Jaelene Daniels declined to play for North Carolina Courage in Friday’s NWSL game against Washington Spirit because her team was wearing a Pride jersey.
The Courage held its first-ever Pride Night Friday around the game, but a team spokesperson told WRAL-TV in North Carolina that Daniels, 29, a devout Christian, opted out.
“Jaelene will not be entered tonight as she has made the decision not to wear our Pride shirt,” the spokesperson said. “While we are disappointed with her choice, we respect her right to make this decision on her own.
“We are thrilled to celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community with our fans, players and staff tonight and look forward to hosting our first-ever Pride Festival before kick-off.”
The match ended in a 3-3 draw. This isn’t the first time Daniels has refused to play in games used to show solidarity with the LGBTQIA+ community.
In 2017, she turned down a call-up to the United States for a game where rainbow colors would have been on the shirt.
Jaelene Daniels missed North Carolina Courage’s final NWSL game on Friday because she didn’t want to wear the colors of the rainbow on her shirt
The Courage wore the colors of the rainbow for their match against the Washington Spirit which ended 3-3
And in 2015, after same-sex marriage was legalized in the United States, she tweeted: “This world is getting further and further away from God… All believers can do is keep praying.”
There was controversy when she signed for Courage during football’s offseason last December and Daniels responded with a statement saying, “I remain committed to my faith and my desire for people to know that my love for them is not based on their belief system or sexuality.
“I pray and firmly believe that my teammates know how much I cherish, respect and love them.”
Courage also apologized to the supporters. He said: “In response to the recent news of the re-signing of Jaelene Daniels, we as a club recognize the impact this announcement has had on our community.
“We have spent the past few days reading your posts and reflecting on our actions. We are truly sorry for everyone we have hurt, especially those in the LGBTQIA+ community.
“The decision to re-sign Jaelene was not taken lightly and included important conversations between the leadership of the organization and Jaelene. The priority expressed in these conversations is the safety of our players and maintaining an inclusive and respectful space for the whole team.
Courage’s decision to re-sign Daniels last December sparked fan controversy
Daniels tweeted that the world was moving away from God after same-sex marriage was legalized in 2015
It is not uncommon for players to choose to miss games used to express their solidarity with the gay community.
Last week in Australia, seven players from the Australian rugby union team Manly Sea Eagles refused to wear the colors of the rainbow.
Josh Aloiai, Jason Saab, Christian Tuipulotu, Josh Schuster, Haumole Olakau’atu, Tolu Koula and Toafofoa Sipley all declined to play against the Roosters last Thursday due to the club’s decision to wear arch-inspired pride jerseys -in sky.
The seven stars cited cultural and religious reasons for their decision which sparked wide debate in Australia. Manly coach Des Hasler has admitted the saga has carved a wedge in his team.
“We have a bit of work to do,” he said, before revealing that the week was “emotional in different aspects.” I’m just being honest…but as long as we’re all sympathetic to each other’s cause, we’ll get through it.
In France in May, midfielder Idrissa Gueye missed Paris Saint-Germain’s league game with Montpellier due to what was widely reported as a refusal to wear the colors of the rainbow.
His manager at the time, Mauricio Pochettino, said Gueye was missing for “personal reasons, but he is not injured”.
Gueye is a devout Muslim and he regularly shares posts about his faith on his social media platforms.
In some Islamic countries, homosexuality is illegal and even punishable by death.
Last week in Australia, seven players from Australian rugby union team Manly Sea Eagles refused to wear rainbow colors for a game
Idrissa Gueye reportedly missed PSG’s 4-0 win over Montpellier as he didn’t want to wear a rainbow colored shirt.
The PSG squad took to the pitch in special jerseys on the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia on Tuesday, May 17.
In Senegal, Gueye’s native country, homosexuality can lead to five years in prison and same-sex marriage is not legal.
In February in Senegal, a demonstration was organized in the capital Dakhar by ultra-conservative Muslim groups attended by thousands of people, calling for tougher sanctions for the LGBTQ community.
Gueye appeared to have the support of his Senegalese teammates Cheikhou Kouyate and Ismaila Sarr.
Sarr posted a photo of himself standing next to Gueye on Instagram, with a fist emoji, three heart emojis and the words: “100%”.
And Gueye’s midfielder Kouyate also uploaded a picture of himself with the 32-year-old on the social media platform, calling him a “real man” and adding “we support you wholeheartedly, my brother”.
Gueye could return to the Premier League this off-season – his former side Everton are interested in re-signing him.
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