The French football federation’s ethics board has asked Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Idrissa Gana Gueye to respond to allegations that he skipped a game to avoid wearing a rainbow shirt in support of the LGBTQI+ movement.
According to Mauricio Pochettino, the Senegal international was absent from Saturday’s 4-0 triumph over Montpellier in Ligue 1 due to “personal issues” rather than injuries.
According to a letter seen by AFP on Wednesday, Gueye must “make a public apology” or deny that rumors that he refused to participate in French football’s battle against homophobia are “unfounded.”
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He also missed a match last year on a day dedicated to raising awareness against discrimination.
“This absence (against Montpellier)… is very widely interpreted as a refusal to participate,” wrote the FFF’s ethics board.
“One of two things, either the hypotheses are unfounded and we invite you to immediately express yourself in order to silence these rumours,” the letter continued.
“Or the rumours are true. In this case we ask you to be aware of the impact of your actions and the very serious error committed.”
“In refusing to take part in this collective initiative you are validating discriminatory behaviour… and not only against the LGBTQI+ community,” it added.
Gueye on Tuesday received the support of Senegal’s President Macky Sall.
“I support Idrissa Gana Gueye. His religious beliefs must be respected,” he wrote on Twitter.
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Meanwhile, #WeareallIdrissa has been trending globally on Twitter and many people have been tweeting in support of the Senegalese football player.
Many of the tweets question how the West appears to want to force their position on LGBTQI+ on others, especially Africans.
Some Africans say the West is trying to push it “down our throats”.
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