Yes, it is a capitulation. Yes, it is a lily-livered climbdown. Yes, it is a white flag rather than a rainbow armband.
Yes, when it comes to kow-towing to the money-obsessed, power-crazed autocrats who run FIFA, the Football Association has proven itself to be as guilty as anyone. And yes, what was a fundamentally feeble gesture in the first place has now made England - and the other six nations who have surrendered - look utterly pathetic.
But here is a thing. This shameful back-tracking, this nauseous row that dominated the build-up to England’s opening match in Group B should shine a far fiercer, far more damning critical light on FIFA and on the Qatari organisers than on the FA and the national associations of Wales, Belgium, Holland, Switzerland, Germany and Denmark.
It IS a climbdown, it IS a capitulation from those associations but FIFA - presumably in conjunction with the Qatar organising committee (as was the case for the late beer ban) - put the PLAYERS, the only essential lifeblood of the tournament, in a horrible position.
Was there a discussion between the FA hierarchy and Harry Kane? Perhaps not - the same as there was probably not a discussion between Welsh officials and Gareth Bale.
But if there had been, Kane would have had to agree to have his entire World Cup jeopardised so he could carry out a token gesture on behalf of an organisation who, along with every other nation, were not prepared to do anything more meaningful than get behind an armband.
Kane would have had to risk a dismissal, a suspension and his natural game being undermined for the sake of that token gesture.
FIFA - who, laughably, laud themselves as champions of ‘No Discrimination’ - knew this would be the scenario, knew they were putting the associations in an impossible decision. That is why they deserve the condemnation more than the FA and their counterparts from around Europe.
And, funnily enough - in a black comedy fashion, of course - in terms of giving the plight of the LGBTQ community in Qatar more exposure to a global audience, the actual row over the armband has been way, way more effective than the armband itself.
There are more people who will know Kane is not wearing the armband than there would have been had he actually wore the armband.
FIFA’s stance on this has ensured that it will remain a topic of discussion over the duration of the World Cup … but that is the only possible consolation to take out of this.
England and six other nations do not come out of this with much credibility - if any - but they sacrificed credibility because they did not want to put their captains in an invidious position in the biggest moments of their sporting careers. But while we might kick the Football Association, it is FIFA who deserve our unqualified contempt.
