About The Stance
The Stance is a public-record tracker of athletes’ visible positions on major geopolitical issues.
It is built around a simple principle: verifiable evidence.
The Stance does not attempt to read minds or assign private beliefs. It tracks public actions, statements, posts, donations, affiliations, symbolic gestures, and other documented signals that are submitted by the public and carefully reviewed before being added to the record.
Why this exists
The Stance was created by fans watching the World Cup who were curious about some of their favorite players’ positions on important global issues.
A quick search made the problem obvious: the public record around athlete stances is full of noise.
Information is scattered across social media, interviews, deleted posts, news articles, match-day gestures, charity campaigns, fan screenshots, and low-quality viral claims. Some of it is real. Some of it is missing context. Some of it is completely fake.
For example, viral posts claimed that Cristiano Ronaldo donated €1.5 million to Palestinians for Ramadan iftar. That claim was false, according to fact-checks by the Associated Press and AFP. Other posts circulated an altered image that appeared to show Lionel Messi proudly holding the Israeli flag. That image was also fake, according to Reuters.
Rumors like these are not just inaccurate. They are counterproductive. They make it harder for fans, journalists, researchers, and the public to understand what athletes have actually said or done.
The Stance exists to cut through that noise.
Athletes have enormous public platforms. Their words and actions can shape opinion, raise awareness, normalize silence, and influence public sentiment around major issues. The goal of The Stance is to separate documented public evidence from rumor, assumption, mistranslation, and engagement bait.
The first version of The Stance focuses on footballers and their public stances related to Palestine and Israel.
The structure is designed to expand later to other major geopolitical conflicts and humanitarian crises, including Ukraine, Sudan, Congo, and other issue areas where public evidence can be collected and reviewed responsibly.
What we track
The database records public evidence related to athlete stances on specific issues. Evidence may include:
- Public statements
- Social media posts or reposts
- Public donations or fundraisers
- Symbolic gestures
- Participation in campaigns
- Public affiliations
- Documented refusals, removals, or controversies
- Credible reporting from reputable sources
The goal is not to create viral screenshots or simplified rankings. The goal is to build a structured, reviewable record.
What we do not track
The Stance does not claim to know an athlete’s private beliefs.
A public record can show what someone said, posted, signed, donated, joined, removed, refused, or publicly supported. It cannot prove what someone privately thinks.
The Stance does not treat rumors, unsourced screenshots, fake quotes, altered images, nationality, religion, ethnicity, or fan assumptions as evidence by themselves.
Silence is also handled carefully. In some contexts, silence from a major public figure may become part of the public conversation. But silence alone is not treated as proof of a private belief.
How the categories work
Stances are grouped into evidence-based categories. These categories are not moral verdicts. They are labels used to organize public evidence.
Public evidence that directly expresses support for Palestine, Palestinians, Palestinian rights, or Palestinian liberation.
Public evidence focused on relief, donations, medical aid, food, shelter, civilian protection, or general humanitarian support, without necessarily making a broader political statement.
Public evidence calling for a ceasefire, an end to bombing, an end to violence, or a halt to military action.
Public evidence that a viral claim, image, quote, video, rumor, or alleged action was false, altered, fabricated, misleading, or unsupported by credible sources.
Evidence that is ambiguous, indirect, incomplete, contested, low-confidence, or not clearly classifiable. This can include cases where a player has been pulled into public discussion but the available evidence does not clearly show a stance.
Public evidence that directly expresses support for Israel, Israeli institutions, Israeli military action, Israeli national symbols, or pro-Israel campaigns.
A player may have multiple evidence events over time. Some may be direct and explicit. Others may be indirect, ambiguous, or contested. The database is designed to preserve that complexity rather than flatten it into a single viral claim.
Built for accountability
The Stance is intended as a research and accountability tool.
It is not designed to encourage harassment, abuse, threats, or pile-ons. Public figures can be criticized. Public records can be examined. But the purpose of this project is documentation, not mob behavior.
Users are encouraged to read the evidence, check the sources, and make their own judgments.
Corrections and submissions
The Stance is evidence-first. If an entry is missing context, uses a weak source, misclassifies an action, or overlooks important evidence, corrections are welcome.
Submissions should include a source, date, relevant quote or action, and a short explanation of why the evidence matters.
The goal is to make the record better over time.