Rising soccer star could miss World Cup after yelling gay slur

Gianluca Prestianni has to be regretting his use of a gay slur more than any mistake he’s made in his young career.

The 20-year-old winger for Benfica — a pro soccer team in Portugal — has learned that the suspension he’s received for directing a gay slur toward an opponent in a match earlier this year will be extended internationally.

That means that if he’s selected for the FIFA World Cup team representing his home country of Argentina, he will have to sit out the first two matches of the Group stage.

Those two matches are set to be against Algeria in Kansas City on June 16, and against Austria in Arlington, Texas, on June 22. He would be eligible to play against Jordan a few days later in Argentina’s final Group Stage match.

Argentina is currently ranked No. 3 in the world. Austria is ranked No. 24, and Algeria is ranked No. 28. Jordan is No. 63.

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Yes, Argentina, the reigning FIFA World Cup champions, got a sweet Group Stage draw.

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Argentina got a sweet Group Stage draw

With that said, Argentina could possibly choose to include Prestianni on the squad, as the team shouldn’t desperately need a player who would be a substitute in the Group Stage.

A fresh player who might be needed in the Knockout Stage? Absolutely.

Regardless, Prestianni — barring an appeal and reversal — won’t be playing against Algeria and Austria no matter what.

“The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has decided to extend the six-match ban imposed by UEFA on SL Benfica player Gianluca Prestianni to have worldwide effect,” FIFA said in a statement, according to The Athletic.

FIFA has taken an important stand against gay slurs

The extension into the FIFA World Cup is a powerful moment for FIFA. The World Cup is the biggest event in all of sports around the world, even bigger than the Olympic Games. Soccer is the world’s most popular sport, and with 48 countries now descending on the United States, Mexico and Canada, the attention of people around the world will turn to North America.

That FIFA would choose to bar a player for two matches for uttering a gay slur is powerful. Sure, this isn’t a star of a country’s team. However, creating this policy now ensures other players who are international stars will take notice.

No player wants to be barred from the FIFA World Cup.

Gianluca Prestianni offered a terrible explanation for his gay slur

For his part, Prestianni has offered a terrible explanation and excuse for calling an opponent a gay slur.

A Google translation of an interview he did about the incident shows how far the gay community has to go to help athletes understand the power of their words.

Ugh.

“They wanted to call me homophobic,” Prestianni whined. “It was trying to stir things up over things that aren’t true. For us Argentinians, they’re normal insults, like ‘fa**ot,’ ‘queer.’ But luckily the team and the entire coaching staff supported me.”

We’ve heard this over and over and over and over again. Slurs rooted in homophobia, according to the assumed-to-be straight athletes uttering them shouldn’t be considered anti-gay. The homophobia is so deep, they unknowingly claim, that it should be ignored.

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Of course these gay slurs are simply substituted for ideas of strength and integrity because, in the world Prestianni was raised and embraces, being gay is inherently weak and lacking of integrity.

Will Prestianni be chosen to compete for Argentina in the FIFA World Cup regardless of the suspension? He played in the Under-20 World Cup Final last year for Argentina, losing to Morocco, 2-0.

He’s made only one appearance as an active player for the senior team, a match against Angola last year in which he played as a substitute in the final minutes of the match. He was also added as a substitute for a friendly earlier this year.

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