It's 2017, why are there still no openly gay AFL footballers?

Contents:

• MATT HALL PAVED THE WAY AS THE FIRST OPENLY GAY ASIE L PLAYER
• GAY ASIE L PLAYERS - ARE YOU OUT THERE?
• ASIE FOOTBALLERS IN SNDAL AFTER ALLEGEDLY PERFORMG GAY SEX ACT IN PUBLIC
• ASIE RUL FOOTBALL LEAGUE PLAYERS E OUT AS GAY UPLE
• THE GAY MAN'S GUI TO ATRALIAN FOOTBALL'S HOTTT HUNKS
• GAY ATRALIAN RUL PLAYERS ENURAGED TO COME-OUT BY TEAM-MAT
• GAY FOOTBALLER AND ACTIVIST JASON BALL REFLECTS ON G OUT
• ASIE RUL FOOTBALL PLAYER OUT AS GAY
• ASIE RUL FOOTBALL PLAYERS TAKE STAND AGAST ANTI-GAY LANGUAGE
• ATRALIA FALLY HAS S FIRST FEMALE AFL PLAYERS, AND S FIRST GAY ON TOO.
• STRAIGHT MAN EARNS $1500 PER HOUR AS ‘GAY FOR PAY’ RT
• 'I DIDN'T KNOW ANY FOOTBALLERS WHO WERE GAY'

MATT HALL PAVED THE WAY AS THE FIRST OPENLY GAY ASIE L PLAYER

The first openly gay Asie Rul player via Blue Magaze, 2002. Blue Magaze wrote an article about pneerg gay sportsman Matt Hall prr to his partakg Sydney’s Gay Gam 2002 as a basketballer. In the landmark article he talked about some of the landmark moments his life, cludg his heterosexual marriage before he me out as a gay man, his r accint where he had to rever om juri and for the first time felt mortal his life.

At that time would’ve been near impossible for him to be out as a gay man, nsirg he’d already been ostracised by some his social circle due to his HIV stat.

So his credible g out story through Blue magaze was a blsg for gay sportg people Atralia and worldwi.

GAY ASIE L PLAYERS - ARE YOU OUT THERE?

Hall said the 2nd openly gay Asie Rul player Jason Ball has “erased my own” legacy by “him ntug to claim he was the first to e out spe beg a later 2012. SportThis was published 19 years agoDpe support, any gay footballers are keepg quiet. When big-htg gby league prop forward Ian Roberts me out 1995 and told the world he was gay, many thought the fal closet had opened.

But as history has proved across sport, is not easy to be a gay sports star - pecially if you're a man.

Most statistics pot to between 5 and 10 per cent of the populatn beg gay: Atralian Rul Football is more than 100 years old and wh about 680 ntracted AFL players this year, the numbers suggts not everyone's beg hont.

ASIE FOOTBALLERS IN SNDAL AFTER ALLEGEDLY PERFORMG GAY SEX ACT IN PUBLIC

Why has there never been an openly gay Atralian Rul footballer? Coburg Football Club print Phil Cleary said he played agast a very tough and skilled footballer at a senr level of Atralian Rul who was gay. Mr Clearly said the man remaed unwillg to talk about the issue bee he did not want to be remembered as "the gay footballer".

ASIE RUL FOOTBALL LEAGUE PLAYERS E OUT AS GAY UPLE

McGuire appears on the ont ver of this month's issue of glossy gay monthly QMagaze and is quoted as sayg he would be "rapt" if Collgwood was the first club to have an openly gay player.

McGuire said he uld not speak for other clubs on their attu towards gay footballers but add he was prepared to give Richmond the benef of the doubt over s cisn not to allow star rec Nathan Brown play a gay doctor on The Footy Show. "I am prepared to back the Tigers that wasn't homophobic, although appeared at the time that was, " McGuire said.

THE GAY MAN'S GUI TO ATRALIAN FOOTBALL'S HOTTT HUNKS

Carlton print Ian Colls told The Sunday Age that Carlton would have no problems draftg a gay player or if one of their players clared he was homosexual. Richard Watts, head of Collgwood's gay supporter group the Pk Magpi, suggted there remaed "a strong, but fairly vert, level of homophobia football which is a real discentive to e out". He said the AFL was unlikely to al wh the issue of gay footballers until one was intified.

But, acrdg to gay ic and morng rad prenter Adam Richard, is not jt the absence of l protectg gay rights that is hibg the emergence of gay AFL footballers. Richard said that some society were slower than others to embrace changg muny attus towards homosexuals. "I know a iend of me was wrg an article for a gay newspaper a uple of years ago and ntacted a club, which I will not name, and he was told no uncerta terms there were no gay players at the club and there never would be any players at the club, " Richard said.

GAY ATRALIAN RUL PLAYERS ENURAGED TO COME-OUT BY TEAM-MAT

" The chief executive of the AFL Players Associatn, Rob Kerr, said he uld not intify a reason why there had never been a clared homosexual footballer but said the associatn would fully support any player who announced this. Billie Jean Kg, the legendary Amerin tennis champn, said she lost 10 years of sponsorship als when she was outed as gay.

English soccer star Jt Fashanu, 1990, beme the first and only English soccer player to announce he was homosexual. His reer plummeted after the announcement and 1998 he hanged was not que as tough an oral for NSW gby league star Ian Roberts when he me out 1995 as Atralia's first gay footballer - but neher was easy.

One letter he received may go some way to answerg why there has never been an openly gay AFL footballer. ” This is famo mentary on the homosocial behavurs of men and the performative nature of masculy. We're not here to wave the flag for gay rights, we're here sayg 'this is '.

GAY FOOTBALLER AND ACTIVIST JASON BALL REFLECTS ON G OUT

Warwick rowers get naked to fight homophobia Warwick Universy rowg team England has h on a big money maker wh their annual lendar and vios. They are also raisg awarens of homophobia sports, so they are good guys (and gals) dog a good thg while lookg hot:. Send your suggtns via @newsHQ | @the_mattyoung7 David Pock (Super 15)The Wallabi skipper has been outspoken agast homophobia and is a strong advote of gay marriage.

2 m readA group of Atralian l footballers om the AFL have joed forc to enurage any gay players to take the step and e out publicly. No AFL player has ever been openly gay while playg the game, siar to the suatn the English Premier League where has been suggted three players will e out soon.

ASIE RUL FOOTBALL PLAYER OUT AS GAY

Essendon pta Brendon Goddard, Collgwood player Tyson Goldsack, and Hawthorn’s Matt Spangher all believe that the support would be there for any player that cid was time to clare themselv gay a public fom. The AFL has been at the foreont of support for equaly and gay rights Atralian sport and this year two teams will play off for the Pri Cup the first regular season match for equaly.

ASIE RUL FOOTBALL PLAYERS TAKE STAND AGAST ANTI-GAY LANGUAGE

Speakg to the Herald Sun Goldsack acknowledged that the AFL was probably behd the tim when me to openly gay mal s petn.

He believ that if a gay player was to e out would produce a ripple-effect and offer the chance for many others to take the leap.

The news team for Gay Natn love tips om our rears. Vis the Gay Natn store Now.

ATRALIA FALLY HAS S FIRST FEMALE AFL PLAYERS, AND S FIRST GAY ON TOO.

Go to askgaybros. Lookg for advice as a gay player Atralian Rul Football. I'm openly gay Facebook and gay bars, I tend to post about myself gog to gay bars to watch sports or share any gay-relatable ntent.

Well I know Atralian Rul Football is a hyper-mascule sport and I'm not sure I know any openly gay players the AFL at the moment. In addn, the lol club has a secret FB group I joed bee I'm a player for them and some of the ments ma me feel unfortable sometim such as "gay" a reply to a ment or "damn those (street name) homos".

STRAIGHT MAN EARNS $1500 PER HOUR AS ‘GAY FOR PAY’ RT

The team don't know I'm gay. So I me to seek advice of what to do as a gay player Atralian Rul Football, so... "Gay Man's Gui To Atralian Football's Hottt Hunks.

Most of the plats e om gay men, who say giv them a bad name. It's no big al and our years of dog Outsports, seems that our straight rears get this while the biggt plats e om gay men.

In the locker room, gay was a word ed to mean ‘bad’, ‘weak’ or ‘soft’. Homophobic slurs were seen as part of the game. Most importantly, the homophobic language stopped.

'I DIDN'T KNOW ANY FOOTBALLERS WHO WERE GAY'

MORE: JASON BALL CALLS ON FANS TO END HOMOPHOBIAWhile our AFL players don’t yet have a gay teammate to publicly support, they have not been silent when to beg seen and heard as straight alli agast homophobia. Carlton Footballer Brock McLean beme the first AFL player to bee an ambassador for Athlete Ally, an anisatn foced on endg homophobia and transphobia sport by tg alli the athletic muny and empowerg them to take a stand.

MORE: JASON BALL’S COURAGE WILL TRUMP IGNORANCESiarly, last year durg Internatnal Day Agast Homophobia (IDAHO) some of the biggt nam the AFL, cludg Stt Pendlebury, Drew Petrie, Le Ball and Jobe Watson, took part a social media mpaign ordated by the AFL Players Associatn, makg a pledge never to e homophobic language and raisg awarens about the damagg impacts has on the mental health and wellbeg of young GLBTI AFL players, I n image that they would want to avoid dog anythg that uld risk puttg them at a them, football is their reer. Wh the public and media’s tert the story of a gay footballer g out so strong, a football club uld view this as an unnecsary admistrative I me out publicly, I felt was my duty to talk through wh my team. Read more: #StandTall #CBR #MarriageEqualy— GWS GIANTS (@GWS_Giants) December 9, 2013For any gay AFL player, there uld be some trepidatn that g out would mean that their homosexualy may fe them for the rt of their playg reer.