FIFA turns down Zelenskyy’s request to share message of peace at the World Cup final

FIFA has turned down Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's request to broadcast a message of peace before the start of the World Cup final on Sunday.

According to media reports, Zelenskyy offered to appear in a video, speaking to fans in the stadium in Qatar. "We thought FIFA wanted to use its platform for the greater good," a source told CNN.

FIFA rejects Zelenskyy’s request to share message of peace at World Cup final

As of now, talks between Ukraine and the sport's governing body are ongoing, but there has been no confirmation of whether Zelenskyy will be permitted to use the World Cup platform to spread his message or not, per CNN. Ever since Russia invaded Ukraine, embattled President Zelenskyy has used major world events to share his message, including the G20 Summit, the Grammys, and the Cannes Film Festival. Also, the Ukrainian President has done interviews and interactive sessions with diverse journalists from across the world, including famous entertainers like Sean Penn and David Letterman.

However, this isn't the first time that FIFA has rejected such requests. Earlier, FIFA had warned players they would be given a yellow card if they were seen wearing the "One Love" captain's armband during games. The band represented a striped heart in different colours to represent all genders and sexual identities. Earlier, Grant Wahl, who is an American soccer journalist, was detained and refused entry to the stadium because he was wearing a rainbow t-shirt to demonstrate his support for LGBT rights.

FIFA boss Gianni Infantino on Friday stated that FIFA had stopped "political statements" in Qatar because we have to "take care of everyone." "We are a global organization, and we don’t discriminate against anyone," Infantino said, as reported by CNN.

Image: AP