England, Wales, the Netherlands and Germany captains will not wear the rainbow-colored armband during the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar for a possible booking risk. "As national federations, we can't put our players in a position where they could face sporting sanctions including bookings, so we have asked the captains not to attempt to wear the armbands in FIFA World Cup games," the English, Welsh and German football bodies said in a joint statement to reverse their decisions. So England captain Harry Kane, Welsh skipper Gareth Bale, German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, and Dutch defender Virgil van Dijk will not wear the rainbow-colored armband in Qatar. The FIFA sanctions may include a booking or to be removed from the pitch. "We were prepared to pay fines that would normally apply to breaches of kit regulations and had a strong commitment to wearing the armband. However, we cannot put our players in the situation where they might be booked or even forced to leave the field of play," the football bodies added. The Dutch football body (KNVB) also released a similar message on their website as their priority in the World Cup to "win the games" so the KNVB decided to abandon their plan too. According to FIFA's equipment regulations, the captain of each team should wear an armband provided by FIFA. "If FIFA provides a choice of captain's armbands, the captain should wear the one that contrasts most clearly with the sleeve on which it is worn," FIFA added. The Qatar 2022 kicked off on Sunday and will run through Dec. 18. — Agencies
