Despite public criticism for his decision, a Belgian footballer currently competing in the World Cup temporarily left the team to attend the birth of his first child. Earlier in June, Doku announced that his wife, Shireen, was pregnant and due in July, which presented a challenge for the star footballer. While the World Cup is a once-in-a-lifetime event,
so is the birth of your first child, and Doku said he did not intend to miss it - not even if Belgium was still participating in the quarterfinals of the tournament. Doku told Reuters: "It depends on when it happens, but it's my first child, so I would definitely want to be there. If you ask me what I want, my answer is that nobody wants to miss the birth of their first child. But I also know that football involves many other considerations. I know the federation supports its players and understands their situations. We'll see what we can do." Doku plays football professionally with Manchester City, so travel by plane would have been necessary from the United States to London to attend the birth. This plan was harshly criticized by female L'Equipe channel presenter France Pierron, who called childbirth a "disgusting moment." She opined: "The World Cup is an incredible joy. There are hundreds of footballers who would kill to be in your shoes. It might never happen again in your life. You're living out a childhood dream, yet you're going to walk away from it all to attend the birth of your child - a disgusting moment, if you'll pardon the expression, where the dad is completely useless." But viewers
did not pardon the expression, Pierron's comments were criticized in return, including by athletes like former boxer Brahim Asloum. "A baby is your entire life," he said. "A World Cup is over when it is over." English footballer Ollie Watkins likewise hit back at Pierron: "I think someone labelled it disgusting and I think for a start that's not a way to label a birth. I've seen what my wife had to go through and that was quite smooth sailing but I know family members and friends that haven't had it that way. It only happens once - welcoming your first child to the world - and it is a blessing. There's a lot of times where you're away from family and friends during the season and it's very difficult, so to miss that would be tough and I see where he's coming from." After significant backlash, the channel itself issued an apology for Pierron's remarks. The Globe reported: L'Equipe also issued a statement distancing itself from Pierron, saying the network "disassociates itself" from the comments that were "very far removed from the group's values," the Athletic reported, adding L'Equipe also apologized to Doku and its viewers.
