The U.S. men’s national soccer team is only a week away from starting their World Cup run with a match against Wales at Ahmad bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar.

But the team decided to make a statement while in the Middle Eastern country.

The soccer team’s press room and training facility featured a rainbow-themed crest in support of the LGBTQ community. The shield change is a part of the squad’s "Be The Change" initiative that launched in 2020 on the heels of social unrest, according to Reuters.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

"When we are on the world stage and when we are in a venue like Qatar, it is important to bring awareness to these issues and that is what 'Be the Change' is about," U.S. coach Gregg Berhalter told reporters Monday.

"It is not just stateside that we want to bring attention to social issues, it is also abroad. We recognize that Qatar has made strides and there has been a ton of progress, but there's some work still to do."

American goalkeeper Sean Johnson said the team will continue to spread an inclusive message.

"We are a group who believes in inclusivity and we will continue to project that message going forward," Johnson said. "We have chatted and continue to have discussions as we lead into the games. We have leaned on the message of 'Be the Change.’

FBI INVESTIGATION DETAILS FORMER CIA OPERATIVE'S EFFORTS TO HELP QATAR'S WORLD CUP BID, INFLUENCE US POLICY

"That is something that we have been proud of and continue to work toward, be impactful with ourselves, our presence and our platform, and we will continue to be so here in Qatar."

The rainbow crest will not be a part of the team’s regular kit for the matches. U.S. Soccer spokesman Neil Bluthe told Reuters the rainbow badge will be a "consistent" part of the team’s identity.

"As part of our approach for any match or event, we include rainbow branding to support and embrace the LGBTQ community, as well as to promote a spirit of inclusiveness and welcoming to all fans across the globe," Bluthe said.

"As a result, locations that we will manage and operate at the FIFA World Cup, such as the team hotel, media areas and parties, will feature both traditional and rainbow U.S. Soccer branding."

Qatar’s rules against same-sex marriage have been in the spotlight in the run-up to the start of the historic World Cup. The country has said all are welcome, including LGBTQ fans, but that visitors should respect the nation’s culture, in which public displays of affection by anyone are frowned on.

Recently, former Qatari national team player Khalid Salman, an ambassador for the World Cup, described homosexuality as a "damage in the mind." Qatar emir Sheikh Tamin bin Hamad Al Thani also argued the country "has been subjected to an unprecedented campaign" of criticisms.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Voters in San Bernardino County, California, narrowly approved a ballot measure last week allowing officials to explore options to possibly secede the fifth-most populous county from the Golden State.

Over the summer, the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors advanced the secession measure to the ballot, resulting in about 50% of voters supporting the idea, according to unofficial election results from the county’s Registrar of Voters.

San Bernardino Voter Information Guide asked county residents under Measure EE if officials should “study and advocate for all options to obtain the county’s fair share of state funding, including secession from the State of California.”

Jeff Burum, a local real state developer who first proposed the idea before it qualified for ballot placement, told local media the term “secession” served more as a trigger word to spark intellectual debate on the issue and a final ultimatum to grab the resident’s attention.

“I’m embarrassed where we are in this country right now,” Burum said, according to the San Bernardino Sun. “Forty-nine percent of people voted against ‘fairness!'”

Burum said the term “fair share” might have confused voters as advocates for the study argue that it’s more about political and economic fairness for the largest county in the United States. San Bernardino County encompasses more than 20,000 square miles.

Data from the California State controller’s office ranked San Bernardino County 36th out of 56 counties in looking at how much counties get from the state and federal governments per capita. While Los Angeles County ranked slightly ahead at 28th, San Bernardino still receives more funding from the state and federal governments than wealthy districts like Sonoma (45th), Santa Barbara (52nd), and Orange (55th) Counties.

“Republicans thought it was a woke term,” Burum said. “The woke thought it was a wealthy developer doing it. Everyone had their reasons for voting against it.”

As extreme as a state divorce sounds, constitutional law governs provisions for a state to separate, join, or create a new form on its own, with a county, or a portion of another state, county officials said.

State or county officials would need approval from all state legislatures, followed by Congress and the Senate, and eventually require approval from the President of the United States before secession occurs.

However, if the county goes through the process, the supervisors expressed concerns about declaring independence from California, such as health and social services, funding for schools, and forming its own National Guard.

But considering San Bernardino County holds a population of 2.1 million people, more than 14 other states in the Union, the statistic caught the supervisors’ curiosity about how the county could operate as an economy apart from California.

Curt Hagman, chairman of the Board of Supervisors, told local media that county officials would explore what the steps would look like once officials have certified the election results.

“We’re going to take one step at a time and dig into the budgets and compare ourselves to other counties,” Hagman said.

He added the measure piqued the interest of neighboring counties that “would like some of the same information.”

“So this may be a multi-county effort,” Hagman said.

Paul Preston, founder of New California State, a group attempting to separate and free themselves “from the tyranny and lawlessness of California,” told local media that Burum and supporters of the measure aren’t alone in wanting to secede.

“The public does want to separate from Sacramento,” Preston said. “There’s no question about that — that’s statewide.”

If the county successfully secedes from California, Burum suggested naming the new state “Empire,” which would be the first new state since Hawaii joined the United States in 1959.

“I’m pretty sure that a majority of counties in California are unhappy with how they’re being governed,” he said. “I think Sacramento’s going to have a wakeup call.”

According to the California State Library, state residents made at least 220 attempts to break up California when it became a state in 1850.