Why Premier League players chase out gay footballers - Patrice Evra - Daily Post Nigeria

Contents:

• FIVE THGS TO KNOW ABOUT FIRST OPENLY GAY FOOTBALLER JT FASHANU
• HERE ARE EIGHT OUT AND PROUD MALE GAY FOOTBALLERS
• MEET THE WORLDS FIRST GAY FOOTBALLER, AND HE'S NIGERIAN
• NIGERIA FOOTBALLER WHO ‘ATTACKED’ GAYS APOLOGIS, DELET POSTS AFTER BLACKPOOL TEAMMATE CAME OUT PUBLIC
• FOOTBALL ASSOCIATN FAILS TO MEET ANY GAY PROFSNAL FOOTBALLERS SEARCH
• THERE ARE GAY FOOTBALLERS – AND THERE ALWAYS HAVE BEEN
• WHY PREMIER LEAGUE PLAYERS CHASE OUT GAY FOOTBALLERS – PATRICE EVRA
• TAG: GAY FOOTBALLERS
• OPN: NIGERIA IS A LD-BLOOD UNTRY FOR GAY MEN – I HAVE THE SRS TO PROVE
• UNNAMED PREMIER LEAGUE FOOTBALLER REVEALS HE IS GAY LETTER BUT SAYS HE N'T GO PUBLIC
• I LONG FOR A DAY WHEN GAY FOOTBALLERS LIKE ME AND JOSH CAVALLO DON’T NEED TO BE SO ‘BRAVE’
• VAN GAAL MAK H CLAIMS ABOUT GAY FOOTBALLERS
• KEV MAXEN BE FIRST MALE ACH A US MEN’S PROFSNAL SPORTS LEAGUE TO PUBLICLY E OUT AS GAY

FIVE THGS TO KNOW ABOUT FIRST OPENLY GAY FOOTBALLER JT FASHANU

Nigeria’s hegemonic s-long domance over Ai’s women’s football scene has long masked a dark secret: Openly homosexual players are not allowed. While homosexualy was already illegal before that, sports sirs say the edict was a backdrop for a ncerted mpaign agast queer people football. That did not stop Seyi Akwunmi, vice print of the NFF, om layg the blame for the Super Falns’ failure to qualify for the women’s football event of the 2016 Olympic Gam on the alleged prence of gay players wh the squad.

“We [gay players] have cid to keep workg hard and hopefully fd clubs Europe, bee that is the only safe place to be yourself, ” one player the untry’s top flight told Al Jazeera anonymoly. Gay sex is already punishable the Wt Ain natn wh a prison term of three years.

HERE ARE EIGHT OUT AND PROUD MALE GAY FOOTBALLERS

Former ternatnal Eucharia Uche, who was the Nigeria ach om January 2009 to October 2011, ma headl when she said homosexualy was a “dirty issue” while speakg to the New York Tim on the eve of the 2011 World Cup. Uwak said she was stunned by Uche’s remarks, llg them hypocril, and claimed Uche was herself a closeted homosexual durg her playg days. “They want to pray and liver a gay person, or they prefer you hi your sexualy.

At that time, beg gay was not largely acceptable, pecially a sport like football. A Gay Tim ver issue 1991 said: “The Sun dragged out the tale wh tillatg stori of sexual enunters wh unnamed MPs, football players and pop stars, which, he claims, were largely unte.

MEET THE WORLDS FIRST GAY FOOTBALLER, AND HE'S NIGERIAN

It was a mpaign agast homophobia football and was aimed at promotg homosexualy among football players. It seems that beg an out gay man and a soccer player is still somethg that’s greeted wh homophobia. However, there have been several pneerg male gay footballers who cid to e out of the closet and proclaim their sexualy to the world.

A w for gay rights and helpg to pave the way for other gay players to feel safe enough to e out of the closet. Here are eight of some of the most well-known out-and-proud gay footballers. Consired the first openly gay male Ain soccer player, Lekoloane me out publicly 2015.

NIGERIA FOOTBALLER WHO ‘ATTACKED’ GAYS APOLOGIS, DELET POSTS AFTER BLACKPOOL TEAMMATE CAME OUT PUBLIC

The South Ain player acknowledg that most of his teammat accepted his sexualy, however, he has faced homophobic slurs om opposg teams. He also said that he has met several closeted gay soccer players Ai, where homosexualy is crimalised several untri. I don’t wish the hostily I felt on anyone, bee not everyone n survive homophobia a sport like football, ” he told MambaOnle recently.

FOOTBALL ASSOCIATN FAILS TO MEET ANY GAY PROFSNAL FOOTBALLERS SEARCH

In Febary 2013, Amerin soccer player Robbie Rogers me out as gay. On 21 May 2017, he beme the first openly gay male footballer to play at Wembley. “My advice to a young gay footballer at any level or any standard is jt to be themselv, ” Davis said that same year.

The Atralian plays for Alai Uned Football Club and has been the victim of shameful homophobic abe om game-goers and on social media. In May 2022, Jake Daniels me out at the age of 17  an open letter on the Blackpool Football Club’s webse, beg at that time the UK’s only openly gay active male profsnal footballer.

THERE ARE GAY FOOTBALLERS – AND THERE ALWAYS HAVE BEEN

He also acknowledged that “beg gay, or bi or queer men’s football is still a taboo” and that he is likely to face some gree of homophobia the sport. After stgglg wh his sexualy for years, he me as gay September 2022, makg him the first openly gay player Sttish football sce Jt Fashanu. He was known by his early clubs to be gay, and me out to the prs later his reer, to bee the first and one of only two English profsnal footballers to be openly homosexual, He was also the first black footballer to mand a £1ln transfer fee, wh his transfer om Norwich Cy to Nottgham Fort 1981, but had ltle succs as a player afterwards, although he ntued to play at senr level until movg to the Uned Stat, 1998 he was qutned by police when a seventeen-year-old boy acced him of sexual asslt, for which he was charged, and an arrt warrant for him was issued Howard County, Maryland on April 3, 1998, but he had already left his flat.

WHY PREMIER LEAGUE PLAYERS CHASE OUT GAY FOOTBALLERS – PATRICE EVRA

Acrdg to his suici note, fearg he would not get a fair trial bee of his homosexualy, he fled to England where he killed himself London May of that year.

The age of nsent Maryland is 16, but homosexual acts were illegal Maryland at the time, and the youth stated the act was not nsensual but beg performed as he awoke. Fashanu agreed to an exclive wh The Sun tabloid newspaper to e out as gay. They ran the headle as "£1m Football Star: I AM GAY" on 22 October 1990.

TAG: GAY FOOTBALLERS

He claimed to have had an affair wh a married Conservative MP, whom he first met a London gay bar. A week later, his brother John Fashanu agreed to an exclive whThe Voice unr the headle "John Fashanu: My Gay Brother is an outst.

" Jt won the BBC Goal of the Season award, after a flawls goal agast ranked 99 Top 500 Lbian and Gay Hero the Pk paper. Marv Ekpeta had cricised the gay muny back 2012 and 2013, but his teammate at Blackpool has now e out as oneThe Nigerian footballer has shed to lete all his homophobic tweets and has gone ahead to tenr an apology Acrdg to Ekpeta, workg wh wi and diverse people has seen him velop and grow as a personA Nigerian footballer Marv Ekpeta has taken to social media to apologise for his historil remarks agast gay after his Blackpool teammate me out as Monday, Jake Daniels me out to bee the first openly gay male footballer while still playg sce Jt Fashanu left Ekpeta embarrassed as untered his tweets om 2012 and 2013 when he blasted the gay Ekpeta apologis for his prev homophobic tweets.

OPN: NIGERIA IS A LD-BLOOD UNTRY FOR GAY MEN – I HAVE THE SRS TO PROVE

Photo: Mick WalkerSource: Getty ImagIt was gathered as per SunSport that Ekpeta left three clappg emojis rponse to the news 2013 that Nigeria had outlawed gay the same year, he said was “disgtg” and “ridiculo” that TV soap Hollyoaks had five gay he has now apologised and subsequently leted his historic homophobic posts after his teammate me out as further wrote on Twter:“Today, social media posts I ma 2012 and 2013 have been highlighted, ' the fenr said a statement on Twter. ”Fashanu rells how he treated his brother for clarg himself homosexualMeanwhile, Sports Brief earlier reported that former Wimbledon of England striker John Fashanu has disclosed that the way he treated his brother after he publicly clared himself as homosexual, remas one of his biggt disappotments.

UNNAMED PREMIER LEAGUE FOOTBALLER REVEALS HE IS GAY LETTER BUT SAYS HE N'T GO PUBLIC

Football Associatn chairman Greg Clarke had hoped to make ntact wh gay profsnal footballers. Football Associatn chairman Greg Clarke has told the Daily Telegraph that he has failed his attempts to make ntact wh any gay profsnal footballers.

Clarke enuraged homosexual players January to e out and suggted several uld do so together orr to share the spotlight.

I LONG FOR A DAY WHEN GAY FOOTBALLERS LIKE ME AND JOSH CAVALLO DON’T NEED TO BE SO ‘BRAVE’

However, on a recent tour of the untry, the FA chief says he was unable to meet any gay footballers, while statg that he n unrstand their reasons for not wantg to do so. There was gay, there was straight, there were kids, was relaxed. I went down to Stonewall [lbian, gay, bisexual and transgenr (LGBT) rights chary], watched a game, had a beer the bar afterwards -- and talked about the issu.

Where I worry is that there may be people who want to be openly gay but don't feel able to be openly gay.

Clarke said he did not want to make any assumptns about potential gay players' reasons for not wantg to e out, but said the game need to w their tst.

VAN GAAL MAK H CLAIMS ABOUT GAY FOOTBALLERS

' They've all said, 'I don't know bee I don't know any gay footballers.

KEV MAXEN BE FIRST MALE ACH A US MEN’S PROFSNAL SPORTS LEAGUE TO PUBLICLY E OUT AS GAY

Former Germany ternatnal Thomas Hzlsperger and ex-Uned Stat ternatnal Robbie Rogers have both spoken out about their homosexualy recent years, but only after retirg or leavg English football. There are no ‘out’ gay players the English Premier League. But of urse, there are many gay and bisexual players .

In 2011, the Nigerian women’s football team said that had succsfully banned homosexualy among players. There have, of urse, always been lbian, gay, bisexual and transgenr footballers, right om the very begng of the game.

Jt Fashanu, the first black £1 ln footballer, was the first profsnal footballer to be openly gay, not jt England, but globally. Fashanu sred the BBC TV Match of the Day Goal of the Season 1980 for Norwich Cy, but his reer faltered after his move to Nottgham Fort, no doubt as a rult of both racist and homophobic abe. If you’re playg well will be reported as: ‘The gay footballer is playg well.