Tottenham news: FA are exposing Harry Kane to possible ban after controversial twist – Ex-Fifa official
The FA are to blame for the U-turn on Tottenham striker Harry Kane wearing a OneLove captain’s armband for England at the World Cup, according to Keith Hackett.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, the ex-Premier League and Fifa World Cup referee claimed Kane would have been at risk of being sent off and a one-game ban if he wore the armband.
England, Wales and five other European nations vowed to wear the armband to promote diversity amid criticism of Qatar.
However, the FA released a statement on Monday (21 November) ahead of their 6-2 win over Iran confirming they had made a U-turn due to the threat of sporting sanctions.
“I think the FA and the Welsh FA were perhaps a bit lax at looking at the regulations,” Hackett told Football Insider correspondent Connor Whitley.
“The regulations put down by Fifa are very clear, you can’t make a political statement.
“I applaud the idea but the fact is, there are competition rules and they have to abide by them.
“This is when a player lifts a shirt to expose a political statement, he gets a yellow card immediately. This is no different.
“Fortunately, this was resolved off the field because they would have got a yellow card, make no mistake.
“Fifa don’t mess about. They will have said ‘If you start the game with it, you’ll get a yellow card and if you keep it on, you’ll get another one’.
“The threat was there and the administrators that run the FA only had to look at the Fifa regulations.
“They are so keen on badging, logos and any form of advertising. They even check ballboys before the games and what is on their shirts.
“It’s a process that has been there for years.”
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