Italy’s gay football captain makes history with rainbow armband at Women’s Euros
Elena Linari sported the inclusive rainbow armband. (ANP via Getty Images)
Elena Linari sported the inclusive rainbow armband. (ANP via Getty Images)
Italy’s gay football captain Elena Linari has made history by becoming the first captain of the national team to wear a rainbow armband on the pitch.
Centre back Linari, who has played more than 100 times for her country, donned the armband for Italy’s Group B game against Spain on Friday (11 July).
According to Outsports, Linari, who came out publicly in 2019, said: “It’s a form of respect and openness to whatever may come. Our stances are always very beautiful.”
Italy’s national women’s football team includes a number of out LGBTQ+ players, and Linari’s public display of pride flies in the face of Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni’s stance on LGBTQ+ rights.
The Bothers of Italy leader opposed both same-sex parents being named on a child’s birth certificate but a court ruled that the plan violated the constitutional principles of equality and personal identity, as well the child’s right to care, education and emotional continuity from both parents.
After winning the election in 2022, Meloni signalled that she was preparing to roll back legislation on abortion rights, which are already difficult to access in Italy. She denied being homophobic, despite expressing her opposition to what she described as “gender ideology” and “LGBT lobbies”.
European football governing body UEFA welcomed the return of the rainbow armband at the Euros after a three-year absence, which coincides with an increased number of LGBTQ+ players at the tournament.
World governing body FIFA banned similar symbols at the men’s World Cup in Qatar in 2022 and at the women’s tournament in Australia and New Zealand the following year.
England captain Leah Williamson, who is bisexual, has also worn the LGBTQ+ armband at the Euros, as have the skippers of Finland, Switzerland, Norway, Sweden, Germany, Iceland and Denmark. France, however, have decided not to do so while Poland opted for one of the two other “Respect” designs.
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