Manchester, England – Old Trafford just detonated a culture war bomb.
Argentine warrior Lisandro Martínez, 27, has refused to wear the Premier League’s rainbow LGBT captain’s armband for United’s clash with Brentford, branding it a “woke agenda” and firing: “Football is about the game, the effort, the fans – NOT politics. Stop forcing this on us!”
The butcher of Buenos Aires – known for blood-and-thunder tackles and zero apologies – dropped the nuke in a 30-second locker-room clip leaked to The Sun moments ago. Bruno Fernandes, the usual armband bearer, was sidelined with flu; Martínez was next in line. He tossed the rainbow band on the floor, snarling: “I respect everyone. But don’t shove ideology down my throat. Play football.”
X exploded: #MartinezRebellion hit 3.1 million posts in 20 minutes.
- “FINALLY a player with balls!” – United ultras
- “Homophobic dinosaur. Suspend him!” – Rainbow Laces campaigners
PFA chief Maheta Molango called an emergency meeting. The Premier League’s “No Room for Racism” arm? Silent. Rúben Amorim, United’s boss, dodged mics: “Internal matter.”
Bookies slashed odds on a fine/suspension to 1/3. One viral meme? Martínez slide-tackling a rainbow flag into oblivion, captioned: “Woke 0 – 1 Butcher.”
From pride marches to pitch protests, the beautiful game just got ugly. Will Martínez start? Will fans boo or cheer? The armband war is ON.
