An amateur Muslim soccer team has provoked an outcry in France after refusing to play against a team which promotes homosexual rights and has gay players. The Creteil Bebel Muslim team pulled out of its planned tie with Paris Foot Gay (PFG) at the weekend, saying it went against their religious beliefs to play against homosexuals.
The PFG said they would sue Creteil Bebel for homophobia, but the team defended the pullout, saying religious convictions were much more important than any sporting event. “As a Muslim, I have the right not to play against homosexuals because I don’t share their ideas,” Zahir Belgarbi, one of the team directors, told France Bleu radio. [Reuters] Read more
Gays too dirty for Muslim Team .... This brings me to my, admittedly, provocative headline. Regrettably, the only conclusion I can come to is that the Muslim players were afraid they may be infected or contaminated by contact with the gay team. Presumably they play against teams who are perhaps Christian or Atheist. These are not views they share or philosophies they agree with either, but it doesn’t seem to cause a problem. [Harry’s Place] Read more
Muslim footballers deny homophobia and reverse their refusal to play a gay team A MAINLY Muslim non-league French side said they would, after all, take on rivals consisting of gay players, four days after snubbing them. Paris Foot Gay (PFG) – according to this report – were set to play fellow Creteil side Bebel, who are composed of mainly Muslim players last week but Bebel cried off a day beforehand, sending an email in which they regretted they could not honour the match as doing so was “against their principles”. [The Freethinker] Read more
