LGBT groups accuse FIFA of hypocrisy for publicly supporting UK soccer's first openly gay player in 30 years, but readily hosting a World Cup in Qatar

• FIFA tweeted its support for Jake Daniels after the Blackpool player came out as gay Monday.
• LGBTQ+ groups told Insider that the governing body is hypocritical for doing so.

LGBTQ+ charities in the United Kingdom have hit out at FIFA for publicly showing its support for Blackpool FC player Jake Daniels, who came out publicly as gay this week, while holding a World Cup in Qatar later this year.

On Monday, Daniels, 17, became the first male professional soccer player in the UK to come out as gay while still playing for over 30 years.

The last player to do so was Justin Fashanu in 1990.

In a statement on Blackpool's website, Daniels said: "I've been hiding the real me and who I really am. "I've known my whole life that I'm gay, and I now feel that I'm ready to come out and be myself."

In response to his statement, world soccer's governing body FIFA retweeted a post from LGBTQ+ charity Stonewall showing its support for Daniels.

It also commented below the post with an excerpt from Daniels' statement alongside an emoji of a smiling face with open hands.

Speaking with Insider, Molly Houghton of The Proud Trust, an organization in the UK that supports LGBT+ young people through youth groups, peer support, and mentoring programs, hit out at FIFA for its tweets about Daniels.

"I think it's great that [FIFA] are supporting him," she said. "However, they are still holding the World Cup in a place where LGBT+ rights aren't a thing."

The 2022 FIFA World Cup kicks off in Qatar in November. In Qatar, homosexuality is illegal and punishable by death.

Last month, Senior Qatari leader Major General Abdulaziz Abdullah Al Ansari cautioned LGBTQ+ fans from attending the tournament, telling The Indian Express they risked being attacked.

"It's great to like a tweet and retweet," added Houghton. "But actually, in order to protect those people, if you are truly supporting them, more tangible action needs to be taken.

"Hopefully, with Jake being the first person to come out in a the era of social media, it will be easier now to spark those conversations that hopefully lead to more being done now."

Ian Howley, the CEO of LGBT Hero, a UK health and wellbeing charity supporting LGBTQ+ people, struck a similar tone, telling Insider that FIFA is "hypocritical."

"Essentially, good footballers and good football fans cannot go to a tournament because they're afraid to be locked up and put in prison, or face the death penalty," he said. "That would never happen to a foreign person, because they wouldn't want that attention, but the fact is that the World Cup is still there.

"I would just hope that we will never be put in this position again."

A number of others also pointed out FIFA's hypocrisy below its comments about Daniels.

"Jake wouldn't be allowed to rent a hotel room with his partner at next World Cup," wrote journalist David Amoyal on Twitter.

"Hey FIFA, did you know your last World Cup was in Russia and your next is to be in Qatar? I'd keep quiet if I was you," another user wrote.

FIFA did not immediately reply to Insider's request for comment.