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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
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| Qatar World Cup: Laura McAllister told to remove rainbow bucket hat | Qatar World Cup: Laura McAllister told to remove rainbow bucket hat |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Ex-Wales footballer Laura McAllister says Qatari security asked her to remove a "rainbow wall" bucket cap | Ex-Wales footballer Laura McAllister says Qatari security asked her to remove a "rainbow wall" bucket cap |
| Ex-Wales footballer Laura McAllister says Qatari security asked her to remove a "rainbow wall" bucket cap | Ex-Wales footballer Laura McAllister says Qatari security asked her to remove a "rainbow wall" bucket cap |
| An ex-Wales footballer has described being asked to remove her "rainbow wall" bucket hat as she entered a World Cup stadium in Qatar. | An ex-Wales footballer has described being asked to remove her "rainbow wall" bucket hat as she entered a World Cup stadium in Qatar. |
| Laura McAllister, a gay woman and past Fifa Council candidate, said she was told she could not wear the hat for Wales' opener against the USA. | |
| Ms McAllister said she then smuggled the hat into the stadium. | Ms McAllister said she then smuggled the hat into the stadium. |
| Fifa - world football's governing body, which is responsible for the tournament - has been asked to comment. | Fifa - world football's governing body, which is responsible for the tournament - has been asked to comment. |
| The rainbow version of Welsh fan hats shows support for the LGBTQ+ community. | The rainbow version of Welsh fan hats shows support for the LGBTQ+ community. |
| Video footage taken of the incident appears to show officers telling her to remove the hat. | Video footage taken of the incident appears to show officers telling her to remove the hat. |
| "It was pretty heavy handed," Ms McAllister told BBC Breakfast. | |
| "As we were queuing to go into the stadium we'd heard that there'd been issues with some people in front of us who'd been asked to take off their hats to go into the stadium. | |
| "So fortunately a few of us further back in the queue knew what was likely to happen," she said. | |
| "And sure enough as we went through security we were told by some of the stewards that we couldn't enter the stadium wearing our rainbow hats." | |
| Tears and emotion as Wales return to World Cup | Tears and emotion as Wales return to World Cup |
| 'Football is leaving behind its LGBT fans' | 'Football is leaving behind its LGBT fans' |
| 'I don't want to worry about being killed' | 'I don't want to worry about being killed' |
| She said "right away" a few officials gathered round her and told her that she had to take the hat off. | |
| "We were told it was a regulation - clearly I work in football, I work with Uefa, so I know the regulations - so I asked which regulation it applied to and we weren't told that." | |
| It comes after national team captains, including Wales' Gareth Bale, were told not to wear One Love armbands. Homosexuality is illegal in Qatar. | |
| "We're here to live our own values as a nation and with Wales being in the World Cup for the first time in six decades, it's important to show what our country's all about, and that is about inclusion and tolerance and diversity," Ms McAllister said. | |
| Laura McAllister said the response she faced from security was "heavy handed" | |
| The incident comes despite previous assurances that fans would be allowed to wear them. | The incident comes despite previous assurances that fans would be allowed to wear them. |
| "We need to speak for the LGBT people at home who didn't feel able to come to Doha because of the regime and it's position on gay rights," Ms McAllister said. | |
| "We're all horribly compromised by being here so make no mistake, so by being here we also need to make sure we don't compromise on our values." | |
| The bucket hat has become the must-have accessory for Wales fans over the past decade. | The bucket hat has become the must-have accessory for Wales fans over the past decade. |
| The yellow, green and red hats are worn in their thousands by the so-called Red Wall, with a rainbow version also produced. | |
| Wales' Rainbow Wall wrote on Twitter: "Our rainbow bucket hat. We are so proud of them, but news on the ground tonight is our welsh female supporters wearing them in Qatar are having them taken off them, not the men, just women. | Wales' Rainbow Wall wrote on Twitter: "Our rainbow bucket hat. We are so proud of them, but news on the ground tonight is our welsh female supporters wearing them in Qatar are having them taken off them, not the men, just women. |
| "Fifa are you serious !! LGBTQRights." | "Fifa are you serious !! LGBTQRights." |
| Meanwhile, an American journalist, Grant Wahl, said in a Tweet he was also stopped for half an hour by security for wearing a rainbow-themed t-shirt. | |
| He was later allowed to enter the stadium perimeter, he added. | He was later allowed to enter the stadium perimeter, he added. |
| "Finally a commander came through, said I could go through, and apologised," he told the BBC. | "Finally a commander came through, said I could go through, and apologised," he told the BBC. |
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