“We can see that things are changing”, says the president of the association Foot Ensemble

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Australian footballer Josh Cavallo thinks “submerged“by the wave of support after his coming out on Wednesday, October 27. The 21-year-old revealed his homosexuality in a message posted on social networks. He is the only publicly homosexual footballer in the Premier League in Australia. Since then, messages of support have been raining down on social networks.

“You are a champion, football is for everyone”, reacts Zlatan Ibrahimović.
“It takes a lot of courage”, testifies Raphaël Varane. “I’m proud of you”, answers Antoine Griezmann after the publication of his video, viewed seven million times in 24 hours.

“I thought they would see me differently, that they would treat me differently”, said the young footballer, moved. “But that’s not the case. Coming out to my loved ones, my team, my coaches, has been incredible”, assure Josh Cavallo.

Few professional footballers have publicly declared themselves homosexual. They usually wait to stop playing. Not because of the supporters, but so as not to endanger their careers according to Yoann Lemaire, president and founder of the Foot Ensemble association. “The supporters, the players don’t care, because, whether they do something good or bad, they are always criticized. For me the complication is having one or more homophobic teammates”, he explains. “Sometimes there are some who use religion, others say they are afraid of showers. They say to themselves ‘he is going to look at me, hit on me.’ All it takes is a small problem, some unhealthy thoughts or downright insults or violence so that the players are put aside “, he continues. “How is the coach going to handle this? If the homophobe in question is much stronger than him, is a striker and scores goals every weekend, there is going to be a problem.”

“Having a player who announces his homosexuality and who is supported by big stars or by clubs, it shows that the subject is no longer put under the mat.”

Yoann Lemaire president and founder of the Foot Ensemble association

to franceinfo

The former amateur footballer, who himself came out in the early 2000s, stresses the importance of examples. “We see that things are changing, we see that young people are listening. Nevertheless, we still feel a few young people who are focusing on the subject”, remark Yoann Lemaire. “We are talking about it and it is important to open this subject”, he said.

Yoann Lemaire who would like to see these football stars or FIFA take a stand on the issue of homophobia in the run-up to the World Cup in Qatar. The first professional footballer to come out was the Englishman Justin Fashanu in the 90s. IHe had committed suicide a few years later.

Homophobia in football, things are changing: Sixtine Lys report

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