Jake Daniels: how homophobia in men鈥檚 football is聽changing
Blackpool forward Jake Daniels鈥� makes him the UK鈥檚 only active, openly gay, male professional footballer.
Daniels, aged 17, described the move as a 鈥渞elief鈥�, and was met with from key figures in men鈥檚 football and beyond, including Gary Lineker, Harry Kane and Sir Ian McKellen. He was also praised by national figureheads Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Prince William, who said Daniels coming out will 鈥溾��.
The first UK professional footballer to come out was in 1990. The support for Daniels has been a stark contrast to the homophobic responses to Fashanu, who took his own life in 1998 at the age of 37.
Sport in the UK has long been rife with and considered an for LGBT+ players. In 2017, a concluded that 鈥渄espite the significant change in society鈥檚 attitudes to homosexuality in the last 30 years, there is little reflection of this progress being seen in football.鈥�
Men鈥檚 professional football is the last of the UK鈥檚 three most popular sports, following rugby and cricket, to have an active, elite professional player come out. Rugby player Gareth Thomas came out in 2009 and cricketer Steven Davies came out in 2011.
This lagging behind is no surprise given the vile homophobic chanting at some of England鈥檚 best players such as , and the reaction to Fashanu in the 1990s. Indeed, there are some early signs of homophobic hate in response to Daniels that have been by LGBTQ+ rights group Stonewall.
Still, over the last couple of decades, changing cultural attitudes and campaigning efforts by organisations and fans have raised awareness of LGBTQ+ participation in sport.
, established in 2008 by a Brighton-based grassroots organisation, was one of the first official campaigns to raise awareness of homophobia in men鈥檚 football. The campaign had a and targeted , mainly school and university students who entered tournaments as team 鈥淭ackle Homophobia鈥�.
From the Justin Campaign came , developed by , which now has a significant presence in the game worldwide. Alongside this grassroots activism, in 2013 betting company Paddy Power, working with Stonewall, initiated the .
The FA, football鈥檚 governing body in England and Wales, introduced its first anti-homophobia initiative in 2012, . Since then, the FA has endorsed both Football v Homophobia and the Rainbow Laces campaigns. However, research indicates that efforts by sport governing bodies can and can be at actually implementing change.
While I don鈥檛 know how aware Daniels and his peers were of these campaigns as they were growing up, there is evidence from a at a boy鈥檚 football academy that revealed 鈥減rogressive attitudes towards homosexuality鈥� among a small group of 14-15 year olds. This suggests that attitudes are becoming more inclusive 鈥� although the boys in the study felt unable to individually challenge homophobia when they observed it.
Fan attitudes
Homophobic chanting at men鈥檚 professional games can be a common occurrence. This chanting, often deemed as 鈥渂anter鈥� by the perpetrators, can be outright blatant homophobia, or what we now call a 鈥渕icro-aggression鈥�. Micro-aggressions are the everyday speech and actions directed at marginalised members of communities that reflect prejudice and discrimination, and can be damaging to minority individuals .
Obviously, not all football fans make homophobic remarks and gestures at a game or on social media. Many formal , such as the (Liverpool), (Arsenal) and (Norwich City), have also been set up in recent years, creating a visible community within the oft-discriminatory world of football fandom.
Despite these efforts by fans, football鈥檚 governing bodies continue to ignore or forget homophobia. A case in point is Qatar, host country for FIFA鈥檚 men鈥檚 World Cup later this year, which has .
Cultural shifts
At 17, Daniels has grown up with a popular culture that is more diverse than ever when it comes to gender and sexuality. There are more visible stories of LGBTQ+ people and communities generally, and within the world of sport. Thanks to decades of activism, LGBTQ+ culture has a place in the mainstream, and football is benefiting from this movement.
The women鈥檚 game is further along in internationally. The 2019 FIFA women鈥檚 World Cup alone had 40 out women 鈥� players, coaches and managers 鈥� offering further evidence that the women鈥檚 game is a safer environment than the men鈥檚. This might be because women in sport have had to deal with sexist and homophobic stereotypes for a .
All of this, in addition to and teachers, coaches, officials and managers who are , will make young male footballers feel safe enough to come out.
The impact of Jake Daniels鈥� decision to come out cannot be underestimated. Not only will it allow him to be fully himself 鈥� and perhaps an even better player 鈥� it is set to shift the culture of men鈥檚 elite professional football.
Written by聽, Associate Professor Social Sciences, Gender& Sexualities,
This article is republished from under a Creative Commons license. Read the .
