Senior Saudi football officials have apologised after their national team chose not to participate in a minute’s silence for the victims of the London Bridge attacks in their match against Australia.
Australian players linked arms as a sign of respect before last Thursday’s World Cup qualifying match at Adelaide Oval.
Saudi players took up field positions whilst others continued to stretch.
Football officials said they had been told in advance that the “tradition was not in keeping with Saudi culture” which an Australian MP described as “disgraceful”.
FIFA has confirmed that the Saudi team will not face sanctions.
It said it had reviewed what had happened and judged that there were “no grounds to take disciplinary action”.
Australian football officials said the Saudi team had agreed a minute’s silence could be held.
Subscribe to our newsletter and stay updated on the latest news and updates from around the Muslim world!
But officials were “further advised by Saudi team officials that this tradition was not in keeping with Saudi culture and they would move to their side of the field and respect our custom whilst taking their own positions on the field”, a statement from Football Federation Australia said.
The Saudi Arabian Football Federation made an “unreserved” apology on Friday.
It stated: “The players did not intend any disrespect to the memories of the victims or to cause upset to their families, friends or any individual affected by the atrocity.
“The Saudi Arabian Football Federation condemns all acts of terrorism and extremism and extends its sincerest condolences to the families of all the victims and to the government and people of the United Kingdom.”
This video was cross-posted from the Goals & Highlights YouTube channel.
