Katie McCabe says she won't be watching the World Cup in Qatar and expressed the hope that male players would take a stand against the host nation's regime on gay rights over the coming month.
Harry Kane and Manuel Neuer are among eight international captains who have vowed to wear a rainbow armband in Qatar in support of the LGBTQ community.
The host nation, awarded the tournament in deeply controversial circumstances back in 2010, has been subject to criticism from human rights groups from issues ranging gay rights to the treatment of migrant workers.
Last week, FIFA issued a letter - signed by general secretary Gianni Infantino - to all 32 competing nations, pleading with to focus on football and avoid getting drawn into "political or ideological battles".
"At FIFA, we try to respect all opinions and beliefs, without handing out moral lessons to the rest of the world," Infantino said in the letter.
While the international governing body are keen to discourage political criticism of the hosts, the world players union chief Jonas-Baer Hoffman warned FIFA in September that any move to ban or sanction players wearing rainbow armbands or laces would send a "devastating" message.
McCabe, one of a number of LGBT players in the Ireland team and a supporter of the rainbow laces campaign, admitted that she probably wouldn't watch the 2022 World Cup, though acknowledged that is partly down to her own workload and Ireland's absence.
"Obviously, what's going on over there isn’t great, not a good look for football but the decision has been made," McCabe told RTÉ Sport on Tuesday, hours after it was revealed a Qatari World Cup ambassador had made discriminatory comments in an interview.
"The World Cup will continue and hopefully there won’t be bad news stories around, it will just be football played and that’ll be it.
"I don't have time to watch it, to be honest. We’re straight back into Champions League football. For me, if Ireland aren’t in it, I don’t really fancy it so I think I’ll be giving that one a miss."
The Ireland captain backed Kane's decision to don a rainbow armband and hoped other nations would follow suit with protests of their own over the next month.
"The World Cup is a world stage. Obviously, Harry Kane wearing the rainbow captain's armband will be massive and I think it will raise visibility within the key issues that are in Qatar right now and I hope other nations do that and take a stand while playing the games."
"For me, if Ireland aren't in it, I don’t really fancy it so think I’ll be giving that one a miss."
McCabe, whose Arsenal side have recently returned to top spot in the WSL, spoke to the media ahead of Ireland's November training camp in Marbella, the centrepiece of which is a friendly against fellow World Cup outfit Morocco on 14 November.
Last month, Ireland were in the pot for a Women's World Cup draw for the first time, ultimately being lumped in with hosts Australia, Olympic champions Canada and awkward fourth seeds Nigeria in a relatively glamorous but testing group.
"It was going to be tough no matter who you get," said McCabe, reflecting on the draw. "I think the big one is that opener against Australia.
"To be playing the hosts in the opener in Sydney, you couldn’t ask for a better kickstart to our first World Cup.
"I’m familiar with some of the Australian squad members. I see the quality of Steph Catley and Caitlin Foord day in, day out in training (at Arsenal), so it will be a tough game but one to look forward to.
"Any of those top seeds, they are all going to be difficult games. We've got the Olympic champions in Canada and a quality side in Nigeria. I've a former team-mate, Asisat Oshoala, as well, that plays for Nigeria.
"To be honest, I think we've got one of the tougher groups. I think teams can take points off each other. I don't think there'll be an outright winner, as such. Because I think there are four good quality sides in it that will be giving each other really good things."
In the month since Ireland's dramatic 1-0 win over Hampden Park sealed their place in the World Cup, there were a couple of occasions for McCabe when it sunk in that they were heading Down Under, the first being the draw and seeing the graphic of the tricolour up on screen, the second being a sponsorship gig in Dublin this week, where she was swarmed by young girls in Arsenal and Ireland tops.
"I think there was two moments. The draw, seeing our tricolour, being a part of that whole experience. Obviously speaking to Vera and the guys that went down to the draw, the experience for them...
"The second one would probably be yesterday, I had an appearance with Dove for the Self Esteem project. I hadn't been home at all since the Scotland game itself. I had a meet and greet and the amount of young girls in Ireland kits, in Arsenal kits... just the excitement on their faces, parents congratulating the team for what we have achieved.
"That was a big moment for me to realise, 'Wow, this has actually hit a lot of people and brought a lot of joy to a lot of kids'. It's giving those kids something to dream about one day.
"From where I came, being the only girl from that area to play in the boys team, to seeing all those girls with Arsenal and Ireland kits on…"
McCabe, who made her international debut back in early in 2015, said she didn't envisage having to wait so long to play in a major tournament - notwithstanding Ireland's relatively scant history at the time - and said the pain of Ukraine in late 2020 spurred them on to make amends in this campaign.
"I didn't think it'd take as long as it did. Having the Euro game against Ukraine and how close we got, it kind of spurred us on to roll the sleeves up and go again and not feel sorry for ourselves that we didn't qualify.
"I know a couple of us went to some of the Euro games. You were envious of the girls going out and representing their countries at a major tournament. It gave you the extra edge to make sure we went on and got over the line this time. We didn't want to feel the way we did after Ukraine."
Barring injury, the Morocco game will mark the 100th cap for McCabe's former Arsenal team-mate Louise Quinn, an ever present at the heart of Ireland's defence, who made her international debut back in 2008.
"Honestly, Louise has been such a rock for us for as long as I have been in the team and as long as I have been going to Tallaght to see the senior team play," says McCabe.
"She's not just a fantastic player but an unbelievable person. We used to kill each other playing for Raheny against Peamount - but at Arsenal I saw another side to Louise, how she'd do anything for you, put her body on the line for whoever she's representing, if that's Ireland or Arsenal or Birmingham now.
"When I got the captain's armband, at the time I was quite young and I really looked to Louise to support me in that role.
"I still do to this day, and I will always be grateful for that. To see her make 100 appearances on Monday, all going well, will be a proud day and I know all her family will be proud of her too."
* The original headline on this story was 'Katie McCabe would not play in a Women's World Cup in Qatar'. This was due to a misheard question on a virtual call and was corrected as soon as possible.
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