After watching a multitude of football games and playing when I was younger, I have always found it hard to fit into the football crowd. From the bantered discourse in the changing room (which some people might take on the chin) to witnessing homophobia from the stands - there’s still a complicated attitude in which needs addressing in football.
As an openly gay football fan, I've been lucky to support a football club who backs the LGBT+ community. But I don't know how it would feel for a football player thinking of coming out. We have all seen typical tabloid articles rumouring players thinking of coming out, the difference between social media and in-person discourse, and the questionable support from higher football organisations (cough cough Greg Clarke). However, we have also seen many players coming out from the lower leagues and in women’s football –– receiving positive support. So why are there no openly gay footballers playing in the Premier League and the Championship (don't forget they could be out, just not in the public eye)? Unfortunately, I don't know the answer and many others don't.
With data suggesting fans are likely to identify discriminatory language at footballers, match officials and coaching staff (84% of respondents), a large proportion of people (22% of respondents) say they are unlikely to report any act of discrimination (Data from Kick It Out 2019/20). In addition, the GayTimes and Paddy Power conducted their survey in which they found out 33% of the 1,010 respondents say they believe LGBTQ supporters weren't made to feel welcome and accepted at matches.
After reading studies by academics and articles by journalists, I decided to create Coming Out onto the Field. A multimedia project in which I'll investigate the complexities of a football player coming out. I hope my project will give both you and myself a better understanding of the subject.
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