Manchester City women’s star Vivianne Miedema is under fire after signing her name to a letter condemning FIFA for its partnership with Saudi-owned oil group Aramco.
Miedema joined over 100 women’s professional players who signed the letter criticizing FIFA’s decision to add Aramco as a major partner for the 2026 FIFA World Cup and 20227 Women’s World Cup.
The petition calls out Aramco for its effect on the climate as well as “Saudi Arabia’s record of human rights violations against women and other minorities, including the LGBTQIA+ community.”
Miedema, a two-time WSL Golden Boot winner, backed the letter, claiming that it “shows that as players this is what we don’t want to stand for and accept within women’s football,”
“It’s simple: this sponsorship is contradicting FIFA’s own commitments to human rights and the planet,” she stated.
Vivianne Miedema discusses why she decided to sign the open letter to FIFA to end its partnership with Aramco
pic.twitter.com/yM4G5RSCov
— Sky Sports WSL (@SkySportsWSL) October 21, 2024
Manchester City Star’s Condemnation Of FIFA-Saudi Partnership Has A Huge Flaw
But there’s just one major problem.
Miedema stars for WSL giant Manchester City. Manchester City is owned by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, a member of the Abu Dhabi royal family and the Vice President of the United Arab Emirates.
This is good and all, Vivianne, but you’re playing for Manchester City. The irony and lack of self-awareness is unreal. https://t.co/BwYPYNJYf4
— François Plateau (@francoisplateau) October 22, 2024
The UAE, like Saudi Arabia, stands accused of committing various human rights abuses in the latest Human Rights Watch world report.
“The 2021 penal code criminalizes ‘sodomy’ with an adult male,” the report states. “It also continues to criminalize vaguely defined acts, allowing the authorities to arrest people for a wide range of behaviors, including public displays of affection, gender nonconforming expressions, and campaigns promoting the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people.”
All of these are things that Miedema called out FIFA over. Each of these is a valid criticism in a vacuum. But Miedema cannot, in good faith, make these criticisms and then play for a club that represents the exact same values she claims to speak out against.
The post UAE-Owned Manchester City Star Ironically Signs Letter Condemning FIFA For Saudi Partnership appeared first on BroBible.
UAE-Owned Manchester City Star Ironically Signs Letter Condemning FIFA For Saudi Partnership
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