Harry Kane praised but FIFA slammed as England LGBT+ fan group raise Qatar safety concerns

England's LGBT+ fan group Three Lions Pride have praised Harry Kane for speaking out about the human rights concerns over Qatar, with the draw for the World Cup less than a week away.

Major concerns have been raised about the safety of LGBT+ fans travelling to the Middle East country for the winter tournament, where homosexuality is illegal. And England captain Kane made it clear earlier this week that Gareth Southgate's squad will seek to raise awareness of those human rights issues.

"As a nation we want our fans to enjoy the tournament as much as we hopefully enjoy the tournament. And we want them to feel safe and free to watch the games how they please and act how they want to act," Kane said.

Kane's comments follow the England squad's work to improve inclusiveness in football at Euro 2020, when the players took the knee ahead of matches and the Tottenham striker wore a rainbow captain's armband. Three Lions Pride have welcomed Kane's support and also encouraged other members of the squad to "educate, empower and engage" LGBT+ football supporters.

"[The England squad should] Educate themselves and others on the issues, empower LGBT+ people to talk about these points and uplift them and engage within the sporting world to raise concerns and awareness on these human rights issues," a group spokesman exclusively told Mirror Sport.

"Having players using their platform to raise human rights issues is hugely important - the work that groups like ours do is often unnoticed and players with their reach & platforms amplifying the concerns and work others do in human rights is extremely helpful.

"This England squad, as we saw during the Euros, is not just one that’s great on the pitch but is engaged and empathetic off it