Monaco's Mohamed Camara has been suspended for four matches, the French football league (LFP) said on Thursday, after an LGBTQ+ support logo on the Mali international's shirt was covered up during a Ligue 1 match.
Camara's shirt badge was covered with white tape in Monaco's final league match of the season on 19 May, in which he scored a penalty in a 4–0 home win against Nantes.
“After listening to the player Mohamed Camara and verifying his refusal during the meeting to carry out one or more awareness-raising actions on the fight against homophobia, the Commission decided to impose a four-match suspension on him,” the LFP said in a statement.
The French Minister of Sports, Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, had called for “the most severe sanctions” against the 24-year-old. Following Oudéa-Castéra's statements, the Malian Football Federation issued a statement supporting the player.
“It is important to remember that players are citizens like any other, whose fundamental rights must be protected in all circumstances,” the federation said.
On Thursday, Monaco chief executive Thiago Scuro said the club supported the French league's LGBTQ+ support campaign.
“It was a personal initiative of Mo Camara,” Scuro told French media. “We will have this conversation with Mo internally. Internally, we will discuss this situation.”
Camara's managing agency, Unique Sports Group, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Last year, several Ligue 1 players refused to participate in a gesture supporting LGBTQ+ inclusion that called for players to wear a jersey with a rainbow-colored number on the back.
