What do the FIFA-sanctioned captain’s armbands at the Women's World Cup mean? | OneFootball

The 2023 Women's World Cup has arrived.

Play Video

Cities across Australia and New Zealand will play host to the 32 teams battling it out for world supremacy, with the final taking place at Stadium Australia in Sydney on August 20.

It’s set to be the biggest Women’s World Cup yet, with thousands of fans packed into stadiums and millions more watching on TV at home.

Sam Kerr, Marta, Megan Rapinoe, Alexia Putellas and Lucy Bronze are among the star players set to compete in the tournament.

A number of these players are also captaining their respective teams, and will be wearing FIFA-sanctioned armbands during the tournament.

What armbands can captains wear during the Women’s World Cup?

Following extensive consultation with stakeholders, including players and representatives from the 32 participating member associations, FIFA have approved eight captain’s armbands for the Women’s World Cup.

These have been created in partnership with a number of United Nations agencies, and will highlight a range of social causes as part of the Football Unites the World campaign.

Below are the eight armbands available to captains during the Women’s World Cup, and which United Nations agency they have been created in partnership with.

Can captains wear a different armband for each Women’s World Cup match?

Team captains will have three options when choosing which armband to wear at the Women’s World Cup.

They can either wear the “Football Unites the World” armband for the entire tournament, wear an armband corresponding to the theme of their choice for the entire tournament, or the armband corresponding to the theme of the specific match day.

Why are FIFA’s armbands for the Women’s World Cup controversial?

The eight armbands created for the Women’s World Cup have received backlash – but why?

The decision to create the FIFA-sanctioned armbands was sparked by the controversy surrounding the “One Love” armband at the 2022 Men’s World Cup in Qatar.

The armband featured the number one inside a heart, along with a rainbow — a globally recognised symbol of LGBTQ+ rights.

Qatar is not supportive of LGBTQ+ rights and same-sex relationships are criminalised in the country.

England, Wales, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland had agreed to wear the armbands, but all seven nations backed down from sending a powerful message after FIFA threatened to award yellow cards to whoever breached kit regulations.

FIFA have not lifted the restrictions on rainbow and One Love armbands at the 2023 Women’s World Cup, instead providing their own alternative options.

This was met with dismay from women’s football fans, many of whom are part of the LGBTQ+ community.

While FIFA’s Unite for Inclusion armband features the same colours as the One Love armband – red, black, green, which represents race and heritage, plus pink, yellow and blue, which represent all gender identities and sexual orientations – it is not explicitly for the LGTBQ+ community.

Australia and Chelsea star Sam Kerr, who will be captaining the Matildas during the Women’s World Cup, lamented her inability to wear the rainbow armband, but suggested she would still be speaking up for LGBTQ+ rights.

"I didn't expect them [FIFA] to change it. Obviously, we would love to wear it ... like most of the teams in the whole world, everyone has voiced that they would love to wear it," Kerr said.

"But I think you saw at the men's World Cup, Harry Kane, for example – first game, if he had worn it, yellow card. If he got a yellow card in the game, he would have been sent off.

"For me, it's not worth the risk of putting the team at risk, putting the tournament at risk, putting everything at risk.

"There will be multiple opportunities where we get to use our voice like we did in that game. And there'll be multiple opportunities where I get to use my voice for things.

"Obviously, we would have liked to have worn it, but I'm not going to put this team at risk. We have to abide by the rules we've been given."

What has FIFA President Gianni Infantino said about the Women’s World Cup armbands?

FIFA President Gianni Infantino released a statement following the unveiling of the Women's World Cup captain's armbands.

"Football unites the world and our global events, such as the FIFA Women's World Cup, have a unique power to bring people together and provide joy, excitement and passion," he said.

"But football does even more than that – it can shine the spotlight on very important causes in our society.

“After some very open talks with stakeholders, including member associations and players, we have decided to highlight a series of social causes – from inclusion to gender equality, from peace to ending hunger, from education to tackling domestic violence – during all 64 matches at the FIFA Women's World Cup."

FIFA

Who is favourite to win the Women’s World Cup?

The 2023 Women’s World Cup is regarded as one of the most competitive yet, with a number of teams in with a good chance of winning the tournament.

This includes Germany, France, Brazil, Euro 2022 winners England and defending champions United States.

Canada, Spain, Sweden, the Netherlands and Norway are among the sides considered to have an outside chance of triumphing.

There are also a number of teams making their Women’s World Cup debuts, although it would be a big shock if any of these sides won the tournament.

Debutantes include Morocco, Zambia, Haiti, Panama, Portugal, Ireland, Vietnam and the Philippines.