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Manchester United signing Noussair Mazraoui reportedly refused to wear an Adidas jacket in support of the LGBTQ+ community ahead of last Sunday’s match against Everton.
Consequently, the club decided it would be for the best for all the players to avoid wearing it as they walked out onto the Old Trafford pitch.
The Premier League has run a programme that has seen captains wear rainbow coloured armbands in the month of December so far as a show of support for the LGBTQ+ community.
The Athletic report that United have worn a pride-themed jersey to warm up ahead of games during the Rainbow Laces campaign over the last two years.
This year however, they “were only planning a walk-out jacket but Morocco international Mazraoui, a £15m summer signing from Bayern Munich, told his team-mates he was not prepared to wear the outfit, citing his Muslim faith as the reason.”
To not draw attention to Mazraoui, “the team then decided that no players would wear the tracksuit” and the decision was taken only a matter of hours before kick off.
“Not everyone in the dressing room was happy with this decision.”
The makers of the jacket, Adidas, are thought to be disappointed with the United players’ decision but have not commented publicly on the issue.
When asked to comment, the club officially commented, “Manchester United welcomes fans from all backgrounds, including members of the LGBTQ+ community, and we are strongly committed to the principles of diversity and inclusion.”
However they did qualify this statement by claiming, “players are entitled to hold their own individual opinions, particularly in relation to their faith, and these may sometimes differ from the club’s position.”
The Rainbow Devils group was set up in 2019 with the aim of including and increasing awareness of the large LGBTQ+ community who support the club.
In a statement they claimed that they “will continue to work with Manchester United to support inclusivity, through the One Love initiative and others, as we all continue our work to ensure all LGBTQ+ people feel safe and welcome at Old Trafford, both on and off the pitch.”
The Red Devils won the FootballvHomophobia professional club of the year award last February for their work to combat prejudice. It is an issue they take very seriously indeed as the try to lead the fight for equality in the game.
Featured image Gareth Copley via Getty Images
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