Lauren Jones
Comedian Joe Lycett quite literally put his money where his mouth was last week in protest of David Beckham’s partnership with the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. While highly controversial, and eventually revealed to be a stunt, the comedian’s unwavering resolve to take a stand was incredibly effective and should be admired.
Boycotting Beckham
Sparking Lycett’s protest, David Beckham reportedly agreed a deal with Visit Qatar to work as a World Cup Ambassador during the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The deal, reportedly worth £10 million, brought Beckham into the line of fire over human rights concerns in the host nation of Qatar.
“football is more than just a game”
In 2002, Beckham became the first Premier League footballer to feature on the cover of gay lifestyle magazine Attitude, and is recognised as a “gay icon”. This makes his involvement with Qatar more puzzling. Homosexuality is illegal in Qatar, and carries penalties including fines, prison sentences, and even death. Other human rights concerns have also been raised regarding the FIFA World Cup, such as migrant workers’ rights. These concerns emphasise that football is more than just a game – it is also an industry that has strong political and economic power, and one that raises important social questions for consideration.
Following on from Beckham’s deal, Lycett posted a video to his Instagram in which he offered Beckham an ultimatum. If he ended his deal with Qatar, Lycett would donate £10,000 to charities that support queer people in football. If he did not, Lycett would shred the £10,000 in protest.
When he didn’t hear back from Beckham, Lycett proceeded to shred money whilst wearing a fantastic rainbow-coloured tulle coat. The protest was highly controversial and was later revealed to be a stunt. Lycett shared the next day that he had in fact shredded covers of Attitude that featured David Beckham, and that he had already donated the £10,000 to LGBTQ+ charities.
The importance of Lycett’s protest
The initial backlash against the comedian for his lack of sensitivity towards shredding money during a cost-of-living crisis was fair. But it also worked to his advantage as a means of garnering attention. His initial Instagram video about the protest received 1.3 million views.
By asking Beckham to end his deal with Qatar, Lycett publicly pitted money against morals and consequently exposed the footballer’s money-hungry nature when he didn’t respond to Lycett’s ultimatum.
Lycett’s use of the ‘shock factor’ to quickly raise awareness of the problematic nature of Beckham’s deal was clever, and made even better by how convincing it was. Viewers watching the video of Lycett shredding the ‘money’ felt a clear feeling of both respect for Lycett’s resolve and disbelief that he actually followed through with it – creating another talking point.
Although it was revealed that Lycett did not shred the money, this stunt emphasised the power of footballers as public figures, and the ultimate message that their actions still have consequences, even if they are not the ones who are affected.
What should we take from this protest?
As an LGBTQ+ public figure, Lycett utilised his extensive social media following to raise awareness for an important topic that he is both knowledgeable and passionate about. In this sense, Lycett protest became a means of advocating for others, unselfishly using his fame as a tool to achieve this.
“There is a way for all of of us to engage with important, and serious, public discourses”
He also highlighted the two queer charities that he had supported with his £10,000 donation, Stonewall and Sport Allies. In contrast, many other public figures have chosen to remain silent on the topic of LGBTQ+ rights during the FIFA 2022 World Cup. Ultimately, Lycett’s protest is a wake-up call for social media users to consider the celebrities that they are following, and if these public figures are appropriately reacting to important human rights issues as a result of the FIFA World Cup.
Through revealing his threat of shredding money as a joke, Lycett demonstrated that there is a way for every one of us, even comedians, to engage with important, and serious, public discourses. Ultimately, this begs the question – how are you interacting with big topics? From something as small as liking an Instagram post or tweet, to boycotting products and programmes, volunteering, voting, or donating money to charity, there is a way for you to engage with public discourses and exercise your personal power and responsibility.
Featured image courtesy of Jannik Skorna on Unsplash. No changes were made to this image. Image license found here.
Lauren Jones
Lauren is an Au Pair and a recent languages graduate. She is an aspiring journalist and is particularly interested in politics, social issues, and the arts.