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Shocking Question at Women’s World Cup Press Conference ‘Endangered Players’ After Reporter Asked Morocco Captain Whether There Were Any Gay Players Playing for a Country Where Homosexuality Is Illegal

A FIFA representative has shut down a shocking question at a Women’s World Cup press conference that ‘endangered’ Moroccan players by asking whether or not any were gay. Morocco, which is almost exclusively Muslim, is the first Arab country to ever qualify for the tournament.

Defender Nouhaila Benzina will make history when she becomes the first player to wear a Hijab at a senior women’s football tournament – so there is a lot of new ground being broken by the North African country of 37 million people.

But those ground-breaking players might have been ‘endangered’ by a rogue BBC reporter who asked captain Ghizlane Chebbak at Sunday’s press conference whether there were any gay players on the side.

Given same-sex relationships for both men and women are illegal in Morocco, and homosexuality is punishable by up to three years in prison, it was a question that stunned those in attendance. A disappointed Chebbak brushed off the question FIFA moderator quickly shut down the reporter, but for many pundits, the damage had already been done.

Moroccan media in attendance were audibly shocked at the question, according to The Athletic, with journalist Steph Yang scathing of the question which risk the players’ safety.

‘One reporter here asked directly if there are gay players on the Moroccan squad, given same-sex relationships are illegal in Morocco,’ she wrote on Twitter.

‘From a harm reduction perspective, this is not an appropriate question for a player and would have endangered the players themselves. We are obviously going to talk about the intersection of politics and sports at this World Cup, and it’s vital to do so. But we should take care that our questions don’t cause further harm to those impacted by those very politics.’

Muslim CBC journalist from Canada, Shireen Ahmed, also took exception to the line of questioning. ‘The reporter was completely out of line. Harm reduction matters and posing the question to the captain or coach was unnecessary. The question was waved off by a FIFA media officer moderating but it shouldn’t have been asked,’ she commented. 

The reaction to the shocking question was swift and fierce across the media world. ‘This is why we plead for diversity in sports media, but also why we shout needing to diversify yourself …. learn empathy and decorum along the way. This is unacceptable,’ said Nubia, the host of the popular US podcast Shea Butter FC.

‘What has sexuality got to do with football? Dumb, ignorant and self-entitled reporter needs to be sent home and never be accredited by FIFA again,’ suggested one writer. 

‘I know women’s football is much more inclusive than men’s but if you’re a journalist trying to out players when they could be persecuted or imprisoned back home, that’s not a good look,’ fumed another pundit. 

‘Time for that reporter to attend some classes on ethics in journalism. Imagine thinking it was acceptable to ask people to risk their freedom/safety like this (not to mention how massively none-of-their-business that question is),’ wrote a third journalist.

Morocco kick off their first Women’s World Cup campaign on Monday night against a strong German side, who are expected to be challenging for the title come the pointy end of the tournament.

Chebbak said every player was aware of the hugely historic moment for their country, ‘We are honoured to be the first Arab country to take part in the Women’s World Cup,’ she said. 

‘We feel that we have to shoulder a big responsibility to show a good image, and to show the achievements that the Moroccan football team has made in terms of progress by qualifying for the (Women’s) World Cup. This is a great milestone for us and we hope that our match with Germany tomorrow will pave the way for other matches.’ 

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Daily Mail
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