{"id":49185,"date":"2026-06-25T08:41:24","date_gmt":"2026-06-25T12:41:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/2026\/06\/25\/world-cup-fans-make-statement-after-being-hospitalized-with-rainbow-flags\/"},"modified":"2026-06-25T08:41:24","modified_gmt":"2026-06-25T12:41:24","slug":"world-cup-fans-make-statement-after-being-hospitalized-with-rainbow-flags","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/2026\/06\/25\/world-cup-fans-make-statement-after-being-hospitalized-with-rainbow-flags\/","title":{"rendered":"World Cup fans make statement after being hospitalized with rainbow flags"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_74 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/2026\/06\/25\/world-cup-fans-make-statement-after-being-hospitalized-with-rainbow-flags\/#World_Cup_fans_release_statement_after_assault_allegations\" >World Cup fans release statement after assault allegations<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-5' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-5'><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-5' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-5'><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-5' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-5'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/2026\/06\/25\/world-cup-fans-make-statement-after-being-hospitalized-with-rainbow-flags\/#Alexi_Lalas_takes_revenge_on_Ibrahimovic_and_leaves_Thierry_Henry_with_stitches\" >Alexi Lalas takes revenge on Ibrahimovic and leaves Thierry Henry with stitches<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<div>\n<p>A 2026 World Cup fan has spoken out for the first time since being hospitalized after waving a rainbow flag in Canada to watch Germany vs. Ivory Coast.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- No AdsNinja v10 Client! --><!-- No AdsNinja v10 Client! --><\/p>\n<p>Alex Alber, 33, traveled to Toronto from Berlin to watch the second group game of the tournament, in which Julian Nagelsmann&#8217;s team defeated Ivory Coast in the late Deniz Undav&#8217;s winner.<\/p>\n<p>Alex and two of his friends took to the streets of Toronto to celebrate Germany&#8217;s second championship win. At that time, he was attacked and injured in a sports bar by a group believed to be motivated by homophobia.<\/p>\n<p>The 33-year-old released a statement about the incident and shared images of the wounds he sustained in the alleged attack.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- No AdsNinja v10 Client! --><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"world-cup-fan-releases-statement-after-alleged-attack\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"World_Cup_fans_release_statement_after_assault_allegations\"><\/span>\n                        <strong>World Cup fans release statement after assault allegations<\/strong><br \/>\n               <span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Alex revealed that he sustained injuries so severe that he had to go to the hospital.<\/p>\n<p>The German fan gave details of the alleged attack:<em> &#8220;We were out at Club Paris Texas in Toronto. A friend brought a rainbow fan and that was enough. It started with a group of guys in their early 20s insulting us. It ended with us being attacked. The result is this photo.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;I&#8217;m fine now. Jersey didn&#8217;t survive. I had $5,000 in medical bills. But that&#8217;s not the only thing that leaves me speechless.&#8221; <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;What it means is that people in their early 20s, who we continue to call more open than previous generations, are still dealing with this kind of hatred. I&#8217;m not gay myself, but I know that the LGBTQ+ community lives with this problem every day, and that&#8217;s why I can&#8217;t stay silent.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;For us, those fans mean one thing: everyone can be who they are. Freedom, diversity, people living their lives. To experience this as a guest in another country breaks my heart.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;And the club was just the tip of the iceberg. My friend was harassed all day long in the stadium, by other fans, even by German fans. This is not a country problem. It&#8217;s everywhere. That&#8217;s what matters.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"w-display-card-vignette\">\n<div class=\"qz\">\n<div class=\"qz-content\">\n<div id=\"qend\">\n<p>you scored<\/p>\n<p>out of 20<\/p>\n<p>      <button class=\"e-replay\" onclick=\"startQuiz()\">\u21a9 Play again<\/button>\n    <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>Alex also called on others to &#8220;stand up&#8221; against homophobia after sharing that he had been reported to the police.<em>We consulted the police. There are photos and videos of people who have done this. We are determining our next steps.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;This World Cup tells some beautiful stories. This is one of those ugly stories, and pretending it doesn&#8217;t exist helps no one. That&#8217;s why we share it.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;We want to speak up and say it loud and clear: We will never tolerate this and we will always stand up for it. And we ask you, if you see something like this, please intervene. Don&#8217;t look away. Everyone should be themselves. That&#8217;s what we&#8217;re radiating.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<p>He revealed the extent of his injuries on social media.<\/p>\n<p>Germany have already secured their place at the top of Group E, with Nagelsmann&#8217;s side looking to build on their strong start and are likely to face Panama in the round of 32.<\/p>\n<p><em>Read next: Alexi Lalas takes revenge on Ibrahimovic, leaves Thierry Henry with stitches<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"display-card  article article-card small  no-badge  active-content                              \" data-include-community-rating=\"false\" id=\"alexi-lalas-finally-one-ups-zlatan-ibrahimovic-leaving-henry-in-stitches\" data-nosnippet=\"\">\n<p>                        <\/p>\n<p>                    <span data-field=\"label\" class=\"article-card-label\"><label>related<\/label><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"w-display-card-content regular article-block\">\n<h5 class=\"display-card-title \"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Alexi_Lalas_takes_revenge_on_Ibrahimovic_and_leaves_Thierry_Henry_with_stitches\"><\/span>\n<p>\t\t\tAlexi Lalas takes revenge on Ibrahimovic and leaves Thierry Henry with stitches<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n<p class=\"display-card-excerpt\">The former USA international finally got the legendary striker back on his own during Fox&#8217;s World Cup broadcast.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A 2026 World Cup fan has spoken out for the first time since being hospitalized after waving a rainbow flag in Canada to watch Germany vs. Ivory Coast. Alex Alber, 33, traveled to Toronto from Berlin to watch the second group game of the tournament, in which Julian Nagelsmann&#8217;s team defeated Ivory Coast in the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":49186,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[913,598,7576,40,3568,9392,2093,42],"class_list":["post-49185","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-football","tag-cup","tag-fans","tag-flags","tag-football","tag-hospitalized","tag-rainbow","tag-statement","tag-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49185","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49185"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49185\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49186"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49185"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49185"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49185"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}