FIFA World Cup 2026 – Pride events remain on schedule outside the stadium during Egypt vs Iran

World Cup organizers in Seattle said Wednesday that Pride events would go ahead as planned outside the city’s June match between Egypt and Iran, despite objections from sports officials in the two countries where homosexuality is criminalized.

The World Cup committee in Seattle has said it would use what it has dubbed the “Pride Match” on June 26 to highlight the city’s annual June Pride Weekend and similar celebrations in Washington state in support of LGBTQ+ rights.

The organizing group emphasized that it was not responsible for events at the 72,000-seat Seattle Stadium, where Egypt and Iran will play.

“SeattleFWC26 is moving forward as planned with our community programming outside the stadium during Pride weekend and throughout the tournament,” Hana Tadesse, the commission’s vice president of communications, said in a statement.

The committee did not immediately respond when asked whether it ever intended to host Pride events at the stadium.

The complaints from the football associations of Iran and Egypt highlight tensions between World Cup rules that promote anti-discrimination, inclusivity and neutrality in political and social spheres, and the tournament’s aim to respect the cultures of host countries.

Egypt’s Football Association said on Tuesday it had sent a letter to FIFA urging the body to prevent LGBTQ+ Pride-related activities during the national team’s match in Seattle, arguing that the activities would clash with the cultural and religious values ​​of the two playing countries.

Mehdi Taj, president of the Iranian Football Federation, told local news agency ISNA that it had filed an objection to the ‘Pride Match’ with FIFA, calling it an «irrational move that supports a certain group.»

The match was labeled a ‘Pride Match’ by the local World Cup organizing committee, which is not affiliated with FIFA, long before the teams had to play against each other. FIFA did not respond to a request for comment.

“With hundreds of thousands of visitors and billions of viewers worldwide, this is a unique moment to highlight and celebrate LGBTQIA+ communities in Washington,” the Seattle World Cup Organizing Committee said on its website.

JUNE IS PRIDE MONTH IN THE US

June is Pride Month in the United States, where events celebrate the LGBTQ+ community and activism and commemorate a gay bar where resistance to a June 28, 1969 police raid sparked a civil rights movement.

But since returning to power in January, President Donald Trump has issued executive orders restricting the rights of transgender people, banning transgender people from serving in the armed forces and rescinding anti-discrimination policies for LGBTQ+ people as part of a campaign to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

In Egypt, Amnesty International has noted that authorities harass and persecute individuals because of their sexual orientation. Under Iranian law, same-sex relations can be punishable by flogging and, for men, death, according to Human Rights Watch.

The Pride Match controversy echoes the dispute over ‘OneLove’ bracelets during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

FIFA threatened to issue yellow cards to players who wore the armbands to protest Qatar’s laws against same-sex relationships, prompting captains of seven European teams not to use them.

Published on December 11, 2025