Coll Mart is U.S. soccer's only openly gay male player, and he's workg to make the game more clive for future LGBTQ+ players - ESPN

Contents:

• MICHAEL SAM, FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER, RETIR FOR MENTAL HEALTH REASONS
• CARL NASSIB, THE FIRST OPENLY GAY ACTIVE NFL PLAYER, ULD BE TURNG POT FOR MALE SPORTS
• COLL MART IS U.S. SOCCER'S ONLY OPENLY GAY MALE PLAYER, AND HE'S WORKG TO MAKE THE GAME MORE CLIVE FOR FUTURE LGBTQ+ PLAYERS
• CARL NASSIB OF LAS VEGAS RAIRS IS FIRST ACTIVE NFL PLAYER TO ANNOUNCE HE IS GAY
• 9 BASEBALL PLAYERS WHO CAME OUT AS GAY
• BEFORE CARL NASSIB, MICHAEL SAM WAS THE NFL’S FIRST OPENLY GAY DRAFT PICK. HE NEVER PLAYED A REGULAR SEASON GAME.
• CELEBRATG LGBTQ SPORTS HISTORY: THE ONLY MLB TEAM WH PLAYERS WHO HAVE E OUT AS GAY
• THE ONLY 3 OUT, GAY NBA PLAYERS IN HISTORY

MICHAEL SAM, FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER, RETIR FOR MENTAL HEALTH REASONS

Michael Sam, who 2014 beme the first openly gay player to be drafted by an NFL team, announced on Twter Friday eveng that he is walkg away om football for mental health reasons. After he failed to fd a al wh an NFL team, Sam signed wh the Montreal Alouett of the Canadian Football League, at which pot he beme the CFL's first openly gay player. 7, he beme the first openly gay player to play a regular season CFL game, though he did not register any tackl or sacks his appearanc.

“I jt want to take a quick moment to say that I’m gay, ” the fensive leman for the Las Vegas Rairs said a vio posted to his Instagram acunt Monday. And while someone g out 2021 might not feel like a big al, wh that simple statement, Nassib beme the first openly gay active player NFL that simple statement, Nassib beme the first openly gay active player NFL history. Though there are many openly queer women profsnal sports, the same nnot be said for homophobia of men’s sports culture has been well documented.

Ranks the worst when to homophobia athletics.

CARL NASSIB, THE FIRST OPENLY GAY ACTIVE NFL PLAYER, ULD BE TURNG POT FOR MALE SPORTS

Currently, there is only one openly gay player on a profsnal men’s team the “big five” Amerin sports: Soccer player Coll Mart of the USL Champnship League (Mart me out 2018 as a member of Major League Soccer’s Mnota Uned) NFL has existed for 101 years, and that time, there has never been a player on an active NFL roster who has publicly acknowledged his gayns.

This, of urse, don’t mean there haven’t been closeted gay players. In 2014, Michael Sam beme the first openly gay player to be drafted by an NFL team, when the St. (In 2015, he beme the first openly gay player the Canadian Football League when he spent a season wh the Montreal Alouett.

This is where misogyny to play, maniftg a culture of homophobia. To be a gay man is to face beg stereotyped as weak or effemate — the oppose of what a football player, or an athlete, is “supposed” to be. ““In llege, football was a great ver for beg gay, ” O’Callaghan told Outsports 2017.

COLL MART IS U.S. SOCCER'S ONLY OPENLY GAY MALE PLAYER, AND HE'S WORKG TO MAKE THE GAME MORE CLIVE FOR FUTURE LGBTQ+ PLAYERS

” Davis remembers spendg $1, 500 at a strip club an attempt to nceal the fact that he was gay om his spe society’s evolvg attus, the sports world seems to be movg far slower to mornize and stigmatize. “I thk ’s safe to say there’s at least one on every team who is eher gay or bisexual, ” O’Callaghan speculated 2019.

In his 10 years wh the pany, Nick has led ESPN's verage of the Ners' 2019 Super Bowl n, Col Kaepernick's prott, the Rams makg Michael Sam the first openly gay player drafted to the NFL, Sam's subsequent pursu of a roster spot and the team's relotn and stadium saga. Louis Rams ma him the 249th overall choice the 2014 NFL Missouri fensive end beme the first openly gay player to be drafted league history and seeks to be the first openly gay athlete ever to play the of Sam receivg the ll om the Rams and ach Jeff Fisher revealed the player's emotn while surround by iends, fay and his 's emotn rried over to a nference ll wh the St. "Sce Febary and my big announcement, this has been a whole [lot of] speculatn of the first openly gay football player, but you know what?

Now he'll get the chance jt a uple of hours down the road om his llege home Columbia, announced that he is gay on ESPN before Febary's NFL sutg be. "Obvly people are gog to make somethg out of , " Long told "He's not the first gay player to ever play football.

CARL NASSIB OF LAS VEGAS RAIRS IS FIRST ACTIVE NFL PLAYER TO ANNOUNCE HE IS GAY

He might be the first openly gay profsnal football player, but there's all typ of people om all over an NFL locker room, really is a meltg pot and never ceas to amaze me how a locker room n jt mh, people om all different walks of life, so I don't thk 's an issue.

9 BASEBALL PLAYERS WHO CAME OUT AS GAY

"Brooklyn Nets center Jason Colls, who this season beme the NBA's first openly gay player, said is a "great day for the NFL and Michael and his fay. Moments earlier, an opposg player targeted Mart, an openly gay man, wh a homophobic slur, and as they gathered unr a tent at halftime, they discsed how to team was agreement: Somethg need to be done.

BEFORE CARL NASSIB, MICHAEL SAM WAS THE NFL’S FIRST OPENLY GAY DRAFT PICK. HE NEVER PLAYED A REGULAR SEASON GAME.

"Flemmgs was later spend for six gam by the league, and he nied g an anti-gay slur toward Mart. "Beg able to have a posive msage e out of a really tough suatn was the silver lg, " he the only openly gay men's profsnal soccer player the Uned Stat -- and one of the few who have ever e out globally -- Mart has e to embrace the signifince of what he reprents, pecially for the LGBTQ+ muny. Play1:48Coll Mart: Locker room support was all I needSan Diego Loyal midfielr Coll Mart says the support om his old teammat at Mnota Uned was a big help to him when he me out as gay.

Around those years, havg to hi, havg to remd myself that like, 'Oh, my bt iend on the team, who jt lled another person a f----t, he isn't really homophobic, but he is jt tryg to be hurtful to that person. "Mart is not unique that he didn't have ach who were willg to step to put an end to homophobic language when was ed. Carl Nassib, a fensive leman wh the Las Vegas Rairs, beme the first active NFL player league history to announce that he is gay.

CELEBRATG LGBTQ SPORTS HISTORY: THE ONLY MLB TEAM WH PLAYERS WHO HAVE E OUT AS GAY

I jt wanted to take a quick moment to say that I’m gay.

THE ONLY 3 OUT, GAY NBA PLAYERS IN HISTORY

He said a statement acpanyg the vio that he had agonized over the cisn to announce he was gay for 15 years.

Jason Colls, who beme the first openly gay NBA player when he sued up for the Brooklyn Nets 2014, was cheerg Nassib on social media. “As an acplished athlete who is now the first out gay active player the NFL, Carl Nassib’s story will not only have a profound impact on the future of LGBTQ visibily and acceptance sports, but sends a strong msage to so many LGBTQ people, pecially youth, that they too n one day grow up to be and succeed as a profsnal athlete like him, ” the statement said. Pro Football Hall of Famer Warren Moon add to the chos of people proud of him, and the former NFL and CFL quarterback add that he played wh some guys who were gay but didn’t feel fortable g out.

In 2014, Michael Sam beme the first openly gay player to be selected the NFL draft when the St.