Vienna, Austria, Jun 23, 2019 / 07:10 am
The international debut of the Vatican women's football team, which was scheduled to play in a friendly against the Vienna FC Mariahilf Saturday, was cancelled after abortion and LGBT activists disrupted the game before it began, local media reported.
According to several local media reports, players of the Viennese soccer team Mariahilf lifted their jerseys whilst the Vatican anthem was playing, displaying painted ovaries and pro-abortion messages. Activists also displayed LGBT banners on the sidelines at the venue.
The Vatican team, who had been invited to Vienna by FCM, decided not to go ahead with the June 22 match.
The Apostolic Nuncio in Austria, Pedro Lopez Quintana, witnessed the protests but was not involved in the decision to cancel the game, local media reported.