Before Carl Nassib, Michael Sam was the NFL’s first openly gay draft pick - The Washgton Post

professional gay football players

The Rairs fensive leman me out a statement posted to his Instagram acunt on Monday, beg the first active player the league to publicly intify as gay.

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

Carl Nassib is the first to ever play a down as openly gay, but the rt are still trailblazers. * professional gay football players *

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. 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.

“I don’t see sexualy as fluencg my beliefs or opns or perceptns of anybody, whether they’re gay, straight, bi, trans, experimental, I don’t re. Furthermore, he has openly e out as gay, and th, he is the first high-profile Atralian sportsperson and the first gby footballer the world to be such.

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.

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

Players on 22 NFL teams have already had an out gay teammate, cludg six players wh the Arizona Cardals. * professional gay football players *

Perkz/@rlnassib/@rkrelentls)When Kansas State offensive tackle and NFL hopeful Stt Frantz me out to the natn as gay, he shared that his teammat (to whom he'd e out earlier) had warmly received the news, a sign the most alpha of locker rooms may fally be ready for equaly. Roy "Sugar Bear" Simmons, an offensive leman for the New York Giants and Washgton Redsks, beme the send NFL player ever to publicly reveal he was gay.

So Coach Vce Lombardi knew McDonald was gay when he took over learship of the team 1969, but ma clear there would be no discrimatn his locker room, those close to the legend say. Cornerback Wa Davis, who played preason wh the Tennsee Tans, Seattle Seahawks and Washgton Redsks and spent two seasons wh NFL Europe teams Berl Thunr and Barcelona Dragons, me out as gay 2012, nearly a after his retirement.

He would later nfirm his sexualy on CNN and s down wh ESPN to discs the challeng of growg up gay Jamai and playg football while closeted. He later cled to sign wh the Tennsee Tans and Dallas Cowboys before g out as gay at 24, he told Philalphia Magaze revealed to the magaze that he'd dated a male cheerlear at Purdue who had threatened to out him then.

TOP 10 GAY NFL PLAYERS WHO ARE TLY INSPIRATNAL

Very few NFL players have e out as gay - Most of the openly gay NFL players did so after they stopped playg. We list 10 gay players here. * professional gay football players *

The Bachelor star and former football player (who was signed by the San Diego Chargers as an undrafted ee agent and was on the practice squad of the Oakland Rairs and the Philalphia Eagl) me out as gay April of 2021, sayg he had fally e to terms wh his sexualy and the "next step all of this was sort of lettg people know. The Rairs leman ma NFL history durg Pri Month 2021 when he me out as gay a heartfelt Instagram post, beg the first active NFL player to e out as member of the LGBTQ+ muny. The Hampton Universy player ma history October of 2022 when he me out as gay an Instagram Story post, beg the first out gay football player at a Historilly Black College or Universy.

Sce g out, he has bee a board member at the Gay and Lbian Athletics Foundatn, pl he created an anizatn lled Hate Any Form is Wrong, which mpaigns agast homophobia. The purpose of this list is to go a b more pth about some of the mors that are surroundg the players, not to nvce the rear that the athlet are gay.

TOP 10 ATHLET WHO ARE RUMORED TO BE GAY

Let’s be clear right om the start. None of the athlet are nfirmed to be gay or anythg like that. The purpose of this list is to go a b more pth about some of the mors that are surro * professional gay football players *

In fact, as society is now much more open to people no matter their orientatn, we have seen a ton more athlet, both active and retired, e out and adm that they are homosexuals, and 's absolutely a great thg. This list will look at some of the most high profile exampl of pro athlet who have had mors about beg gay surroundg them, but aga, none of those are nfirmed and even if they were nfirmed, they would be somethg to celebrate. His ex-wife has acced him of beg gay and that Dunn’s lover om llege actually lived wh them for the first few years of their marriage.

Qutns about Aikman's sexual orientatn have been around for s and the mor was started by Skip Bayls, when, his book, he stated that Troy Aikman might be gay. The announcement today by former Patrts and Chiefs offensive leman Ryan O'Callaghan that he is gay brgs to seven the number of NFL known gay players NFL history who have played a regular season game. The South Ain player acknowledg that most of his teammat accepted his sexualy, however, he has faced homophobic slurs om opposg teams.

I don’t wish the hostily I felt on anyone, bee not everyone n survive homophobia a sport like football, ” he told MambaOnle recently. 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 HAVE BEEN 11 KNOWN GAY PLAYERS NFL HISTORY

Beg an out gay man and a soccer player is still somethg that’s greeted wh homophobia. See eight out and proud male gay footballers. * professional gay football players *

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.

HERE ARE EIGHT OUT AND PROUD MALE GAY FOOTBALLERS

It is believed by many that male profsnal footballers are not openly gay or bisexual parison to female players. Read on to fd out more about the homosexual male players football history. * professional gay football players *

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.

Acrdg to rearch fdgs, football supporters would like to see homophobia elimated, believe the FA is not dog enough to addrs the issue, and would feel at ease if a member of their team me out as gay. Homosexual male players football historyHere is a list of the profsnal male footballers who me out public and announced their homosexualy. Uned and Mnota Uned FC Major League Soccer, and for Richmond Kickers and Hartford Athletic the Uned Football me out as gay June 2018, makg him the only out man any of the big five Amerin sports leagu or any top-divisn profsnal men's natnal soccer, 26, shared the news on Twter, notg he had been openly gay to his iends and fay for years, but never on such a large platform.

'Mart's announcement ma him one of only two openly gay players Major League Soccer - the other beg Robbie Rogers, who retired shortly after his announcement but me back to play Tto was the first player to e out as a gay man, makg the announcement shortly after his retirement said his cisn to e out on an ternatnal stage was ma 'much easier' by the 'kdns and acceptance' om his fellow players. He released a book named “Comg Out to Play” announced his retirement and sexualy wh a 408-word post on his personal blog, which Rogers wrote, "I'm a soccer player, I'm Christian, and I'm gay. Daily Mail has scribed Anton as the "first high-profile Swedish footballer to announce that he is gay" and as the send active profsnal football player to e out, after English footballer Jt Fashanu 1990.

KEV MAXEN BE FIRST GAY MALE NFL COACH

Kev Maxen, a strength ach for the Jacksonville Jaguars, has e out, beg the first openly gay male ach men's U.S. profsnal sports. * professional gay football players *

At the Stockholm Pri, he livered a speech nouncg sports homophobia and laid to rt his 2001 airport stated that, "I know that many LGBT people have been the victims of asslts and hate crim. Cint had been blown out of proportn the orr to fally flh the Frankfurt Airport punch down the toilet: is not the se that I beat up a gay person. "While Germany as a untry has noticeably bee more and more relaxed about homosexualy recent years, he had also noted there was an unhelpful media obssn wh fdg the first gay footballer.

All sorts of well-tend but ultimately unhelpful terventns om heterosexual players – who eher oped that gay players would benef om g out or utned agast – did not exactly fill him wh nfince that this was ed the right former ternatnal, who played the 2006 World Cup and the 2008 European Champnship, matas that he did not have to lie about his sexualy and that teammat eventually stopped askg about his lack of a girliend.

After partg Grimsby Town, Liam went onto play for Selby Town, Brigg Town, Gasborough Try, and most recently Cleethorp Town, who he reprented the 2017 FA Vase Fal at January 2014 Davis bee the UKs hight profile openly gay December 2017, Davis publicly cricized ments ma by FA chairman Greg Clarke that "profsnal players who out themselv as homosexual would be takg a risk. "Davis urged other homosexual soccer players to e out publicly and not fear a 32-year-old has spoken out enuragg male gay footballers not to worry about g out, sharg his own experienc as part of Uefa’s Equal Game mpaign, to foster greater cln and diversy the midfielr admted receivg abe om opponents, but sists football’s attus to homosexualy are creasgly UrbanMarc Urban, born 4 Augt 1971, is a former German football player.

8 MALE FOOTBALL PLAYERS WHO DARED TO COME OUT AS GAY

In 1990, Jt Fashanu beme the first football player to publicly e out as gay. Sce then, only seventeen players have done the same. * professional gay football players *

He has spoken publicly about the difficulti that gay footballers’ experience and he is now a spokperson and mpaigner on diversy issu sport and the was sent to a sports boardg school at age 13 and played for the natnal youth teams the 1990s before settlg at send divisn club Rot-Weiss Erfurt. He is now on the board of You Can Play, an anizatn dited to the fight agast homophobia PterPter liv Balham wh his hband Alan and works as an assistant manager at Boots. He was appoted as a Member of the Orr of the Brish Empire bee of his work batg realized at the age of 10 that he was gay, and alt wh homophobic abe om his schoolmat.

While playg for his lol club, Pter suffered homophobia om other players and was dropped om the first team to the fourth team after one of his teammat found out that he was gay. It was later announced that he had e out as gay, and that he qu football as a rult of what he scribed as wispread homophobia the football muny.

Berlg's se was ced several tim the upg years, as the nnectn between homophobia and sport was discsed the natnal media now and FashanuJt Soni Fashanu (19 Febary 1961 – 2 May 1998) was an English footballer who played for var clubs between 1978 and 1997. 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 1998. Kev Maxen, an associate strength ach for the Jacksonville Jaguars football team, me out as gay on Thursday an terview wh the LGBTQ sports-foced webse Outsports.

AT LEAST 20 FOOTBALLERS PREMIER LEAGUE AND CHAMPNSHIP ARE GAY BUT THEY'RE AAID TO E OUT SAYS EX-CLUB BOSS

Openly gay Leeds Uned director David Haigh says players nfid him - and he believ clubs uld benef mercially if stars e out * professional gay football players *

On the achg si, several female assistant ach the NFL have prevly e out as gay, cludg former San Francis 49ers assistant ach Katie Sowers, there has prevly been no known out gay male head or assistant ach the league. Curt Miller, who is currently the head ach of the Los Angel Sparks, is the first out gay male ach the WNBA, but there have been no out gay ach any of the four major men’s U. 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.

JAGUARS ACH KEV MAXEN OUT AS GAY HISTORIC ANNOUNCEMENT

Rairs fensive end Carl Nassib publicly me out June 2021, makg him the first openly gay man to actively play the NFL. * professional gay football players *

Therefore, a suable environment should be created through tn as a drivg factor, so gay footballers don’t feel prsured to reveal their sexualy. At least 20 footballers Premier League and Champnship are gay but they're aaid to e out says ex-club bossOpenly gay Leeds Uned director David Haigh says players nfid him - and he believ clubs uld benef mercially if stars e outDavid Haigh durg his time at Leeds UnedAt least 20 football stars are gay and “aaid” to e out, a top club’s ex-director claims.

He spoke out after Belgium fenr Carl Hoefkens told how he had played wh two Premier League footballers who were gay but publicly ‘ the closet’. Dad-of-two Hoefkens, 39, who played for Stoke and Wt Brom om, told Belgian newspaper De Zondag: “I played alongsi three gay footballers, cludg one who was a genuely big name. ” Mr Haigh was ntacted by gay players om different top flight clubs, but adms was difficult for them to go public about their sexualy.

Jacksonville Jaguars associate strength ach Kev Maxen me out as gay on Thursday what is believed to be a first for a male ach major U.

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

Seven years before Las Vegas Rairs fensive end Carl Nassib beme the first active NFL player to e out as gay on Monday, an all-Amerin om the Universy of Missouri risked a promisg reer wh a public claratn. “I am an openly proud gay man, ” Michael Sam, a 24-year-old fensive end, told ESPN and the New York Tim Febary announcement followed a surprisg 12-2 season for Missouri, which won the SEC East and then the Cotton Bowl as Sam was named the SEC fensive player of the year.

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

On Tuday, Sam thanked Nassib for jog the ranks of LGBTQ football players, payg special tribute to the donatn Nassib ma to the Trevor Project, a nonprof foced on suici Vegas Rairs fensive end Carl Nassib announced June 21 on Instagram that he is gay, makg him the first active NFL player to e out.

The NFL particular had faced cricism for allegedly askg prospects about their sexual orientatn and had been acced of hamperg players who spoke out favor of gay many profsnal athlet around the world, cludg several retired NFL players, had e out by 2014, no one who was still playg football had dared to make that move before story rurfaced on Monday when the 28-year-old Nassib, who was drafted by the Cleveland Browns 2016 and now plays for the Rairs, announced that he is gay a vio on Instagram. “Here’s the tth: Everyone ow Michael Sam such a b of gratu, ” Wa Davis, a former NFL rnerback who me out as gay 2012, told The Washgton Post on Monday.

He wasn’t the only gay man who stggled to fd a place the NFL after g retired NFL players have publicly intified as gay, begng wh Dave Kopay, who me out 1975, three years after leavg the sport. Atralian A-League soccer star Josh Cavallo me out as gay an October vio posted to his social media, beg hailed as the first current male top-flight profsnal soccer player to publicly do so. "He ntued: "Growg up I always felt the need to hi myself, you know, bee I was ashamed, and ashamed I'll never be able to do what I love and be gay.

RAIRS’ CARL NASSIB ANNOUNC HE’S GAY, AN N.F.L. FIRST

In a September terview wh USA Today, 25-year-old mor league baseball player beme the only active baseball profsnal to be out as gay!

The 28-year-old Natnal Football League player and Rairs fensive leman ma history when he me out as gay on Instagram durg Pri Month, beg the first veteran NFL player to e out as gay while signed to a regular-season ntract. The Bachelor star and former football player (who was signed by the San Diego Chargers as an undrafted ee agent and was on the practice squad of the Oakland Rairs and the Philalphia Eagl) me out as gay April, sayg he had fally e to terms wh his sexualy and the "next step all of this was sort of lettg people know.

7 GAY NFL FOOTBALL PLAYERS

Corey Walsh, the 27-year-old pro BMX rir and Vans spokperson, said he isn't normally the type of person to "let people " on his personal life, but felt was important to e out as gay a March Instagram post bee "there are a lot of people still stgglg wh the same suatns" and he "jt wanted to let people know that they are not alone. Champn long track speedskater Conor McDermott-Mostowy never hid beg gay om his fay, iends, and fellow athlet, but he also wasn't one to rate his locker wh rabow Pri flags eher.

*BEAR-MAGAZINE.COM* PROFESSIONAL GAY FOOTBALL PLAYERS

Meet the 16 out gay and bi players NFL history - Outsports .

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