Josh Cavallo: the world’s only openly gay top-tier men’s footballer | News | The Guardian

Contents:

• THE 39 CURRENT NFL PLAYERS HAVE ALL PLAYED WH AN OUT GAY TEAMMATE
• GAY PREMIER LEAGUE FOOTBALLER 'VERY LIKELY' TO E OUT NEXT YEAR, SAYS JT FASHANU'S NIECE
• JOSH CAVALLO BE ONE OF THE FEW PROFSNAL MEN'S FOOTBALLERS TO E OUT AS GAY
• WHY THERE ARE FEW OPENLY GAY ATHLET IN MEN'S PROFSNAL SPORTS
• MEET THE 16 OUT GAY AND BI FOOTBALL PLAYERS THE NFL’S 103-YEAR HISTORY
• 8 MALE FOOTBALL PLAYERS WHO DARED TO COME OUT AS GAY
• EVERY FOOTBALL TEAM PROBABLY HAS ONE GAY PLAYER - DEENEY
• ‘I HAVE BEEN FIGHTG MY SEXUALY’: A-LEAGUE MEN PLAYER JOSH CAVALLO OUT AS GAY
• JOSH CAVALLO: THE WORLD’S ONLY OPENLY GAY TOP-TIER MEN’S FOOTBALLER
• KEV MAXEN BE FIRST MALE ACH A US MEN’S PROFSNAL SPORTS LEAGUE TO PUBLICLY E OUT AS GAY
• JAKE DANIELS BE FIRST UK MALE FOOTBALLER TO E OUT AS GAY SCE 1990
• GAY PREMIER LEAGUE FOOTBALLERS ‘VERY LIKELY’ TO E OUT SOON, SAYS JT FASHANU’S NIECE
• BY G OUT, CARL NASSIB LIKELY IMPROVED NFL FANS’ ATTUS TOWARD GAY MEN. HERE’S HOW WE KNOW.
• I LONG FOR A DAY WHEN GAY FOOTBALLERS LIKE ME AND JOSH CAVALLO DON’T NEED TO BE SO ‘BRAVE’
• NOTABLE GAY PLAYERS EXIST
• 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?
• JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS ASSISTANT COACH KEV MAXEN MAK HISTORY AFTER COMG OUT AS GAY

THE 39 CURRENT NFL PLAYERS HAVE ALL PLAYED WH AN OUT GAY TEAMMATE

Dpe Outsports chroniclg lerally dozens of piec of evince to the ntrary, there’s a ntued belief amongst some that NFL players would overwhelmgly reject a gay player if he me out. The 39 current NFL players have played wh at least five gay or bisexual men who were out to their team while they were on the same team. At least six of the players on the Cardals’ 2020 roster — about 10% of the team, — has already had a gay teammate they knew of.

GAY PREMIER LEAGUE FOOTBALLER 'VERY LIKELY' TO E OUT NEXT YEAR, SAYS JT FASHANU'S NIECE

Wh that experience, solid veteran learship, a ach Kliff Kgsbury who has ld gay football player Stt Frantz, and a ont office that has monstrated an embrace of LGBTQ people, is easy to make the se that an out gay player wh the Cardals would be weled. The are the current NFL players to have played wh an out gay or bi man on their team (wh that team and their current team listed):.

JOSH CAVALLO BE ONE OF THE FEW PROFSNAL MEN'S FOOTBALLERS TO E OUT AS GAY

If you thk I’ve missed a current NFL player who’s played wh an out gay or bi teammate, be sure to leave the rmatn the ments below. 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. Rogers me out as gay 2013, beg the first out gay man to pete a top North Amerin pro sports league when he played for the LA Galaxy that same year. Ashamed I would never be able to do what I love and be gay, hidg who I really am to pursue a dream I always wished for as a kid.

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

Male profsnal athlet e out as the first openly gay players currently participatg their rpective sports, cludg NHL hockey player Le Prokop and NFL fensive end Carl Nassib. 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.

Overnight, Prokop's announcement doubled the number of out gay athlet currently playg the untry's four major men's sports — football, basketball, baseball and hockey. Though many retired former players have e out, is more unual for male profsnal athlet to say they are gay while still playg. Gay male athlet face cultural barriers Part of the reason for the lack of out gay players men's profsnal sports uld be that there are jt fewer of them the game.

MEET THE 16 OUT GAY AND BI FOOTBALL PLAYERS THE NFL’S 103-YEAR HISTORY

Rory Magrath, a rearcher at Solent Universy England, has suggted that 's possible gay men are unrreprented profsnal sports. "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.

8 MALE FOOTBALL PLAYERS WHO DARED TO COME OUT AS GAY

That uld be due to the mascule culture at the center of the major sports, experts say, creatg an environment that is ls welg to gay athlet. Magrath helped thor a study that found that male athlet who me out as gay while still playg sports were largely met wh acceptance by their teammat. Robbie Rogers ma history 2013 when he took the field for the Los Angel Galaxy after as the first openly gay player profsnal U.

EVERY FOOTBALL TEAM PROBABLY HAS ONE GAY PLAYER - DEENEY

NBA player Jason Colls, who me out 2013 while he was still playg the league, later told NPR " went great" when he scribed the perd after announcg he was gay.

After Michael Sam beme the first openly gay athlete to be drafted to the NFL 2014, then-Miami Dolphs safety Don Jon tweeted "horrible, " rultg penalti and a spensn. David Kopay, a former NFL nng back who me out 1975, was unable to land a profsnal achg job after he announced publicly that he was gay.

‘I HAVE BEEN FIGHTG MY SEXUALY’: A-LEAGUE MEN PLAYER JOSH CAVALLO OUT AS GAY

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. But tak guts to e out and reveal one’s genr as gay, which is ually an act of urage a world that is not ndned to accept every genr. The primary reason behd many gay footballers not revealg their sexualy publicly is fear of homophobia on and off the pch.

So, many profsnal leagu, teams, and players are raisg their voic to fight back agast homophobia so that gay footballers don’t face backlash while g out. In 2020, durg the San Diego Loyal match agast Phoneix Risg FC, Mart released a story of homophobic sults directed toward him. Likewise, The Jt Fashanu All-stars football special event started Brighton to honor him and promote homosexualy football.

Therefore, a suable environment should be created through tn as a drivg factor, so gay footballers don’t feel prsured to reveal their sexualy. Getty ImagThe English striker believ footballers are hant to be among the first to openly clare their homosexualyWatford pta Troy Deeney has clared every football team likely has one gay player among their ranks as he enuraged more athlet to open up about their sexualy.

JOSH CAVALLO: THE WORLD’S ONLY OPENLY GAY TOP-TIER MEN’S FOOTBALLER

Former Norwich striker Jt Fashanu remas the only openly gay male footballer Brish history wh Deeney adamant there are many more currently playg the game. The 31-year-old, who himself is divorced and has two kids, believ now is the time for more athlet to e out as gay, suggtg that not g out would be a heavy burn to rry around.

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

"You’ve got to realise that’s who you are and you’ve jt got to be who you are – whether you’re gay or whatever, whoever you are. A-League Men midfielr Josh Cavallo says he knows there are other players “livg silence” after beg the only known current male top-flight profsnal footballer the world to e out as gay. Labor senate lear and openly gay woman, Penny Wong, tweeted: “Any young person who is stgglg wh their inty, or feelg exclud or judged, n look today to Josh Cavallo.

Amerin former Leeds player Robbie Rogers also announced he was gay on retirg 2013, before returng to the field wh LA Galaxy and wng the MLS Cup to bee the first openly gay male athlete to w a major profsnal team sports tle the Uned 2019, former Newstle Jets player Andy Brennan beme Atralia’s first profsnal male footballer to e out while still playg the game. “It is astonishg to know that there are currently no gay profsnal footballers who are out and actively playg, not only Atralia, but around the world. When Alai Uned’s Josh Cavallo sat down to film his announcement to the world that he was g out as gay, he didn’t know what to expect.

If he were to be nsired for Atralia’s natnal team (he has played at unr-20 level), he would be aaid to go to the World Cup next year, as is hosted Qatar, where homosexualy is illegal. Per Outsports, as of September 2022, there have only ever been 16 players NFL history to publicly e out as gay or bisexual.

JAKE DANIELS BE FIRST UK MALE FOOTBALLER TO E OUT AS GAY SCE 1990

Per Outsports, Maxen is the “first publicly out male ach a major Amerin men’s pro sports league, ” wh WNBA ach Curt Miller, who publicly me out to the media as gay 2015, also a publicly out male ach an Amerin profsnal sports league. The Blackpool forward Jake Daniels has end s of silence wh men’s football to bee the first player the UK to e out as gay sce Jt Fashanu 1990.

Photograph: Pl Dennis/TGS Photo/ShutterstockDaniels’s revelatn is a strikg landmark that when men’s football is more engaged wh social issu than any recent time, but still unable to ce progrs LGBTQ reprentatn wh the year Alai Uned’s Josh Cavallo beme the only male top-flight profsnal footballer the world to e out as gay, but others are yet to follow.

GAY PREMIER LEAGUE FOOTBALLERS ‘VERY LIKELY’ TO E OUT SOON, SAYS JT FASHANU’S NIECE

In six months the men’s World Cup will be played Qatar, where homosexualy is illegal, and Cavallo revealed to the Guardian he would be “sred” to play at the tournament, the pnacle of world English football specifilly, the shadow of the talented and unfulfilled Fashanu still lgers over the game. The England ternatnal me out at the end of his reer and was to take his own life eight years later, Fashanu, Jt’s niece, who ns a charable foundatn his name, said that Daniels’s cisn would “e as a huge fort to the many footballers at all levels of the game still secretly livg as gay and who still feel unable to e out”. The niece of Jt Fashanu, the only active UK profsnal footballer to ever e out as gay, has said a Premier League footballer is “very likely” to e out next year.

Fashanu was the first active profsnal footballer  the world to e out as gay 1990, but ls than eight years later, after years of beg hound by the homophobic prs, he died by suici. In 2019, his niece Amal Fashanu found the Jt Fashanu Foundatn, which foc on tacklg mental health problems, racism and homophobia football.

Alai Uned left-back Josh Cavallo, 21, beme world’s only out gay active top-flight male football player when he me out last month. On June 21, Las Vegas Rairs fensive leman Carl Nassib me out publicly, makg him the first openly gay player for the Natnal Football League.

BY G OUT, CARL NASSIB LIKELY IMPROVED NFL FANS’ ATTUS TOWARD GAY MEN. HERE’S HOW WE KNOW.

The subsequent headle implied somethg more posive: that an otherwise stereotypil NFL player n also be openly gay, that beg gay is not patible wh beg a succsful profsnal athlete the hypermascule sport of Amerin football. By and large, gay athlet have stayed closeted major sports like football and hockey, part to avoid llg to qutn their masculy, and by associatn, their athletic abily.

What’s more, havg an openly gay male player a hypermascule sport like profsnal football n e some gnive dissonance for male fans. Rearch suggts that when Amerin heterosexual men try to rencile their beliefs that gay men are weak and effemate wh beliefs about football players as pnacl of masculy and strength, men n qutn their own masculy — which has a boomerang effect, leadg them to be more hostile toward and opposed to LGBTQ rights.

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

For example, 2015, polil scientist Carmen Martínez and lleagu found that anti-gay prejudice helped Amerin men affirm their masculy by distancg themselv om men who vlate genr norms. In their 2017 book “The Conundm of Masculy, ” polil scientist Chris Haywood and -thors found that several aspects of ntemporary Amerin masculy rerce one another, cludg homosocialy (or socializg wh other men) and antigay attus.

When masculy is important to an Amerin man’s self-ncept, any threat to his sense of masculy mak him more likely to hold anti-gay and anti-trans attus, soclogist Robb Willer and -thors fd.

The difference is statistilly Nassib’s announcement mattersOur rearch suggts that when men are reassured about their masculy, they are more open to supportg gay and transgenr rights. G., a pro-gay rights profsnal football player) are more likely to say that they agree wh that msenger’s support for those rights. It might also move football fans to see gay men as ls of a threat to masculy by severg the lk between profsnal football and heterosexual orientatn.

NOTABLE GAY PLAYERS EXIST

Instead I grew up hearg thgs like “Oh, that’s so gay”, gay beg ed as a word to reprent somethg distasteful, somethg that someone didn’t like.

It was not only graed me that football and beg gay was a no-go, but beg gay self was agast the g out, you first mt learn to accept yourself for who you are. Sportg associatns like the PFA (the players’ unn) have an important role helpg gay players, and was the PFA who helped facilate my g out. 'I'm a footballer and I'm gay': A-League player Josh Cavallo talks about his sexualy – vioAfter g out durg a trag ssn a player ed a homophobic slur.

For me, a homophobic ment n slice right through me and take me back to feelgs of worthlsns and beg a nstant state of self-nscns. NOTABLE GAY PLAYERS EXISTWikipedia’s list of gay profsnal football players is shockgly short, and there is a notable lack of real hoehold nam.

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

Durg his move om Norwich to Nottgham Fort 1981, Fashanu beme the first black player to mand a £1, 000, 000 transfer fee, six years after Italian Guiseppe Savoldi beme the first player to break the seven figure October 22nd 1990, Jt Fashanu beme the first profsnal football player to be openly gay after g out an exclive terview wh ntroversial tabloid The Sun. Several former clubs had known that Fashanu was gay: most had tolerated or ignored , while Nottgham Fort’s legendary manager Brian Clough was…ls tolerant. Fashanu fled Ameri after beg qutned by police, fearg that he would be unable to get a fair trial sce homosexualy was still illegal the state.

Wng the MLS Cup the next year, Robbie Rogers further signed his name to the history books by beg the first openly gay male athlete to w a major profsnal team sports tle the Uned Stat. He retired permanently 2017 after further jury Hzlsperger, undoubtedly, is the hight profile footballer to have e out as gay to date.

Four months later, January 2014, Thomas Hzlsperger me out as gay an terview wh German Die Ze: “It has only dawned on me recent years that I would rather live wh a man”. He would later reveal that he tend to e out as gay while playg for VfL Wolfsburg durg the 2011-12 season, but was advised agast . If there are 65, 000 profsnal football players and 2% of men - excludg bisexual men for the sake of argument - self-report that they are gay.

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

Simple math tells that there should be around 1300 gay profsnal footballers the Rogers himself said that he hoped him g out 2013 would pave the way for other profsnal football players to e out as gay.

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS ASSISTANT COACH KEV MAXEN MAK HISTORY AFTER COMG OUT AS GAY

”Jt Fashanu, Robbie Rogers and Thomas Hzlsperger rema the only football players who have played at the hight level of the sport and e out as gay.

One popular theory revolv around self-selectn: young gay athlet may self-select themselv out of the playg pool when they experience homophobia, om fearg that they will experiencg abe and discrimatn, or through a reluctance to hi their te selv om teammat. Talented gay athlet willl have stopped playg the sport they love bee of how they were treated, or how they feared they would be mt be a part of the reason, but exactly how big of a part plays is wholly impossible to measure any meangful way.

There are almost certaly fewer than 1, 300 gay profsnal footballers the world, but self-selectn alone nnot acunt for the fact that only three gay footballers have ma their way to the hight level of football the last 40 the first explanatn for the lack of succsful football players is that they simply do not exist thanks to self-selectn - bar Fashanu, Rogers and Hzlsperger - then the other optn mt be that they do exist, and choose not to e out as Zeigler, -founrs of and thor of Fair Play: How LGBT Athlet are Claimg their Rightful Place Sports don’t believe that a homophobic drsg room culture is to blame for a lack of gay athlet team sports. He's totally exclud om that nversatn and margaliz him om what is a major part of men's sports locker rooms”, says Davis, an openly gay former NFL player, has a different view and believ that sexism and homophobia is two sis of the same . Anytime you exist a space where you unrstand that beg gay is rrelated to beg weak and like a woman, anytime you hear sexist language, almost feels the exact same way.