Doha, Qatar

The German national team staged a silent protest ahead of their clash against Japan in the FIFA World Cup 2022 on Wednesday. In a symbolic gesture of being silenced, German players decided to cover their mouths with their hands while posing for the team photo ahead of kick-off against Japan.

Advertisment

Their gesture was apparently in protest against world football's governing body FIFA after its decision to bar seven teams from wearing the 'OneLove' armband expressing support for the LGBTQ+ community. Captains of seven teams, including Germany and Belgium, had decided to wear the special armband but had to ditch the plan after FIFA's warning.

FIFA threatened the teams that their captains will be booked even before the start of the match if they were sported wearing the armband. German players decided to express their disappointment against FIFA by protesting against the world body, however, Belgium's Eden Hazard argued the Germans should have stuck to football.

Also Read: Apple planning to make Manchester United richest club in the world in a staggering $7 billion takeover

Advertisment

When asked if his team planned to do something similar in their first game against Canada on Wednesday, Hazard said Belgium are in Qatar to play football and they would like to focus on doing only that. The Real Madrid star also took a dig at Germany stating that they should have focused on winning the game.

"They'd have done better not to do it (the protest) and to win instead," said Hazard.

"We are here to play football. I'm not here to send a political message. Other people are better placed for that. We want to be focused on football," he added.

Advertisment

Also Read: Switzerland's Breel Embolo refuses to celebrate after scoring winner against Cameroon in FIFA WC; Here's why

While Germany suffered a shock 2-1 defeat against Japan despite taking the lead in the first through Iikay Gundogan, Belgium managed to secure a hard-fought 1-0 win against Canada. Michy Batshuayi scored in the 44th minute to hand Belgium a crucial victory and get their campaign off to a winning start.

Hazard started the game but failed to get on the scoresheet for his team. Belgium will be hoping to continue their winning run when they take on Morocco in their next game on Sunday (November 27).