If you watch the above announcement video from Jordan Henderson for the first time, you might not even have noticed.
But the flashy alternation between color and black and white is no coincidence.
Al-Ettifaq decided to remove the captain’s armband with the colors of the rainbow, one that Henderson often wore in support of the LGBT+ community.
A painful choice, especially for Henderson, because the Englishman was an active figurehead for the community for many years. It made the Liverpool captain an ideal son-in-law who was hailed as a role model.
Only in his new football country homosexuality is therefore punishable.
The fact that Henderson puts his norms and values aside for a weekly wage of more than 800,000 euros is not accepted by many.
“So Jordan Henderson is going to Saudi Arabia,” writes Thomas Hitzlsperger, a former Premier League player who later came out.
“Fine, he can play wherever he wants. But I’m curious to see what the new JH (Jordan Henderson, ed.) brand will look like, because the old one is dead. For a while I thought his support for our community was sincere. What stupid of me.”
Liverpool’s official LGBTQ+ support group was also very disappointed in the club icon.
“Was he really a real ally of ours?” they wonder in a statement. “We know that he did a lot to promote inclusion and distinguished himself as a footballer with principles, so we are very disappointed by his decision and the division it causes.”
2023-07-29 07:51:37
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