2024-02-24 05:02:43
The Saudi Football Federation announced the appointment of the Englishwoman, Polly Handford, as head of legal affairs for the institution that runs the game in the Kingdom, in a move that followed the rejection of the official, who strongly supports homosexuals, a previous offer from the Kingdom.
Handford has practical experience in the field of sports law, as she was responsible for all legal aspects of the English Football Association, according to a statement from the Saudi Federation.
The statement issued on Tuesday indicated that she has worked in legal affairs in her country’s football federation since 2014, and has 25 years of experience in the field of sports law.
Handford also holds a bachelor’s degree in law and law, which she obtained in 1998. She previously worked as a member of the Disciplinary Committee of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA), and a member of the Appeals Committee of the European Football Association (UEFA).
Location indicates English Union Football Association indicated that she joined it in 2014, before within two years she became Director of Legal Affairs and Governance, a position under which she supervises all legal aspects of the Federation, whether commercial, such as broadcasting agreements, sponsorship, and the regulatory aspect, in addition to what is related to betting, match-fixing, and anti-corruption. .
Handford also held the position of Vice-President of the English Rugby Union from 2010 to 2013, and was a member of an advisory group on anti-doping and drafting and advising on commercial contracts.
Support for the LGBT community
A report was made to the newspaper “The Times“British, regarding Handford’s appointment to the Saudi Football Federation on the issue of her support for gay rights, as the report pointed out that she was a strong advocate during her time at the English Football Association for gay issues, and then she joined “a country that criminalizes homosexuality.”
Saudi Arabia, which is witnessing a major openness campaign and is trying to establish a different image following decades of extremism, criminalizes homosexuality, bisexuality, and transgenderism.
She has also been a strong advocate of the “Rainbow Laces” campaign in English football, under which support for homosexuality is promoted during official FA championship matches with club captains wearing rainbow armbands, among other things, to show support.
The British newspaper pointed out that Handford had previously stated that sport should be used as a platform to promote integration, in reference to the LGBT community.
In 2021, Handford wrote An article On the FA website, she praised the “Rainbow Laces” campaign, saying it was “a great way to integrate support and awareness of the LGBT community with sport”, adding that this “pivotal support for the LGBT community remains ingrained within our association”.
She continued: “We all have a voice, and football provides a unique platform, and we all need to continue to use it to ensure everyone is included.”
Previous rejection
In 2021, Saudi Arabia announced the launch of the “Leaf Golf” league, which Agence France-Presse described as separatist, with lavish prizes amounting to $25 million for each tournament, which competed with the American “PGA” Tour.
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In the summer of 2023, following a series of lawsuits, the American PGA League and the European DB World Tour League announced that they had signed an agreement with the Saudi-backed Live Golf League, in an agreement that would have led to the creation of a “profitable entity.” New collectively owned,” but the deal has not yet been completed.
During those legal rounds, officials from the Leaf Golf League decided to contract with Handford to represent them legally, but she decided to refuse following initial approval and continued to work for the English Football Association.
According to The Times, Handford informed Live Golf Investments, the company behind the fledgling league, which is funded by the Saudi Investment Fund, of its acceptance of the “huge financial offer,” but then backed down and decided to remain in the world of English football.
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