against homophobia, “I wonder what the ministries are doing”, regrets the president of the association Foot Ensemble

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Thursday, October 27, 2022, it will be a year since Australian footballer Joshua Cavallo came out. While stars like Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Antoine Griezmann have praised the Adelaide United defender, homosexuality remains taboo in the world of football.

To raise young people’s awareness of this issue, Yoann Lemaire, founder and president of the Foot Ensemble association, has been touring clubs in France for several years. On the occasion of his new report on the perception of homosexuality, he answered questions from franceinfo: sport.

franceinfo: sport: How did you carry out this survey?

Yoann Lemaire: For the past two years, we have been carrying out a questionnaire that we send to the various club structures. This allowed us to have a sample of 1,321 questioned against 1,605 last year. For quality, the clubs call us to hold an awareness day and we ask the same questions. I also have fun comparing the answers with what I can see in “classic” colleges and high schools.

What are the results ?

Fairly good on average. If we talk about acceptability – a term criticized but used by pollsters – more than seven out of ten young people find homosexuality “acceptable”. These same young people are ready, at 74%, to support a gay teammate in the event of a problem. They also recognize homophobia, since 32% claim to have been insulted by homophobic remarks.

The big negative point in my eyes are the interpretations of religions and the lack of knowledge of secularism. In some clubs, the results are very good with young people who respect homosexuality, without necessarily being comfortable with it, and others where the attitude is very bad. This survey is primarily used to target clubs. Last year, we targeted six with worrying results and they asked us to come and give workshops.

What changes do you notice compared to last year?

The figures were better because there were more women’s teams and the “gay friendly” clubs participated a little less. Compared to the targeted clubs, I haven’t checked everything yet but I saw an improvement. There are still disturbing behaviors, which I have seen with my own eyes and which have made me suffer. In this case, the club must use coercion.

What do you recommend as a priority?

Maximize long-term awareness. That is to say not to be limited to my arrival, but that the work lasts several months, even several years. If the young person does not evolve and he feels that his education or his culture tell him that homosexuality is prohibited, the club must intervene. A racist kid, we will summon him, talk to him and try to understand. It must be the same for homophobia which is a crime. The goal is for all young people in the training center to be made aware at least once of the fight against homophobia within the space of two to five years.

In view of the controversies involving Idrissa Gueye or Iker Casillas, don’t professionals also need to be trained in these issues?

The objective of the LFP is to do this with several clubs throughout the year, including the pros, managers, coaches…. We don’t ask them to be spokespersons for the LGBT cause, but to know what it’s about and why they have to be careful of insults on or off the field. For my first intervention with the pros in Montpellier, some told me that they did not understand the problem, not being concerned, or that they were afraid of the media coverage. So we had a real discussion and I think we should have started there.

Would this lever allow players playing in France to come out?

It’s a question I often ask kids and the few pro players I know. Even if the subject is really mature, people always talk to me about the risk of coming out to other players, clubs, or supporters. You have to put yourself in the shoes of the Ligue 1 footballer and ask yourself if he has everything to lose rather than gain. Everyone will congratulate the first to do so, but there will still be two or three idiots who will ruin his life in his entourage, his team or on social networks.

After presenting the report to the Elysée, to the authorities of French football and to the clubs, are you still invested in this cause?

We were listened to but I’m not sure we were heard. With the LFP, I think we are going in the right direction and I understand that it is not easy to go and organize actions like the one in Montpellier. Regarding the government, I am waiting to see and, in a month or two, I will take my responsibilities. We have a lot of requests in colleges, clubs, at the FFF but we are the only volunteers.

“I saw the President of the Republic say that homophobia and racism had to be chased out of sport, but I wonder what the ministries are doing.”

Yoann Lemaire, president of the Foot Ensemble association

at Franceinfo: sports

In Laura Flessel’s time at Sports, we saw each other every month with several associations. We were asked for our opinion, we proposed actions, and when it was yes, we were given a budget. I once met Isabelle Rome [Ministre déléguée chargée de l’Égalité entre les femmes et les hommes, de la Diversité et de l’Égalité des chances]we were three associations and she didn’t even ask a question.

As the World Cup in Qatar approaches, are you expecting action from the French team or the FFF?

I find it absurd that one month before a World Cup in Qatar, all those who know the various subjects, thanks to their work in the field, are not aware of the various policies of the FFF or the Ministry of Sports. I proposed a clip to the Federation with the players of the France team and only three responded. We can no longer wait for the players to commit and Mrs. Amélie Oudéa-Castéra said it very clearly.

It’s scary because we will still find out that there is a human rights problem in Qatar, journalists will do their job by denouncing it, but nothing will happen at the level of players and ministers .


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