A few days ago, star running back Josh Jacobs stirred up a storm online by claiming that the Green Bay Packers and the Eagles had been instructed not to wear their iconic green jerseys on their trip to South America. What really shocked fans, however, was the fact that the player cited gang violence as the reason why wearing green wouldn’t be allowed.
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The absurd reasoning by Josh Jacobs was a matter of debate for a few days until the NFL issued a public statement denying Jacobs’ comments.
Thanks to the Philadelphia Inquirer’s efforts, they reached out to an NFL spokesman about the whole ordeal of the ban. In reply, the spokesperson assured the publication that when the game kicks off in September, “you will see a stadium full of fans wearing the green of the Eagles and the green of the Packers.”
So in simple words, Brazilian and traveling fans can wear their Packers/Eagles jerseys with pride and cheer for their teams with full enthusiasm in the stadium. After the confirmation that there is no restriction on the teams for their jerseys, fans began wondering how Josh Jacobs could go so far off in his research.
Just to debunk this: An NFL spokesperson has denied that the #Eagles and #Packers won’t be allowed to wear green at their Week 1 game in Brazil because the color is affiliated with gangs. The NFL also denied that the teams would be restricted to their hotels with armored vehicles… pic.twitter.com/SqagzPxn85
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) June 7, 2024
However, a deeper look at the former NFL stars’ claims reveals that there is indeed an informal ban on the color green in that part of the stadium where the two NFL teams will play. The ban, however, is on a soccer club and not a football club — a silly mistake in research by Josh.
Packers and the Eagles Fans Can Wear Green as Long as You Are Not Attending a Corinthians Match
The much-awaited Eagles-Packers game will be played in the home stadium of the Brazilian soccer team Corinthians. The Corinthians Arena is home to some of the most passionate soccer fans in the country, and they have, thus, organized an informal ban on the color green as it’s the color of their arch nemesis Palmeiras. The informal ban is no joke, as a few years ago, a Corinthians player was fined for wearing green cleats.
Considering these factors, Josh Jacobs’ stance does make sense. It, therefore, might be entirely possible that players or fans must have been asked to not wear green in public near the stadium for the obvious reason. However, as the NFL spokesperson said, inside the stadium on matchday, there is no problem in rocking the iconic green jerseys.
Lastly, the Corinthians Arena is a stadium with an immense history of organizing big events. Having been home to the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Olympics, fans or players playing green has never been an issue there. Safe to say, players and fans can freely go green on September 6th.
