I want to start by recognising, of course, that I am looking forward to the men’s team taking part in the finals of the football world cup. I want to start by recognising the achievement of the women’s team though. Albeit they’ve not qualified for the finals, the significant progress they’ve made has made everyone right across this Chamber and outside it tremendously proud and there should be real hope for the future. And I certainly hope the Football Association of Wales continues to invest in the women’s game at all levels, so that there are more Jess Fishlocks playing in our national team in the future, and I think it’s good for all of us to see our women’s team being generally competitive.

On the men’s world cup, I have already highlighted the issues that you’ve raised in my previous visit to Qatar. It was part of the engagement with the British Embassy and the organisers. I know that there are times when people say, ‘You should keep politics and sport separate’, and there’s a good reason why politicians in this Chamber don’t get to decide issues about the running of sports that are quite properly the remit of those governing bodies, but it is entirely appropriate for us to have conversations with governing bodies and international ones about our expectations for fans and for players. It is entirely appropriate to recognise the context in which games are being played.

So, yes, I have already raised those issues directly. I hope people do enjoy the football well beyond the group stage—I certainly hope so. But you can expect us to have constructive conversations, as I’ve outlined in my previous statement in this place, about being proud of the Wales that we are today and the values that we have, and engaging with the rest of the world on that basis. And I hope that there is an attack of common sense from FIFA’s point of view in not trying to prevent captains of teams from wearing the rainbow armband or others. I think it’s a mark of where we are that our football captains from across these islands think that’s a positive thing for them to do for the game and beyond.