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

a gay football player

The Alai Uned midfielr announced that he was gay a vio posted to the team's Twter acunt Tuday.

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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. * a gay football player *

Over the years, Outsports has known of a few other players who are gay but have never e out, even when retired. 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.

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

Carl Nassib, a fensive leman wh the Las Vegas Rairs, beme the first active NFL player league history to announce that he is gay. * a gay football player *

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.

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

‘NFL 360’ profil five LGBTQ people wh a sports background, cludg three openly gay football players, on the impact of Nassib g out. * a gay football player *

Carl Nassib, a fensive leman wh the Las Vegas Rairs, beme the first active NFL player league history to announce that he is gay. He said a statement acpanyg the vio that he had agonized over the cisn to announce he was gay for 15 years.

THREE GAY FOOTBALL PLAYERS FEATURED NFL NETWORK SEGMENT ON CARL NASSIB

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

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.

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

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

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.

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.

8 MALE FOOTBALL PLAYERS WHO DARED TO COME OUT AS GAY

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. * a gay football player *

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.

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.

THERE HAVE BEEN 11 KNOWN GAY PLAYERS NFL HISTORY

Carl Nassib of the NFL's Las Vegas rairs out as first gay football player — and uld be a turng pot for LGBTQ players male sports * a gay football player *

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. 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.

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

Leicter Cy and England fenr Conor Coady believ players would have no problem wh a teammate g out as gay. * a gay football player *

He me out 2011, and won the seventh season of Swedish realy show Let's Dance, beg the first out gay person to w. In 2014, he beme Bra's hight-profile out, gay player, and was the first out, gay male player to play at Wembley.

RAIRS’ CARL NASSIB OUT AS GAY, THE FIRST ACTIVE NFL PLAYER TO DO SO

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. “When I returned to football my sophomore year after g out was bee I knew that if I qu football was jt the begng of thgs I would qu or hold myself back om bee I was gay, ” Strer told Outsports. “To fast forward to my last football game my senr year and have end wh ‘NFL 360’ there to clu me a story celebratg the first openly gay football player NFL history is still really unbelievable to me.

EST, we see scen of Strer’s last game as a Matea Mtang, terspersed wh him speakg about beg gay football and what Nassib’s g out meant to him.

Their experienc are universal, ways good and bad, for many LGBTQ people — Pick talkg about the pa om the ial rejectn by her mom; O’Callaghan discsg suicidal thoughts before beg rcued by a therapist; Rapoport’s touchg rellectn of g out to NFL Commissner Roger Gooll by approachg him at a Super Bowl event holdg her girliend’s hand and Gooll’s se upon seeg ; Saffold discsg growg up Black and gay on the South Si of Chigo “where there are rampant levels of homophobia” and Strer on how he ed to worry “about how bad my life might be after I me out. “I thk 11- or 12-year-old kids playg football prr to Carl Nassib g out didn’t thk there uld be a gay football player, ” Rapoport said. 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.

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

So we set out to figure out how many current NFL players have already played on the same team wh an out gay teammate.

We found 39 current NFL players, who were on a roster for the 2020 season, who have already had an out gay teammate. 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.

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

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. 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):.

NFL ASSISTANT ACH 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.

CARL NASSIB, THE FIRST OPENLY GAY N.F.L. PLAYER, HAS BEEN A FOOTBALL EVERYMAN

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. Even though has already been three s sce Jt Fashanu first publicly me out as gay, there are only a few of them revealg .

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

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.

CONOR COADY EXCLIVE: OPENLY GAY PLAYER AT TOP LEVEL WOULD BE ACCEPTED "WHOUT A DOUBT"

In 2020, durg the San Diego Loyal match agast Phoneix Risg FC, Mart released a story of homophobic sults directed toward him. One of the hight-profile male football players publicly clarg himself as gay is German footballer Thomas Hzlsperger.

Anton Hysen is the youngt son of retired Swedish footballer Glenn Hysen and one of the gay players football. Later, he was profiled on Swedish broadstg channel TV4 March 2011 a bate show (Can gays play football too?

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

Likewise, he also participated the 7th edn of the realy TV show Lets Dance and beme the first-ever gay to w the ntt.

Later, on 22nd October 1990, The Sun Tabloid newspaper published the headle “£1m Football Star: I AM GAY”. Likewise, The Jt Fashanu All-stars football special event started Brighton to honor him and promote homosexualy football.

JAGUARS ACH KEV MAXEN OUT AS GAY HISTORIC ANNOUNCEMENT

In June 2020, former profsnal footballer Tomas Beattie me out as gay durg an Amerin sports channel ESPN terview. Furthermore, he is one of the send Brish football players to publicly e out as gay after Jt Fashanu did 30 years ago.

*BEAR-MAGAZINE.COM* A GAY FOOTBALL PLAYER

Josh Cavallo is one of the few male top-level footballers to e out as gay : NPR .

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