Graeme Souns explas why there are no openly gay footballers the Premier League and reveals tnal vis to Brighton Pri para | talkSPORT

Contents:

• JAKE DANIELS BE FIRST UK MALE FOOTBALLER TO E OUT AS GAY SCE 1990
• WHY THERE ARE STILL NO OPENLY GAY FOOTBALLERS THE PREMIER LEAGUE
• TWO PREMIER LEAGUE PLAYERS ' RELATNSHIP' AND OPEN WH TEAMMAT ABOUT BEG GAY
• PREMIER LEAGUE TEAMMAT ARE ‘OPEN’ ABOUT BEG A GAY RELATNSHIP
• ‘I’D FEEL LIKE I’VE DONE MY JOB’ – JAKE DANIELS WANTS TO SPIRE GAY PREMIER LEAGUE FOOTBALLERS TO E OUT AND SHARE THEIR STORI
• "A MASSIVE STEP FORWARD FOR GAY PLAYERS" - 2 PREMIER LEAGUE TEAMMAT ARE REPORTEDLY A RELATNSHIP AND ULD REVEAL INTI NEAR FUTURE
• GAY PLAYERS THE PREMIER LEAGUE? EVERTON UPLE SET TO E OUT 2023
• PREMIER LEAGUE FOOTBALLERS OPENLY GAY RELATNSHIP AMID WORLD CUP NTROVERSY
• GRAEME SOUNS EXPLAS WHY THERE ARE NO OPENLY GAY FOOTBALLERS THE PREMIER LEAGUE AND REVEALS TNAL VIS TO BRIGHTON PRI PARA
• EVRA: THERE ARE AT LEAST TWO GAY PLAYERS AT EVERY FOOTBALL CLUB

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

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. 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”.

Fifa’s U-turn over the OneLove armband this week reflects a wir lack of support for gay players Brish football. Brish men’s football has never had an easy relatnship wh gay players. Nearly 25 years after Jt Fashanu took his own life, followg years of homophobic abe, Brish football still has not had another openly gay player the top flight.

WHY THERE ARE STILL NO OPENLY GAY FOOTBALLERS THE PREMIER LEAGUE

The armband was never much of a gture, but would have been a small act of fiance at the tournament beg award to Qatar, where homosexualy is punishable by imprisonment and some s, ath. “Pathetic, ” said Blackpool forward Jake Daniels, the only out gay player the English league, on Instagram after hearg the news.

TWO PREMIER LEAGUE PLAYERS ' RELATNSHIP' AND OPEN WH TEAMMAT ABOUT BEG GAY

It was 32 years ago that Fashanu me out as the first openly gay profsnal footballer. Sce Fashanu’s ath, there have been untls iativ to stamp out homophobia the stands and support gay footballers.

Former footballer Clarke Carlisle, a proment spokman for player welfare, said eight Premier League players had told him they were gay. Yet none the Premier League are out, and Daniels is the only out gay player the English league.

PREMIER LEAGUE TEAMMAT ARE ‘OPEN’ ABOUT BEG A GAY RELATNSHIP

“Football is a socially nservative world, ” says Ross Rais, whose novel, A Natural, is about a gay footballer. Consir the se of (heterosexual) Graeme Le Sx, who played for Chelsea and England the 1990s and 2000s and was brand “gay” for admtg he read The Guardian.

Fans tnted him wh homophobic chants and Liverpool striker Robbie Fowler famoly waggled his backsi at Le Sx durg a match.

This week, Fifa is vtigatg the Ecuadorean fans over allegatns of homophobic chantg. The clubs and the FA have ma efforts to improve the culture wh iativ such as Kick It Out, which mpaigns agast discrimatn and Football v Homophobia, backed by the FA, which offers support to fans, grassroots teams and top-level clubs.

‘I’D FEEL LIKE I’VE DONE MY JOB’ – JAKE DANIELS WANTS TO SPIRE GAY PREMIER LEAGUE FOOTBALLERS TO E OUT AND SHARE THEIR STORI

Blackpool forward Jake Daniels is the only openly gay player the English league.

"A MASSIVE STEP FORWARD FOR GAY PLAYERS" - 2 PREMIER LEAGUE TEAMMAT ARE REPORTEDLY A RELATNSHIP AND ULD REVEAL INTI NEAR FUTURE

Even where men’s sport has had one or two high-profile gay players, as wh Gareth Thomas gby unn, they rema outliers.

GAY PLAYERS THE PREMIER LEAGUE? EVERTON UPLE SET TO E OUT 2023

Wh the Qatar World Cup startg next weekend, ntroversy already kicked off when Khalid Salman, an ambassador for the tournament, scribed homosexualy as "a damage the md" durg an terview wh German TV. Earlier the year, Blackpool player Jake Daniels beme the first current player Bra to e out as gay. Two Premier League players the same team are a relatnship — and are open about beg a gay relatnship is far om a secret wh the club’s four walls, but the pair are reluctant to e out and make a public announcement, The Sun reports.

”It was first revealed by The Sun earlier this year that a former England ternatnal and Premier League star is talks to film a documentary about potentially g put as the first openly gay player Engilsh football.

PREMIER LEAGUE FOOTBALLERS OPENLY GAY RELATNSHIP AMID WORLD CUP NTROVERSY

Alai Uned star Josh Cavallo last year beme the first Atralian male footballer to e out as gay while still playg.

Brave Blackpool player Jake Daniels, 17, revealed he was gay May after gag the acceptance of was uproar this week when Qatari World Cup ambassador Khalid Salman scribed homosexualy as “a damage the md” an terview. England legend Gary Leker, 61, said last month he knows of “one or two” gay Premier League players who have been very close to g Sun unrstands another Premier League footballer is nsirg open up about his sexualy a show currently productn.

GRAEME SOUNS EXPLAS WHY THERE ARE NO OPENLY GAY FOOTBALLERS THE PREMIER LEAGUE AND REVEALS TNAL VIS TO BRIGHTON PRI PARA

A source said: “This uld be a massive step forward for gay players. ‘I’d feel like I’ve done my job’ – Jake Daniels wants to spire gay Premier League footballers to e out and share their stori. Daniels spoke out on his cisn on Monday (Picture: Sky News)Jake Daniels hop his cisn to e out will spire gay footballers the Premier League and across world football to do the same.

The 17-year-old Blackpool forward has e out as the only open gay male profsnal footballer Bra and jt the send the world after Josh Carvallo of Alai Uned Atralia.

Daniels, who signed his first profsnal ntract wh Blackpool earlier this year, believ other gay male footballers are stgglg wh expectatns over masculy the game.

EVRA: THERE ARE AT LEAST TWO GAY PLAYERS AT EVERY FOOTBALL CLUB

Daniels ma his senr but for Blackpool this month (Picture: REX/Shutterstock)‘I thk down to a lot of footballers wantg to be known as mascule, and I thk beg gay, a lot of people e as beg weak, ’ Daniels told Sky Sports News. ‘So a lot of people would say, “You’re dog that bee you’re gay” and they’re gog to say ’s bee you’re weak, but ’s jt not the se.

Daniels hop other gay footballers, even those the Premier League, n now feel fortable g out or even reachg out to him to help them wh the procs. ‘So I jt want to do that for other people and maybe if there’s Premier League footballers who are gay and ready to e out – or they want to and are jt wag – I want someone to ntact me and ask, “How’s been?

MORE: Blackpool forward Jake Daniels be first pro footballer to e out as gay 32 years. An undisclosed source has told The Sun that two gay Premier League footballers, who are reportedly teammat, are a relatnship wh each other.