Seattle to fly Pride flag despite Iran and Egypt protests

FIFA said it will allow fans to bring rainbow flags inside Seattle Stadium for tonight's World Cup match between Egypt and Iran, although it appears no additional activations will be permitted promoting the city's annual PrideFest.

Both countries' federations have stated objections to the so-called "Pride Match", with the Iran Football Federation requesting that symbols or representations of the Pride movement be restricted during the match.

FIFA said that rainbow flags are permitted at all World Cup matches, but does not have any authority over community events such as Seattle PrideFest that take place outside of stadiums hosting games and official fan zones.

"The FIFA World Cup 2026 is an inclusive event that welcomes people from all backgrounds," FIFA said in a statement on Thursday. "Fans of all sexual orientations and gender identities are welcome at matches and events.

"General statements of human rights, including rainbow flags and other flags representing sexual orientation and gender identity, are permitted under the FIFA World Cup 2026 Stadium Code of Conduct and may be displayed inside stadiums provided they are used in a manner consistent with the code."

Seattle's host committee has been preparing activations around the match since before December's draw that placed the Egypt-Iran match in the city on 26 June. However, FIFA has control over all programming inside the tournament's venues.

Egypt and Iran both criminalise same-sex relations. After the December draw, the Egyptian Football Federation issued a statement saying a letter sent to FIFA categorically rejected "any activities related to supporting homosexuality during the match..

The Iran Football Federation referred to "this movement" in a statement to The Athletic on Wednesday night, without mentioning the LGBTQ+ communities by name.

"The Football Federation of the Islamic Republic of Iran takes this matter seriously and has clearly communicated its position to FIFA," the statement read.

"Iran and Egypt are two Muslim countries with deep cultural and religious commonalities, and the views expressed by both federations reflects the values and beliefs shared by the people of both countries.

"Our position is that no ceremonies, or promotional activities associated with this movement should be present inside the stadium or as part of the match environment. This position has been communicated to FIFA through the appropriate channels.

"We believe FIFA should take into account the views and concerns of the participating teams when considering matters related to the match environment and stadium presentation.

"FIFA has been informed of this shared position by both countries and is expected to take the necessary steps to ensure that no related ceremonies or promotional activities take place within the stadium or as part of the official match environment."

In the face of this opposition from the two teams Seattle's LGBTQ community members say they hope the fixture can be an opportunity to change minds.

Seattle revels in its reputation as a welcoming place and Pride flags are visible all over the city, all year round. Its June Pride weekend is one of the biggest in the United States.

So, ahead of December's World Cup draw, it was only natural that local organisers designated the 26 June match to be held in the city as a "Pride Match".

In Seattle there is no question that the Pride Match will go ahead as planned.

"The World Cup is going to come and go in three weeks," said Hedda McLendon, from Seattle's local World Cup organising committee. "The Pride celebration ... has happened on this weekend for 50-plus years.

"It is going to happen this weekend, it is going to happen long after the World Cup."

Some in the city's LGBTQ community had mixed feelings given the participants, said Jon Cairns, 49, manager of local LGBTQ+ club Kremwerk.

Cairns, however, said his own view was that it provided a platform to promote acceptance that only the world's biggest sporting event could offer.

"My reaction is let's have them," he said. "International sports is one of the biggest brokers historically of social change and individual rights and freedoms worldwide, including in the US"

He cited Black US sprinter Jesse Owens' four gold medals at the 1936 Olympic Games in Nazi Germany and Tommie Smith and John Carlos' raised-fist protest in 1968 as moments where "only international sports could reach that big of an audience.

"They're not going to turn off the World Cup on state television in Iran or Egypt to block out a Pride flag in the audience," Cairns said.

The Pride Match is "a host city initiative" and separate of FIFA, a spokesperson for football's governing body confirmed.

Egypt and Iran's involvement in the Pride Match is not the first time the World Cup has grappled with stark differences in attitudes between hosts and visitors.

In 2022 World Cup host Qatar, the emir said visitors should "respect our culture" when asked about gay people attending the tournament.

FIFA threatened yellow cards for captains wearing the "OneLove" armband, citing its rules against political slogans. Teams including England and the Netherlands that had been planning to wear the armbands (below) to protest Qatar's laws against same-sex relationships abandoned the plan.

For Ryan Webster, a 40-year-old lifestyle manager who was at Kremwerk the weekend before Pride, Seattle's "Pride Match" was an opportunity to show solidarity with people in countries where their sexuality was outlawed.

"I'm choosing to believe that this is our moment to allow the members of the LGBTQ community that come from those countries to have the opportunity to celebrate themselves in totality that they might not have otherwise," he said outside the club, which will host a watch party for Friday's game.

Inside, 'Viper Fengz' lip-synced to Cher's "Believe" before introducing fellow drag performers to the stage, clapped and cheered by a raucous crowd.

Fengz, who only wanted to provide their stage name, said Pride coinciding with the World Cup would bring increased visibility, anticipating perhaps some new audience members.

"I think it's always great for us to be able to share space and share places with people who don't have the same experiences as us," they said.

"Sometimes you just have to be the bigger person and show grace where you can and know that everyone is a human learning (from) different experiences, but also it can get hard - because you're on the shorter end of the stick, always trying to have to explain yourself around people who don't grow up with the same worldview."

Watch every game of the FIFA 2026 World Cup live on RTÉ with highlights on RTÉ Sport digital platforms and live blogs on RTÉ.ie/sport and RTÉ News app