5th Dec 2024 • Written by Garrett Schreiber and Bruno Collingridge

The Marc Guehi armband saga speaks volumes about the state of homophobia in football

This didn’t have to happen.

Crystal Palace have, on the whole, had a good week. A hard-earned point at home to Newcastle and a long-overdue second victory of the season away to Ipswich should have been the only news stories on Palace fans’ minds - but instead, the four points earned by Oliver Glasner’s side have been overshadowed by needless controversy.

As part of Rainbow Laces weekend, the Premier League’s campaign to promote equality and LGBTQ+ acceptance in England’s top flight, the captains of each team were given a different armband to the typical black and white - a rainbow one. 

The Premier League made it clear that it was not mandatory to wear these armbands. The choice to be a part of the campaign remained at the discretion of each captain. 

Only 2 captains out of the 20 clubs made atypical stances on the Rainbow Laces campaign: Palace’s Marc Guehi and Ipswich Town’s Sam Morsy. Morsy ultimately chose against wearing the rainbow armband, feeling obligated due to his Islamic faith, while Guehi favoured a more diplomatic approach of writing “I 🖤Jesus” and “Jesus 🖤 You” on top of the armband itself.

Despite this, the FA issued a warning to the 24-year-old defender for his actions - but didn't do the same for Morsy.

Marc Guehi's Rainbow Laces armband vs Ipswich (Credit: BBC)

Guehi grew up surrounded by his Christian faith - he played the drums (and still does from time to time) in his local church, where his parents are ministers. He credits much of his success to his relationship with God, and has embodied the Christian values instilled in him during his time in South London, serving as an excellent role model.

This makes it all the more bizarre for Guehi to be thrust into the spotlight as a darling of Britain’s most intolerant, with everyone from former England goalkeeper Peter Shilton to Shadow Lord Chancellor Robert Jenrick all offering support for the 24-year-old. His actions, a self-declared “message of truth and love and inclusivity”, have been taken remarkably out of context.

Everyone seems to have a different interpretation of the situation. Guehi’s father, in an interview with the Daily Mail, criticised the backlash his son was receiving:

“I don't know fully what's going on because I haven't spoken to Marc and so we don't know but I don't think it's fair he should be singled out just for showing his religious beliefs.”

John Guehi, Marc Guehi's father

This is all reminiscent of Jamie Vardy smashing a corner flag against Sheffield United in 2020 during the Rainbow Laces campaign. After scoring a 90th-minute winner against the rivals of his boyhood club, Vardy ran to the corner and smashed the flag with a slide. However, this action was immediately grabbed onto and celebrated by a mass of homophobic fans due to the nature of Vardy destroying something resembling equality for the LGBTQ+ community.  

Part of the problem is the misinterpretation of campaigns like Rainbow Laces, with many, such as Guehi’s father, seemingly taking it as an attack against their religious beliefs:

“If you look at what the LGBT community are doing, they are trying to impose on others what they believe in, it's belief against belief.”

John Guehi, Marc Guehi's father

The worry with Guehi’s actions is that, in their ambiguity, they propagate such misinterpretations.

The point of the Rainbow Laces campaign is, has been, and will always be a dedicated time to reassure people that it is entirely normal to be a gay person in football - whether that’s on the sofa, the stands or the pitch. Players unwilling to make this a reality are either bigoted or scared of being outcast - in which case maybe they could sympathize with a fraction of the isolation LGBTQ+ footballers and fans alike feel every day, rather than just marinating in it for a weekend.

Captains Guehi and Morsy shake hands before the game (Credit: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

There is absolutely nothing wrong with Guehi’s statement “I 🖤 Jesus” or “Jesus 🖤 You” in isolation. Celebration of one’s religion as part of their identity is something that should be accepted in all cases - despite the Premier League’s objection to it. However, the issue is that this statement doesn’t come in isolation, but instead was prompted by the Rainbow Laces campaign.

If the captain’s band was not rainbow-coloured, Guehi would never have written these religious messages over it. They come specifically in a moment that is dedicated to LGBTQ+ acceptance and equality, and writing them over a rainbow armband was always going to stir speculation of homophobia, especially when the messages are vague 3-word sentences.

As a Crystal Palace fan, this is not something that the club should stay silent about or make a half-hearted statement about. The club’s unwillingness to make it explicitly clear that they oppose homophobia in all cases allows an avenue for dog whistle homophobia and hatred to ooze its way into the club.

A large number of Crystal Palace players have actually spoken out in support of Guehi, although doing so rather quietly. Both Eze and Lacroix came out with Instagram posts with captions emphasizing love for Jesus, with Chalobah posting a completely isolated message surrounding love for God. 

Maxence Lacroix's post-Ipswich Instagram

Again, it must be stated that in isolation there is nothing with these posts, but they simply aren’t in isolation - they are surrounding (and pretty clearly supporting) Guehi's writing over the rainbow armband. 

Even if Guehi is trying to be inclusive in his messaging and has nothing but love in his heart, his messaging can quickly be conflated with religious views which have historically been very anti-LGBTQ+. If he wants to send a true message of “inclusivity”, it would take much more courage to denounce the homophobia that exists within the footballing community.

Is it easy? No, but if his goal is to spread messages of love and acceptance, then there must be more said than simply “Jesus 🖤 You”. Leaving your support as nothing more than subliminal messaging doesn’t truly make a statement of inclusion or care. The very fact that he’s had to be so coy about his true opinions, to avoid pushback from a disappointingly large group, speaks volumes about the normalisation of homophobia in football - and the need for the Rainbow Laces campaign.

As many Palace fans can testify, Guehi has an immense amount of love in his heart, and likely had the best intentions. Unfortunately, the ambiguity of his message which he felt forced to preserve is indicative of the latent bigotry in football, hidden not-so-subtly beneath the surface. Instead of becoming a symbol of acceptance, Guehi has become an accidental martyr for people whose motives couldn’t be further from progression and inclusivity. 

He could, and should, have done much better.

Thumbnail Credit: Julian Finney/Getty Images

1 comment