USA adds rainbow colours to team logo at Qatar World Cup
The USA team's new Pride crest reportedly won't be worn on the kit.
Team USA has added rainbow colours to their badge for the 2022 World Cup in a clear message of support to the LGBTQ+ community ahead of the opening ceremony in Qatar.
The redesigned crest features seven vertical rainbow-coloured striped from the Progress Pride flag featured below dark blue ‘USA’ text, defying FIFA’s orders for the squads to “focus on the football.”
The USA team’s head coach, Gregg Berhalter, has pledged the team will continue to stand in solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community while they are competing at the tournament; however, this new-fashioned rainbow logo will not be worn by the team during the Word Cup games.
“I think that when we are on the world stage and [we’re in] Qatar, it’s important to bring awareness to these issues, and that’s what Be the Change is about,” Berhalter said about the team’s own specific campaign, the Reuters reported.
“It’s not just stateside that we want to bring attention to social issues. It’s also abroad,” he continued. “We recognize that Qatar has made strides and there has been a ton of progress, but there’s still some work to do.”
Berhalter added: “Be the Change basically represents everyone’s individual opportunity to make change and to have change start with them. So I think it’s appropriate that we have that here as well.”
The US federation launched its ‘Be the Change’ initiative in 2020, in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd.
US Soccer spokesman Neil Buethe told Reuters that the rainbow badge is “branding to support and embrace the LGBTQ community, as well as to promote a spirit of inclusiveness and welcoming to all fans across the globe.”
“As a result, locations that we will manage and operate at the FIFA World Cup, such as the team hotel, media areas, and parties, will feature both traditional and rainbow U.S. Soccer branding,” Buethe has explained.
While the USA is stating the rainbow logo will appear throughout their inclusion in the tournament, it clashes with a senior Qatari security official who said that rainbow flags at the event may be confiscated “to protect them [fans] from being attacked for promoting gay rights”.
The USA begin their tournament on Monday (21 November) against Wales before going against England and then Iran.
While the USA’s logo change is happening off the pitch, England’s Harry Kane is poised to wear a rainbow captain’s armband on the pitch to stand in solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community.
Many in the footballing world have been speaking against Qatar’s World Cup hosting including England footballer Beth Mead and Australia’s Josh Cavallo.
Dua Lipa has also shut down rumours about appearing in the opening ceremony, saying she will visit the host nation only when “it has fulfilled all the human rights pledges it made when it won the right to host the World Cup.”
The World Cup takes place in Qatar from 21 November to 18 December 2022.