‘I was beg told I uld not be gay and a soccer player’: How eight clubs are takg a stand agast homophobia - The Athletic

Contents:

• ‘I WAS BEG TOLD I ULD NOT BE GAY AND A SOCCER PLAYER’: HOW EIGHT CLUBS ARE TAKG A STAND AGAST HOMOPHOBIA
• PRI ON THE PCH: DO SOCCER HAVE A GAY PROBLEM?
• 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
• AMERINS HATE SOCCER BEE 'S GAY
• WHY THERE ARE FEW OPENLY GAY ATHLET IN MEN'S PROFSNAL SPORTS
• BREAKING: SOCCER IS GAY
• "I NO LONGER WANT TO HI:" CZECH FOOTBALLER JAKUB JANKTO ANNOUNC HE IS GAY
• JOSH CAVALLO: ONLY OPENLY GAY TOP-FLIGHT MALE FOOTBALLER SAYS FIFA’S ‘ONELOVE’ ARMBAND BAN HAS MA HIM FEEL ‘EXCLUD’
• WHY ARE MORE FEMALE PROFSNAL FOOTBALLERS OPENLY GAY OR BISEXUAL THAN MALE PLAYERS?
• 'THE FOUNDG MISSN IS NOT TO EXIST': STONEWALL FC, A PNEERG LGBT+ SOCCER TEAM HAS CHANGED THE SPORT FOR GAY MEN, NOW 'S PHG TO ERADITE HOMOPHOBIA FOOTBALL

‘I WAS BEG TOLD I ULD NOT BE GAY AND A SOCCER PLAYER’: HOW EIGHT CLUBS ARE TAKG A STAND AGAST HOMOPHOBIA

"Cyd Zeigler, who scrib himself as a gay sports wrer, h out at the backlash, scribg as "crazy" that Amerins would turn their back on the team bee of this tweeted: "LOL the 'Amerins' who are now sudnly hopg the US los at the #WorldCup bee the team has some rabow flags around the facily Qatar. Analysis of the law by the New York Tim said that “classroom stctn” uld mean steps as dramatic as removg books that clu LGBT+ characters or that stunts wh gay parents may not be able to speak about their fay uns the classroom. Florida ernor Ron DeSantis signed a ntent “Don’t Say Gay” bill (Photo: Getty)Stoney, who revealed she is a lbian 2014, ntu: “Wh some of the nversatns, I feel we have moved four steps forward people beg able to be thentilly themselv and then we take three steps back by banng nversatns.

As the US enunters renewed legislatn agast LGBT+ people, Mexi is facg up to s own crisis of homophobia clubs across the three untri have signed up to a new ia: to m to receivg 100+ hours of -person LGBT+ cln trag. San Diego Wave – the club of Stoney and Alex Man – have signed up for the Play Proud mpaign (Photo: Getty)The clubs volved are MLS sis Chigo Fire and Philalphia Unn, NWSL teams San Diego Wave FC and Angel Cy FC, USL teams Oakland Roots and San Diego Loyal, as well Canadian Premier League si Pacific FC and Mexi’s Club Mexin football feratn has been fed more than fifteen tim sce 2014 due to homophobic chants durg natnal team fixtur, culmatg FIFA banng supporters om Mexi’s Azte Stadium for the match agast Costa Ri and Panama earlier this year.

PRI ON THE PCH: DO SOCCER HAVE A GAY PROBLEM?

I was beg told I uld not be gay and be a soccer player, but also other areas would be an issue, like when I went to church on a Sunday and feelg the prsure of ‘What will I do wh myself?

We need ach to unrstand how to make clear their language what is right and wrong; how to be proactive, share experienc and share ias of cln whout wag for somethg bad to happen, or whout wag for someone to say somethg homophobic and then reprimandg them. As a gay person, I know the challeng and hurdl of that experience, but when to different challeng — whether they be race or genr — you are not really up-skilled, to be hont.

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

Rilient Mexin supporters untered that FIFA, who have award World Cups to Rsia and Qatar, have done ltle to challenge homophobia stat wh more reprsive anti-LGBT+ legislatn, while takg a hard le wh Mexin supporters’ nduct the, even the former Mexin feratn secretary general Guillermo Cantu dismissed the cricism of the chant by sayg that FIFA “mt unrstand the cultural nature of some words”.

He adds: “It was a really transformative mpaign and has achieved, at least one Mexin stadium, that people shout for the team and set asi the chant that, my opn, today reprents a certa gree of homophobia. While I believe Mexins do not tend a homophobic way, they e to put prsure on the goalkeeper or opposn fans, I know is meang to hear the chants when there are (LGBT+) people who are impacted. The realy, however, is that sportg environments and particularly sports team ownerships and fanbas have not always offered a welg environment for change and pots out that society has not yet fully accepted homosexualy and “people society work the game” reported last month that state lawmakers had proposed 238 bills the US already this year that would lim the rights of LGBT+ people, pared to 41 the entirety of 2018.

Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill has received the most attentn ternatnally but LGBT+ activists also pot to bills limg the rights of trans people to pete sport, to e public toilets, or receive aquate health the US, an creasgly toxic bate has veloped between those who advote for trans cln sport and those who argue that n create an unfair playg field for women. The Liga MX and MLS All-Star game was stopped for homophobic chantg last Augt; that is one of the biggt days volvg the two untri hostg the World Cup psed for homophobic chants. Coll Mart durg his time wh Mnota Uned (Photo: Getty)Mart says: “I realised I may be the first gay person that my team-mat have been close wh, which is prsg but sport also giv a unique opportuny to bridge that gap.

AMERINS HATE SOCCER BEE 'S GAY

This month’s gay pri celebratns ci wh two of the world’s most high-profile sports tournaments: Copa Ameri — hosted for the first time by the Uned Stat — and Euro while the NFL and NBA have passed the tone of havg openly gay athlet their top profsnal leagu, not a sgle soccer player eher petn has e out as leav the “betiful game” whout any gay male role mols even an age when sponsors are unncerned about players’ Rogers of LA Galaxy plays agast New York Cy FC on Augt 23, 2015. Is one of only two untri known to have field gay players s senr men’s team — Californian wger Robbie Rogers reprented his untry 18 tim and sred two goals but, like Germany’s midfielr Thomas Hzlsperger, he me out after his ternatnal reer was over.

“Once aga we have top ternatnal tournaments featurg the bt players the world and supposedly none of them are gay, ” said Jeff Kfman, a 26-year-old player and external sportg activi director for the world’s first gay soccer club, the New York Ramblers.

WHY THERE ARE FEW OPENLY GAY ATHLET IN MEN'S PROFSNAL SPORTS

Stars cludg English Premier League players Per Mertacker, Las Podolski and Olivier Giroud have worn rabow-lored lac as part of a mpaign by Stonewall, backed by England’s Football Associatn and major rporate sponsors, agast homophobia on the pch and at than 100 gay-clive teams reprentg over 30 untri are registered wh the Internatnal Gay & Lbian Football Associatn (IGLFA), whose world cup tak place this Augt Portland, Ore.

BREAKING: SOCCER IS GAY

“We don’t face any discrimatn when we play and is difficult to unrstand why ’s a problem the hight leagu but clearly is, ” said Jamie Feldman, 29, a midfielr and tstee of the world’s most succsful gay soccer club, London-based Stonewall last month a soccer referee Spa gave up his job after repeatedly beg the target of verbal abe at gam bee of his sexual orientatn. However, Adidas nfirmed Febary that s sponsorship ntracts clu a clse promisg not to ncel als if athlet reveal publicly that they are gay, while Nike announced Tuday was beg a major rporate sponsor of the IGLFA’s gay world Euro 2016, which begs Friday France, a mercial featurg a fictnal gay soccer player and his boyiend is beg aired to promote German railways. “In a team sport, any profsnal athlete wants what’s bt for the team and they might thk that anythg drawg a lot of attentn to one player for a non-sportg reason go agast the fans chanted a gay slur at a game Glendale, Arizona, on Sunday, spe beg fed by FIFA for prev homophobic York / AP“I n easily image that brgg a lot of outsi scty uld hurt the chemistry of a locker room, but this has already been played out NFL and NBA locker rooms and really don’t matter.

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.

"I NO LONGER WANT TO HI:" CZECH FOOTBALLER JAKUB JANKTO ANNOUNC HE IS GAY

"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.

JOSH CAVALLO: ONLY OPENLY GAY TOP-FLIGHT MALE FOOTBALLER SAYS FIFA’S ‘ONELOVE’ ARMBAND BAN HAS MA HIM FEEL ‘EXCLUD’

Last year, a group of fans sued the operators of Soldier Field Chigo over the repeated e of the homophobic “puto” chant durg a 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup match between the U.

Earlier this year, the Mexin Football Feratn announced fans who chant gay slurs will be banned om stadiums for five years, but don’t seem as if the edict has ma a tangible difference. As the World Cup go on a untry where homosexualy is illegal, many global football fans are havg to reckon wh the sports' soccer remas one of the most popular sports around the world, very few players have been able to e out and enjoy a succsful reer afterwards.

Gay players face prsure om teammat, ownership, ach, and fans over their are some of the men who have e out, fightg those stereotyp, and pavg the way for LGBTQ+ athlet who e after them. Photo: Photo Works / unrstand soccer -- at least s native English form -- and s highly charged, no-homo homoerotics, you need image a scenar so absurd as to be pletely hot, young, straight soccer player is about to take a ee kick. Le Sx was generally nsired gay the largely workg - class world of soccer bee (a) he was middle-class and read books, and (b) he rpond to the gay tnts -- though, acrdg to the logic of footie banter, not rpondg would also have proved he was the 15 years sce then the world has changed, but the no-homo homoerotics of the "betiful game" haven't.

WHY ARE MORE FEMALE PROFSNAL FOOTBALLERS OPENLY GAY OR BISEXUAL THAN MALE PLAYERS?

Meanwhile the brother of Jt Fashanu, Bra's first and only out gay profsnal footballer who sadly hanged himself 1998, eight years after clarg his sexual orientatn, is still nyg that Fashanu was actually Beckham's rise to global fame symboliz how much attus toward masculy have changed the wir world -- and unrl football's gay problem. Last year, the Brighton & Hove Albn Supporters' Club and the Gay Football Supporters' Network published a dossier tailg the abive chants they and their team receive for hailg om a town famo for s gay populatn, cludg "You're jt a town full of faggots!

Perhaps for too many, the pot of followg soccer is precisely to prove you're not gay -- while enjoyg highly homosocial than any other sport I n thk of, soccer prob for the weakns of the other si. " is one of the most popular chants agast them, which seems to sweetly sum up the no-homo homo-erotics of soccer: We fantasise about you exprsg tenrns toward one another that we n't allow ourselv, and we dis you for 's like that old le, "Backs agast the wall, lads! Weighg on the tired bate over why Amerins fail to love soccer as passnately as the rt of the world, an edorial on offers the followg four reasons: 1) the sport is not overmercialized; 2) 's too multicultural; 3) "homosexuals;" and 4) not enough pots are sred.

'THE FOUNDG MISSN IS NOT TO EXIST': STONEWALL FC, A PNEERG LGBT+ SOCCER TEAM HAS CHANGED THE SPORT FOR GAY MEN, NOW 'S PHG TO ERADITE HOMOPHOBIA FOOTBALL

Homosexualy has always been a ntroversial issue that Amerins have tried to avoid, and a sport like soccer that do not appear to be "manly enough" has failed to attract attentn om the US. By equatg homosexualy wh anythg not "manly" enough to necsate helmets and pads, the thor has (advertently) ppoted one of the major misperceptns that most homophobia sports.

When Nashville Predators prospect Le Prokop me out this week, was the first time an active player unr ntract to an NHL team had ever publicly acknowledged they were gay. "Gay men are a fe rource, so they n't exist great numbers every quarter, " Magrath told "Gay men are overreprented some areas, and as a nsequence are gog to be unrreprented sports. There are key differenc the cultur of men's and women's athletics While few active players the major men's sports leagu have e out, many female profsnal athlet have said publicly that they're gay, om U.

Soccer’s cisn to e out of the closet ahead of the World Cup, and to live as s thentic self, was met wh shgs of “well, obvly” and “I always thought soccer might be gay sce that time I ught soccer tryg on my make-up and lipsyncg to Donna Summer. The empty, banal, gture-signalg allegiance to rporate neoliberale is tend to reassure a ty set of LGBT activists who qutn the league’s participatn the upg FIFA World Cup Qatar, a untry where homosexualy is illegal. Forty-ne mut seems que genero, nsirg what would have happened to him Iran or Afghanistan where, sce the Taliban was restated by Print Bin last year, gay people have been hunted and murred routely, after a twenty-year reprieve durg the Amerin occupatn.