FA CEO Martin Glenn Apologises After Criticism of Pep Guardiola Yellow Ribbon

Martin Glenn, the chief executive of the Football Association, has issued an apology for comments in which he compared the Star of David with a Nazi swastika. 

Glenn made the remarks in reference to the yellow ribbon being worn by Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola, which is a symbol in support of imprisoned Catalan politicians.

The FA boss remarked he was against political motifs being worn, saying it "could be the Star of David, it could be the hammer and sickle, it could be a swastika, anything like (Zimbabwe's former president) Robert Mugabe on your shirt, these are the things we don't want," per Rob Harris of the Associated Press.

Following the comments and subsequent criticism, Glenn issued a statement admitting his comments were misguided on Monday, per Harris:

The Guardian's Barney Ronay commented on Glenn's apology:

In a statement to BBC Sport, the Jewish Leadership Council said it found the reference to the Star of David "ill-judged and in poor taste."

"The Star of David is a Jewish religious symbol of immense importance to Jews worldwide. To put it in the same bracket as the swastika and Mugabe is offensive and inappropriate," the bulletin continued.

As noted by BBC Sport, the Israeli national team have the Star on their strip and the FA has it in its logo. Journalist James Masters also cited the example of non-League club Wingate & Finchley:

Meanwhile, Kristof Terreur of Het Laastse Nieuws predicted the FA chief executive would be prompted into an apology for his comments:

Guardiola was charged by the FA in February for continually wearing the yellow ribbon, having previously received two warnings for the breach of kit regulations. The City boss has until 6 p.m. GMT on Monday to respond to the charge.

Per the report, Glenn confirmed Rule 4 had been amended to allow poppies, a symbol of remembrance with regard to the world's wars, to be displayed on shirts, although political symbols remain prohibited.