which forbade “the teaching in any maintained school of the acceptability of homosexuality as a pretended family relationship.”
The law’s introduction sparked a wave out outrage across the world, with many famous faces – including Attitude’s Man of the Year Wentworth Miller – coming out of the closet in solidarity with the Russian LGBT+ community.
The Rainbow Lace forms part of a wider push by the footballing world to fight homophobia, biphobia and transphobia after a recent study found that 72% per cent of football fans had heard anti-LGBT abuse at a game, and one in five young fans would be embarrassed if their favourite footballer came out.
FIFA 17’s rainbow kit giveaway came as the Premier League decided to put on a visible show of support for Stonewall’s Rainbow Laces campaign across all of its fixutres last weekend.
The rx was part of the weekend’s action in the Premier League but
Show your support, get your FREE Rainbow kit in FUT now! More on the #RainbowLaces campaign: https://t.co/2NohXaloXe pic.twitter.com/xSbY9G8wAp
— EA SPORTS FIFA (@EASPORTSFIFA) November 26, 2016