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At least seven players from the Manly rugby league club in Sydney, Australia, are threatening to boycott their upcoming match, according to ABC News Australia.
The boycott was sparked by team rules requiring them to wear a gay pride jersey.
The players say they are threatening to boycott based on cultural and religious reasons.
The jersey’s traditional white hoops are replaced with a rainbow design in support of the LGBTQIA+ community.
The decision was made without consultation with the players. Take a look below:
The players who are threatening to boycot include Josh Aloiai, Jason Saab, Christian Tuipulotu, Josh Schuster, Haumole Olakau’atu, Tolutau Koula and Toafofoa Sipley.
More on this story via Breitbart:
Sea Eagles coach Des Hasler reportedly told the players he understood they were put in a difficult decision and supported their decision not to play.
This is not the first time a rugby player in Australia has made a point of stating his religious beliefs clash with homosexuality.
Australian rugby star Israel Folau sparked a fierce backlash in 2017 after he entered the country’s debate on same-sex marriage and said he would not support a proposal to make it legal, as Breitbart News reported.
Folau, a devout Christian, went public with his view on social media.
Folau was raised as a Mormon but he and his family switched to the Assemblies of God church in 2011 before he became a born-again Christian in 2017.
The player also sparked outrage by suggesting in a sermon that destructive bushfires and drought that ravaged Australia in 2020 were “God’s judgement” for the legalisation of same-sex marriage and abortion.
