Mexican fans banned from wearing iconic garb at 2022 World Cup in Qatar
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The Lucha Libre masks came under an unspoken ban by the tournament organizers
The Mexican government has advised football fans who choose to attend World Cup matches in Qatar not to bring their colorful Lucha Libre wrestling masks to the country, in accordance with local regulations.
Alfonso Zegbe of the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE) asked fans not to wear masks at the World Cup, citing instructions from the tournament’s organizing committee, although the championship organizers say there is no such policy.
The masks of classic wrestling fighters, or as Mexico calls the sport “Lucha Libre”, such as “El Santo” and “The Blue Demon”, are popular among Mexican fans. They regularly wear them in international competitions, including the World Cup and the Olympic Games.
“The latest update from the Organizing Committee is that (wrestling) masks will not be allowed. We are trying to negotiate with the organizers of the championship, to explain to them that this is a Mexican tradition, and perhaps they will not say anything or will calmly ask: “Please take them off.” Therefore, it is recommended not to wear masks,” SRE executive director of strategy and public diplomacy Zegbe said in an interview with ESPN.
However, the organizers of the Qatar World Cup, the High Committee on Shipping and Heritage (SC), told Reuters that there is no policy banning masks at the World Cup.
“Full face masks, such as the famous Mexican wrestling masks, obviously have to be removed for security reasons when entering stadiums. Because they are no different from the medical masks that the security service asks to remove so that you can see the faces of the fans entering the stadiums. There is no policy on this, nor has it been established or reported that fans will not be allowed to wear such masks in any of the World Cup stadiums in Qatar or elsewhere in the country. We look forward to welcoming as many Mexican fans as possible to the FIFA World Cup in Qatar,” SC said in a statement.
According to FIFA, Mexico will have one of the largest fan bases at the World Cup. The national team of this country got into group C, where it will play with Poland, Argentina and Saudi Arabia.
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