Spectator with rainbow flag runs onto field at World Cup
A pitch invader runs across the field with a rainbow flag during the World Cup group H soccer match between Portugal and Uruguay, at the Lusail Stadium in Lusail, Qatar, Monday, Nov. 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr) Credit: AP/Abbie Parr
LUSAIL, Qatar — A spectator ran onto the field carrying a rainbow flag during a World Cup match between Portugal and Uruguay wearing a blue Superman T-shirt that said “SAVE UKRAINE.”
Security officials chased the person down and he dropped the flag on the field before being escorted off the field. The referee then picked up the flag and left it on the sideline, where it stayed for a few moments before a worker came and collected it.
The back of the Superman shirt read “RESPECT FOR IRANIAN WOMAN.”
In the first week of the tournament, seven European teams lost the battle to wear multi-colored “One Love” armbands during World Cup matches and some fans complained they weren’t allowed to bring items with rainbow colors, a symbol of LGBTQ rights, into the stadiums of the conservative Islamic emirate.
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