CONTENT WARNING: This post briefly discusses rape and sexual assault.
As far as World Cup soccer games go, yesterday’s 0-0 face-off between England and Ghana was pretty uneventful. But one on-pitch moment has still given people plenty to talk about.
Right before kick-off, after the national anthems have been sung, it’s protocol for all the players to shake hands with everyone on the other team as a sign of respect. However, footage from yesterday’s game in Boston showed that one England player, 25-year-old Djed Spence, appeared to refuse a handshake from Ghana’s Thomas Partey.
For some vital context, Partey is currently facing seven charges of rape and one count of sexual assault regarding allegations by four different women between 2020 and 2022. He pleaded not guilty to all the charges and is due to stand trial at Southwark Crown Court in London next year.
The apparent snub from Spence was not shown during the live TV coverage, but photos and video footage of the moment show that the Brit kept his hand by his side when Partey walked past him to receive a handshake. You can watch a close-up of the footage here.
In this picture, you can also see that Partey glances back at Spence as he moves on to shake hands with the next England player. As far as we can tell, Spence was the only England player to actively avoid shaking Partey’s hand in the lineup.
The allegations against Partey have been a significant talking point at the World Cup. Just last week, the 33-year-old had to miss Ghana’s match against Panama in Toronto due to the fact that he was denied entry into Canada for wrongly telling officials that he had never been arrested or charged with a crime. The Ghanaian government sought permission for him to enter Canada briefly so he could play for his country, but the appeal was rejected.
As we previously mentioned, Partey has denied the allegations. However, many feel it’s “sickening” that someone facing such serious charges should still be allowed to play “on the world’s biggest stage.” With this in mind, Spence is being praised for showing some “integrity” with his small act of (apparent) protest.
“Good for him,” one Reddit user wrote in response to the footage, which is amassing millions of views across Reddit, Instagram, and X. “I know FIFA is an awful organization, but shame on them for even allowing him in the tournament.” Echoing this, someone else wrote: “It is still unacceptable that players with these charges are being selected to represent their countries.”
Over on X, the positive reactions were much the same, with many praising Spence for seemingly “being the only England player to show contempt to an accused multiple rapist.” “think of it as performative, think of it as genuine. don’t gaf to be honest,” another X user wrote. “the bar well and truly is in hell, but I’m just happy someone on that pitch cared enough to make a statement.”
England manager Thomas Tuchel was prevented from answering a question about the viral moment during a post-match press conference, with a spokesperson for the team citing “legal reasons.”
Meanwhile, the head coach for Ghana, Carlos Queiroz, did comment on the matter, saying: “We refuse to be part of people that try to bring dust and politics inside the game. We fight to keep the four lines sacred. It’s difficult sometimes, but it happens. So we have to congratulate everybody who leaves politics outside the four lines.”
Djed Spence is yet to comment publicly on the apparent handshake snub, but we’ll keep you posted.
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual assault, you can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673), which routes the caller to their nearest sexual assault service provider. You can also search for your local center here.