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 - ESPN

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
• 8 MALE FOOTBALL PLAYERS WHO DARED TO COME OUT AS GAY
• 'GO GAYS!': WHY USA'S LGBTQ WORLD CUP STARS ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER
• 20 INSPIRG GAY AND LBIAN FOOTBALL (SOCCER) PLAYERS
• HERE ARE EIGHT OUT AND PROUD MALE GAY FOOTBALLERS
• COLLEGE & PROFSNAL ATHLET WHO ARE OPENLY 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.

8 MALE FOOTBALL PLAYERS WHO DARED TO COME OUT AS GAY

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. 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.

'GO GAYS!': WHY USA'S LGBTQ WORLD CUP STARS ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER

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. 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.

20 INSPIRG GAY AND LBIAN FOOTBALL (SOCCER) PLAYERS

"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.

HERE ARE EIGHT OUT AND PROUD MALE GAY FOOTBALLERS

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. 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.

COLLEGE & PROFSNAL ATHLET WHO ARE OPENLY GAY

Seventeen male footballers have urageoly revealed their sexualy as gay public so far. Even though has already been three s sce Jt Fashanu first publicly me out as gay, there are only a few of them revealg . 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. Now, whout any further ado, let’s list the football players who dared to e out as gay publicly.