What we witnessed at the 2025 Champions League Final was not a cultural misunderstanding. It was not a religious moment deserving hushed deference. It was plain, old-fashioned sexism—dressed up in piety and excused by the cowardice of polite society.
As Paris Saint-Germain celebrated their victory over Inter Milan, UFC star Khabib Nurmagomedov joined CBS Sports’ live coverage. He shook hands with his male peers. Then, with presenter Kate Abdo… he refused. She extended her hand, professional and gracious. He left it hanging.
This wasn’t an oversight. It wasn’t subtle. It was a live, deliberate display of contempt for a woman doing her job.
And yet, not a word from the men beside him. Not a flinch. Not even the decency to acknowledge the insult. Instead: polite smiles, camera-friendly grins, and the unspoken agreement that some forms of disrespect are now untouchable.
Let’s Be Clear: This Was Misogyny
Refusing to shake a woman’s hand because she is a woman is misogynistic. Full stop. It signals a belief that women are less worthy of acknowledgment, less deserving of basic respect, and ultimately less human in the public square. You don’t need to be a sociologist to see it. You just need to be awake.
Some tried to spin it as religious observance. Others warned that criticism risked being “Islamophobic.” But it is not Islamophobic to call out sexism when it’s paraded on global television. It’s called defending equality. They were in France. And those who weaponise tolerance to excuse intolerance are playing a dangerous game.
As Marina Akhmedova of Russia’s Human Rights Council rightly pointed out: Khabib’s so-called “modesty” is selectively applied. His televised refusal to touch a woman’s hand clashes awkwardly with his shirtless, thigh-baring performances in the Octagon—violations of Islamic dress codes that never seem to bother him when pay-per-view money is on the table.
This isn’t devotion. It’s hypocrisy.
A Deafening Silence
What made the moment worse, if that’s possible, was the silence of the men around him. Not one challenged him. Not one stood up for their colleague. The message was clear: male pride trumps female dignity. And for the millionth time, a woman was hung out to dry while the boys’ club closed ranks around her.
Would this have happened if it were a man he snubbed? Would the others have said nothing?
As former Miss Great Britain and political commentator Leilani Dowding says: “It’s interesting, we fought so hard for equality but now we welcome these men that see women as beneath them as the other men stand around and smile on…. I’m willing to bet Joey Barton would shake her hand. Yet he gets absolutely vilified for his words. Actions speak louder than words but I bet the mainstream will look on and say nothing about these actions!”
She’s right. Here in the West we fought long and hard for the right of women to take up space in sport, in media, in public life. Now we welcome men who will not even touch them, as though equality were optional, as though professional women should silently adapt to the personal prejudices of men who consider them untouchable.
When the “Wrong” Men Speak
And Leilani is right again. If Joey Barton had refused to shake a female presenter’s hand, or so much as tweeted something controversial, the media would have erupted in fury. Think pieces. TV debates. Public apologies demanded. But Khabib? Silence. Deference. Excuses.
Apparently, misogyny is only outrageous when it doesn’t come cloaked in religion or status.
Actions speak louder than words, and the silence around this one spoke volumes.
No More Excuses
We do not owe politeness to those who are openly disrespectful. We do not owe silence to men who believe women are unworthy of equal treatment. And we certainly do not owe immunity to those who hide behind religion to justify discrimination.
It is not brave to shake hands with men and ignore women. It is not cultural, it is cowardly.
And I will not apologise for calling it what it is. Neither will Leilani.
