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Jules Kounde Supports Macklemore After Tour Exit As Toni Kroos Backs Ed Sheeran

Arsenal Women, Barcelona, Ed Sheeran, Emily Fox, Jules Kounde, Leah Williamson, Macklemore, Toni Kroos

The ongoing geopolitical and corporate music controversy surrounding Ed Sheeran‘s Loop Tour has sparked an unprecedented wave of public responses from the global professional soccer community, dividing elite athletes into opposing camps of solidarity on Instagram.

The situation erupted after the abrupt announcement that American rapper Macklemore would be dropped from the tour’s upcoming stadium leg in the United States due to his explicit on-stage pro-Palestinian remarks and live performances of his protest anthem, “Hind’s Hall.”

This performance irritated several stadium owners and concert promoters. Most notably, billionaire Robert Kraft, who owns the New England Patriots and Gillette Stadium, declined to allow Macklemore to perform at his venue. Kraft and other stadium owners issued an ultimatum to the tour organizers: fire Macklemore or the entire tour would be banned from performing at their venues.

To prevent the multimillion-dollar tour from being canceled, the concert promoter officially fired Macklemore from all remaining dates.

This made Macklemore post a highly personal 12-slide statement on Instagram explaining that he was removed from the tour after billionaire stadium owner Robert Kraft banned him from Gillette Stadium due to his pro-Palestinian messaging and song “Hind’s Hall”.

As word spread of Macklemore’s termination, prominent figures from both men’s and women’s European football stepped forward to express their explicit support for the rapper’s stance.

On September 14, 2026, FC Barcelona and French national team defender Jules Kounde, who is widely regarded as one of football’s most socially and politically conscious voices, used his personal Instagram account to repost Macklemore’s lengthy official response directly to his Instagram Stories.

This powerful co-sign sent shockwaves through social media, prompting viral celebratory fan edits on X using the hashtag #FreePalestine.

Hours later, the solidarity spread directly into the elite tiers of women’s soccer when Emily Fox, the starting right-back for Arsenal W.F.C. and the United States Women’s National Team (USWNT), publicly “liked” Macklemore’s primary explanation post, eliciting enormous praise from sports subcultures who celebrated her firm ethical boundary.

Credit – Instagram

The locker room momentum quickly shifted from individual support to complete leadership backing when Leah Williamson, captain of the England Women’s National Team and Fox’s Arsenal teammate, liked the statement.

Chelsea F.C. Women and England national team forward Aggie Beever-Jones and Ipswich Town Women’s player Mary Grace McAteer, joined the digital wave by liking Macklemore’s post, demonstrating that this solidarity extended beyond club rivalries and into the Women’s Super League (WSL).

The involvement of such powerful corporate sports figures escalated a music industry dispute into a viral mainstream culture war.

Following Macklemore’s departure, scheduled opening acts Finneas, Lukas Graham, and Aaron Rowe all canceled their tour dates in complete artistic solidarity.

Beoga, an Irish folk band, officially announced their departure from Ed Sheeran’s live backing band with a direct, uncompromising public statement. On September 15, 2026, the band announced their immediate walkout from the Loop Tour via social media, stating:

“We have made the decision to depart as Ed Sheeran’s band on the remaining US Loop tour, following the silencing of Macklemore by zionist lobbies.”

Their departure dealt a significant logistical blow to the tour, as Beoga is not only an opening act, but also the musical backbone that performs live on stage with Sheeran for large portions of his headlining set. Their departure, along with opening acts Aaron Rowe, Lukas Graham and Finneas, leaves Sheeran completely isolated for his upcoming stadium shows.

However, as the fallout forced Ed Sheeran to issue a formal defense on his personal Instagram account, attempting to distance himself from the decision by stating that he is appalled by the human tragedy on both sides and has only ever booked Macklemore out of artistic respect, the athlete interactions shifted dramatically.

While progressive players supported Macklemore, legendary retired Real Madrid and German national team midfielder Toni Kroos made headlines for explicitly liking Sheeran’s neutral, corporate defense post.

This immediate clash of digital alignments drew fierce backlash from fans on X, with some users posting screenshots of the statement with the caption “this bum…”, harshly criticizing Sheeran’s statement as spineless.

This digital battleground between footballers mirrors the tour’s complete collapse, which has resulted in a total industry walkout.

The crisis became a logistical nightmare when Sheeran’s actual live backing band, the Irish traditional folk group Beoga, also walked out on the tour, leaving the megastar isolated and heavily mocked online, just as his beloved football club, Ipswich Town, was knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Arsenal.

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