By Ian Ransom
MELBOURNE, May 20 (Reuters) - Unionist, activist and champion of inclusion, Australia's Jackson Irvine is known as much for standing up for his beliefs as his midfield industry, but at the World Cup he may leave the statements to his football.
Massive global interest makes the World Cup an inviting platform for protest, despite FIFA banning political, religious and personal slogans and imagery from team equipment.
Australia made waves before the last World Cup in Qatar when Irvine and
15 other players raised concerns in a video about migrant worker conditions and called for the decriminalisation of same-sex relationships in the Gulf nation.
Germany-based Irvine looks back with pride at that statement on Qatar, saying the players had done more than six months' homework on the issues, speaking to migrant workers, international labour organisations and rights groups.
"It wasn't throwing an armband on and saying, you know, this is what we believe," Irvine told Reuters.
"We did our preparation, we made our statement, and then once we got to Qatar, we were able to focus on performing and it led to our best-ever finish at the World Cup."
Four years on, there is no shortage of scrutiny on the World Cup co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Activists and NGOs have warned of risks of human rights abuses for athletes, fans and workers in the United States, particularly, pointing to a hardline immigration crackdown and deportation drive pursued by the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump.
Australia's national soccer players' union, of which Irvine is co-president, has urged governing body FIFA to do more to mitigate the risks of human rights abuses.
"The players' rightful expectation is that FIFA respects and protects the human rights of all involved in the World Cup," Professional Footballers Australia (PFA) chief Beau Busch told Reuters in an emailed statement.
"To date we are not satisfied that the players' expectations are being met."
FIFA did not provide immediate comment but president Gianni Infantino has said repeatedly that all participating in the World Cup will be welcome to the global showpiece.
HUGE SHIFT IN THE DYNAMIC
While Australia's players have their union's full support to raise rights concerns, Irvine suggested another Qatar-style protest was unlikely ahead of the coming World Cup, with the Socceroos a different group from four years ago and more focused on the football.
"I would say in the last four years, we've seen a huge shift in the dynamic of the group. We're a much younger group now," he said.
"Especially with myself having not been really involved in the last 12 months, I haven't really had the chance to kind of have those conversations with the players and see where their feelings lie going into this tournament about the political and social aspects."
Irvine is captain of Hamburg-based St Pauli, a famously progressive club which he says aligns with his values.
Players at St Pauli are active in local communities and often work with NGOs on social causes.
Irvine has raised awareness of homelessness in Hamburg and supports a local organisation offering counselling and interpreters for refugees and migrants seeking healthcare.
He has been fighting other battles this year, winning one with a foot injury and losing another trying to help St Pauli avoid relegation from the German top flight.
He remains a pivotal figure in the Australia setup and, while outspoken on various issues, is adamant his advocacy will not prove a distraction to his team at the World Cup where they play Turkey, the United States and Paraguay in Group D.
"I'm constantly trying to find that balance. Of course I have my own individual beliefs, but I will not be in the U.S. this summer as an individual," he said.
"I'm there as a part of a team that wants to achieve success and I would never do anything to distract from the performances of the team by going rogue, individually."
(Reporting by Ian Ransom in Melbourne; Editing by Toby Davis)
