Charl Barkley fends LGBTQIA+ muny, Bud Light expletive-filled rant: ‘If you’re gay, God bls you’

Contents:

• 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
• GAY & LBIANS IN SOCCER
• JAGS' MAXEN IS FIRST MALE AMERIN PRO SPORTS ACH TO E OUT AS GAY
• THIS GUY SAYS HE’S TALKED TO 20 GAY PRO SOCCER PLAYERS. ABOUT 11 PEOPLE BELIEVE HIM.
• 20 INSPIRG GAY AND LBIAN FOOTBALL (SOCCER) PLAYERS
• CHARL BARKLEY FENDS LGBTQIA+ MUNY, BUD LIGHT EXPLETIVE-FILLED RANT: ‘IF YOU’RE GAY, GOD BLS YOU’
• NFL ASSISTANT ACH OUT AS GAY

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

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.

Atralian striker Andy Brennan me out as gay 2019, beg the first out gay Atralian male footballer. He me out 2011, and won the seventh season of Swedish realy show Let's Dance, beg the first out gay person to w. He me out as gay 2022.

GAY & LBIANS IN SOCCER

His early clubs knew he was gay, and he me out durg his reer, beg the first pro footballer to do so.

In 2014, he beme Bra's hight-profile out, gay player, and was the first out, gay male player to play at Wembley. He later me out as gay and has sce spoken out about the difficulti queer players face. He me out as gay 2019.

The South Ain footballer beme Ai's first out, gay male footballer when he me out 2015. 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. Later, he revealed he qu the sport as a rult of homophobia he faced when he me out.

JAGS' MAXEN IS FIRST MALE AMERIN PRO SPORTS ACH TO E OUT AS GAY

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. "Flemmgs was later spend for six gam by the league, and he nied g an anti-gay slur toward Mart.

"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.

"Mart is not unique that he didn't have ach who were willg to step to put an end to homophobic language when was ed. It is a long sought victory for gay rights. This cisn is the end rult of s of effort and gay rights activism.

THIS GUY SAYS HE’S TALKED TO 20 GAY PRO SOCCER PLAYERS. ABOUT 11 PEOPLE BELIEVE HIM.

While the world gradually accepts non-heterosexuals as star players the world of sports, all to often gay and lbian soccer players and ach keep a low profile.

Attus about gay and lbian people have shifted dramatilly over the last . Support for same-sex marriage has steadily creased and more than 6--10 Amerins now report they have a close iend or fay member who is gay or lbian. Millennials, who have nsistently monstrated strong support for gay marriage, are growg size and fluence— 2015 they will surpass Baby Boomers as the largt sgle generatn.

20 INSPIRG GAY AND LBIAN FOOTBALL (SOCCER) PLAYERS

Their views on gay marriage and other hotly ntted social qutns may soon serve as the flt cultural norm.

CHARL BARKLEY FENDS LGBTQIA+ MUNY, BUD LIGHT EXPLETIVE-FILLED RANT: ‘IF YOU’RE GAY, GOD BLS YOU’

Yet, spe the creasg acceptance of gays and lbians the U. S., openly gay profsnal athlet are still somethg of an anomaly—the NFL was whout a sgle openly gay player until the draftg of Michael Sam 2014.

There are three possible reasons why profsnal sports have so few gay and lbian athlet.

First, there may simply be a arth of gay and lbian athlet wh the realm of profsnal sports.

NFL ASSISTANT ACH OUT AS GAY

This optn seems unlikely, however, as gay and lbians would have to exceedgly unrreprented for the numbers to add up.

5 percent of the public is gay or lbian. This would translate to as many as 60 gay football players currently the NFL alone.

A send reason might be that sports fans are simply not ready to cheer for gay and lbian athlet, disuragg such athlet om g forward. The PRRI/RNS Survey found that most Amerins (73 percent) support profsnal teams signg gay and lbian athlet. Even among diehard football fans support for signg gay athlet remas robt: roughly three-quarters (72 percent) of football fans say they would support their favore team signg an openly gay player.