FIFA has shut down a reporter’s question to Morocco’s national captain asking about gay players on her team at a tense Women’s World Cup press conference.
The 2023 Women’s World Cup is underway in Australia and New Zealand. Morocco is the first Arab country to qualify for the tournament.
The Moroccan national team will face Germany in their first match on Monday night in Melbourne.
At the press conference on Sunday a journalist – believed to be from the BBC – asked Moroccan captain Ghizlane Chebbak about gay players in her squad.
Same-sex relationships are illegal in Morocco and punishable with fines and jail.
The reporter asked, “We know that gay marriage is illegal, are there any gay players in the team, and what’s it like for them?”
At the press conference, a FIFA official pounced to shut down the question after it was asked. The mediator reportedly told the room the media were there to discuss the match, not politics.
‘Not an appropriate question for a player’
Some of the reporters at the conference recalled the “tense” moment and argued the question wasn’t appropriate.
Steph Yang from The Athletic pointed out, “From a harm reduction perspective, this is not an appropriate question for a player and would have endangered the players themselves.”
She added, “We are obviously going to talk about the intersection of politics and sports at this World Cup, and it’s vital to do so.
“But we should take care that our questions don’t cause further harm to those impacted by those very politics.”
Reporter Shireen Ahmed tweeted, “I was at this press conference. The reporter was completely out of line.
“Harm reduction matters and posing the question to the captain or coach was unnecessary.
“The question was waved off by a FIFA media officer moderating but it shouldn’t have been asked.”
