LFP unveils weekend anti-discrimination campaign as L1 and L2 players wear victims’ first names | OneFootball

The LFP is launching an anti-discrimination campaign across matchday 31 in L1 and matchday 32 in L2 this weekend. Symbolically, all players will wear the first name of a discrimination victim on their shirts in place of their own.

The initiative follows last month’s decision to scrap rainbow colours, a symbol of the fight against homophobia, from a dedicated L1 matchday, a move that sparked controversy and accusations the league had bowed to a handful of players. The LFP said 34 first names were selected with Her Game Too, Foot Ensemble and Licra, based on testimonies from people who face discrimination.

The campaign stresses the names do not represent isolated cases and that discrimination takes many forms, including sexism, racism, homophobia and antisemitism, and remains a daily reality that professional football refuses to normalise.

Across the weekend, clubs will amplify the message on their social channels by posting visuals highlighting one of the chosen names alongside a sentence describing the discriminatory situation experienced.

The approach is intended to humanise those stories and to underline that behind every act of discrimination there is a person, a history and a lived experience.

Source: L'Équipe