UEFA Chief Ceferin Blasts 'Populist' Munich Rainbow Initiative

UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin on Wednesday said the footballing body could not give in to "populist" requests from politicians, as he defended the decision not to allow Munich's Allianz Arena to be lit up in rainbow colors.

"UEFA cannot be used as a tool by politicians," Ceferin told Germany's Die Welt newspaper after Munich's mayor had made the rainbow request in protest at Hungary's anti-LGBTQ law.

"We don't want to be used in populist actions," Ceferin said, while insisting that "UEFA is not a homophobic organization."