At all four quarter-final matches on July 2 and 3, each team captain, watched by millions of people around the world, will read out a declaration condemning and rejecting any discrimination in football and society.
The teams and match officials will also pose jointly alongside a banner displaying the unequivocal message “Say no to racism” before each game begins.
FIFA has organised Anti-Discrimination Days during one of its competitions every year since 2001, when a declaration against racism was signed at the FIFA Extraordinary Congress in Buenos Aires.
Although the rejection of discrimination applies all year round, the FIFA Anti-Discrimination Days give the football family the opportunity to join together in condemning this blight on society all around the world.
“It is part of our social responsibility to use our competitions to raise awareness of the pressing social issues of the day,” FIFA President Joseph S Blatter says.
“The players’ voices help us amplify this message and the call for solidarity, respect and fair play – the basic values of our game.”
Former South Africa president Nelson Mandela says: “Sport can create hope, where once there was only despair. It is more powerful than governments in breaking down racial barriers.
“It laughs in the face of all types of discrimination. The 2010 FIFA World Cup has renewed the spirit of unity in South Africa and across the world for people to find their common humanity.”
Anthony Baffoe, a former Ghana international and the second African to play in the German Bundesliga, is also fully behind the initiative.
“If all parties involved in football join in condemning and acting against discrimination, there is hope for eradicating it from our sport,” he says.
“There has been tremendous progress made over the last years but we still have a great amount of work ahead. The Anti-Discrimination Day here at the FIFA World Cup clearly shows the world the players’ rejection of racism and their willingness to fight it.”
Story and photo courtesy of www.fifa.com