Several members of the Toulouse soccer team, including Zakaria Aboukhlal, have asked not to take part in the Ligue 1 match against Nantes on Sunday May 14, as all Ligue 1 players wear rainbow jerseys to fight homophobia.
The road is still long. Initiatives to fight homophobia still do not meet the approval of all players in 2023. “Homosexual or heterosexual, we all wear the same jersey”. That is the message of unity, respect and tolerance that the professional football league wants to spread this weekend – and has been doing so for three seasons.
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On Saturday evening, we can confirm that five players from the squad have informed their coach that they do not want to take part in the match in order not to be associated with the league initiative.
They are Zakaria Aboukhlal, Moussa Diarra, Farès Chaïbi, Logan Costa and Saïd Hamulic. The club hopes to convert some of them by matchday on Sunday. Aboukhlal and Hamulic are said to have given a clear refusal. On Saturday evening, Logan Costa denied to French newspaper L’Equipe that he had asked the club not to play the match. TFC did not reply to our enquiries.
Logan Costa, on the other hand, denied this to Le Parisien and stated that he was available for the game. The story is likely to be a talking point for a long time to come, as it has a potential magnitude that has never been seen before in a professional club.
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La Dépêche / RMC / https://www.fdesouche.com/2023/05/14/ligue-1-zakaria-aboukhlal-fares-chaibi-moussa-diarra-et-said-hamulic-du-toulouse-fc-ont-demande-a-ne-pas-participer-a-la-rencontre-face-a-nantes-en-raison-des-maillots-arc-en-ciel-pour-lutter-con/
