When 22 men lined up for their World Cup qualifier match in Wembley stadium on Armistice Day, they had much more in common that their love for football. They each wore a poppy on their arm, in defiance of a Fifa directive banning “political, religious or personal slogans, statements or images”.

The English and Scottish teams opted to ignore the ban, knowing they could face sanctions, possibly even point reductions. But it was an issue of principle, in defiance of political correctness taken to an unacceptable point. That both opposing teams chose to wear the poppy, to commemorate the war dead together, made the event even more poignant.

It is not the first time that the poppy has been at the centre of controversy. Some choose to wear a white poppy, as opposed to red, to signal their opposition to war.  There have been occasions where sports, politics and fashion have collided on the playing field. One recent incident in the US involved female basketball players who wore black t-shirts that drew attention to shootings in Dallas.

So it is understandable that Fifa would be concerned over political symbols, but should it extend its ban to the poppy?

The remembrance poppy, an artificial flower, has been used since 1921 to commemorate military personnel who died in war. It is inspired by the World War I poem In Flanders Fields, the opening lines of which refer to the poppy flowers growing in the churned-up earth of soldiers’ graves in Flanders, Belgium. With time, the poppy has come to commemorate all servicemen and women killed in all conflicts.

So if the poppy is political, where do you draw the line? Standing up for the national anthem is a political gesture. Anti-racist campaigns run by football authorities themselves, are immensely political. What’s so unacceptable about the poppy that makes it incendiary or offensive?

The Maltese national flag, to the displeasure of some, carries the George Cross.  It was awarded to the islands after Malta withstood the continuous German and Italian attacks at the last war. King George VI instituted the award, equivalent to the Victoria Cross, writing: “To honour her brave people, I award the George Cross to the island fortress of Malta to bear witness to a heroism and devotion that will long be famous in history.”

That was a political statement of the highest degree. So should the Maltese flag be banned from sports fields on grounds that it may be politically offensive?

The English and Scottish teams were right in ignoring a ban that can never apply to commemorations like Armistice Day. The constant attempt in the Western world to sanitise everything, to avoid offence to anyone and to impose political correctness has become akin to promoting amorality. It runs in the face of patriotism, of belonging, of national unity. Ironically, it is at international sports events, more than anywhere else, that patriotic sentiment is at its highest, and that countries are momentarily unified.

British Prime Minister Theresa May has attacked Fifa over its “utterly outrageous” decision to ban the English and Scottish football teams from wearing poppies. She told the House of Commons: “Our football players want to recognise and respect those who have given their lives to our safety and security. I think it is an absolute right.”

People who give their lives to their country, on whichever side of a war they may be, have done the ultimate sacrifice, leaving may shattered families and lives behind. They deserve respect and remembrance, even if with just a poppy.