Actor John Barrowman says he “knows” for a fact there are more gay footballers out there and he’s encouraging them to come out.
Speaking to The Sun, the actor, who recently competed alongside former Spurs and West Ham Boss Harry Redknapp on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!, said: “I had this conversation with Harry who apparently had never met a gay man before he met me in the jungle which I find hard to believe as I know there are gay footballers out there.”
The interview comes just one week after star pro footballer Andy Brennan, formerly of the Newcastle Jets, came out as gay in an emotional and inspiring Instagram post.
“It’s taken me years to get comfortable saying this…” Brennan said in the post, “I’m gay.”
How about we take this to the next level?
Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
Barrowman went on to say that LGBTQ footballers who are still afraid that coming out will negatively impact their careers are “stupid.”
“If people are fearful of coming out because of their job, they’re stupid,” Barrowman said. “There are so many ways and people around to protect them now and if they come out, whether they’re sportsman or they are in Hollywood.”
“There are so many people who really don’t care anymore who you sleep with. If you’re worried it’s going to affect your career, you’re living in another century.”
Barrowman concluded the interview by saying that it’s important for people in those sorts of high-profile positions to use their platforms for good, saying that coming out could “save and change” lives.
“The thing I say to people who, if they are reading this, is think of how many young lives you will save and change if you as a prominent person in your field whether it be sports, in television and business, that if you come out and be your true self and show that you can be successful and can live your life and not worry about stereotype, you are going to help maybe that one kid who is struggling and possibly on the verge of doing something drastic in their life because they feel they are shut down and can’t be who they are.”
Related: Meet Andy Brennan, the sexy Aussie footballer who just came out
Josh447
They aren’t “stupid” they’re scared. They don’t need to be shamed Borrowman, they need to be positively supported. Get with the program douche bag.
Donston
It would be nice if there was just a single damn player in the NBA, NFL, NHL, MLB, professional tennis, upper league soccer who unabashedly dated dudes and had unembarrassed passions, affections, love, relationship ambitions towards their gender. The fact that there isn’t shows that there’s still a ways to go. However, you shouldn’t simplify people’s circumstances. There’s still a lot of homophobia and machismo in the world in general but especially in the world of sport. Unless you are a top player there’s a fear of losing your job and/or being ostracized. There are real reasons for that fear. There are also people who are unsure of who they are and what they want and don’t feel being out is worthwhile unless they are absolutely certain that they want to go down a particular path. And no one really wants to be the first. You suddenly go from being seen as an athlete to there being a lot of attention on your dating life and who you have sex with and your identity, and you’re inevitably going to be pressured to be “spokesman”. Then there’s basic internalized homophobia and/or gay shame.
It is often more complicated than “I don’t want to people to call me a faag”. That is something people need to recognize before they criticize.