Football governing body, FIFA has banned Belgium from wearing their colourful warm-up shirt at the World Cup in Qatar.
Belgium kickstart their World Cup campaign against Canada on Wednesday, with Morocco and Croatia the other teams they will face in Group F
However, just a day before their opener, Belgium would now have to make some last-minute changes to their kits at FIFA’s behest.
Eden Hazard was due to wear the OneLove armband until FIFA stepped in on Monday and failed to provide assurances that players would not receive a yellow card or a possible suspension for the gesture.
Harry Kane, Gareth Bale and Virgil van Dijk all opted not to wear the armband for their World Cup games on Monday, and Hazard will now follow suit on Wednesday.
Belgium have also been forced to change their white away kit to cover up the word ‘love’, which is on the inside of the collar and is not visible to supporters.
The reason for the change to Belgium’s kits is due to the kits being inspired by the fireworks of Belgium’s famous music festival Tomorrowland, which aims to promote diversity, equality and inclusion.
‘All countries are perplexed,’ said Peter Bossaert, head of Belgium’s Football Association.
‘Most of my colleagues were at the opening match, I don’t think they saw anything of the spectacle. We had other concerns.
‘The fact is that all of us cannot live with the attitude of FIFA. Not even myself.
‘The toughness of FIFA is shocking. We need to critically analyse our relationship.
‘We need FIFA, but they also need us. We will see in the future how to proceed.’
Credit: Cool FM