LGBTQ and association football
has been widespread in men's association football, also known as soccer, throughout the world.
There are a number of openly LGBTQ players in women's association football, with relatively few in the men's game. Most of the LGBT+ male players have come out after retirement.
Background
In 2006 journalist Simon Barnes wrote that homophobia in football was entrenched and would never change, and in 2009 journalist Matt Williams wrote that being a gay professional player in football was still a taboo, Football magazine When Saturday Comes described homosexuality as a "continuing taboo" in the sport in 2013. One male player who came out after retiring said that there are at least as many closeted gay male players as there are openly LGBT+ female players. John Amaechi, the first NBA player to come out, in 2014 blamed football's "toxic" culture for the lack of openly gay players, while English former footballer Clarke Carlisle called for more education to be given to players to combat homophobia.In June 2022, it was revealed that homophobia made up the majority of online abuse aimed at footballers, 40% for men and 27% for women.
In July 2023, Quinn became the first openly transgender player at a World Cup.
By country
Australia
The first male professional player to come out was Andy Brennan, who did so in May 2019, when playing for Green Gully in the National Premier Leagues Victoria, a semi-professional league. In October 2021, A-League Men player Josh Cavallo became the first openly gay active top flight footballer in Australia. In October 2025, Cavallo said that football remained "toxic" for gay players, and in January 2026 he accused former club Adelaide United of homophobia.No male Australian internationals are openly gay, though a number of the Australian women's national team are, including Sam Kerr, Michelle Heyman and Tameka Yallop.
Austria
In March 2024, national team manager Ralf Rangnick dropped three players for homophobic chanting following a club game.Brazil
In 2007, Richarlyson was named on Brazilian television as gay by the administrative manager of a rival team. When Richarlyson undertook legal action, the complaint was thrown out by the judge, who stated "football was a virile masculine sport and not a homosexual one." Richarlyson would later come out as bisexual in 2022.Jamerson Michel da Costa, nicknamed Messi, is the first Brazilian footballer who came out as homosexual while pursuing his professional career, in September 2010.
In January 2019, former Botafogo footballer Douglas Braga said that he had quit football aged 21 as it was not possible for him to be both gay and a footballer.
Many Brazilian footballers refuse to wear shirt number 24 for fear of being labelled as gay, as the number 24 is associated with homosexuality in Brazil. This derives from the number 24 in Jogo do bicho being assigned to the deer – veado in Portuguese, which sounds like viado, a slur for a gay man – and from the Portuguese for 24, vinte e quatro, sounding like vim de quatro.
After the 2014 FIFA World Cup, a shout imported from Mexican fans "oooh, puto" was adopted as a sensation by several fan groups organized as "oooh, bicha", shouted at rival team goal kicks. After interruptions due to homophobic demonstrations and the COVID-19 crisis, the shout fell into disuse.
Several renowned Brazilian women's internationals are openly lesbian, including Bárbara, Cristiane, Debinha and Marta.
Emerson Ferretti, historic goalkeeper for EC Bahia, was elected president of the club in 2023. Ferretti had declared himself homosexual in August 2022.
In 2024, the minor league football player Polidoro Júnior, famous for affairs with Brazilian celebrities, claimed to have had a relationship with Pabllo Vittar.
Bulgaria
In 2006, PFC Levski Sofia president Todor Batkov called referee Mike Riley a "British homosexual", following Riley's controversial sending off of Cedric Bardon during the UEFA Cup quarterfinal game against Schalke 04.Czech Republic
In 2019, Barbora Votíková, a Paris Saint-Germain FC and Czech Republic women's national football team player, came out as gay.In February 2023, Sparta Prague and Czech Republic national team midfielder Jakub Jankto came out as gay, the first active men's international player to do so.
Denmark
is one of the few footballers to have spoken out against the intolerance of homosexuality in football and the absence of openly gay players from the professional game, in 2012.England
, older brother of fellow footballer John Fashanu, was the first professional footballer to come out as gay, after he agreed to an exclusive with tabloid newspaper The Sun on 22 October 1990. Fashanu claimed to have had an affair with a married Conservative MP who he first met in a London gay bar. A week later, John Fashanu publicly distanced himself from his brother, describing Justin as an "outcast", while Justin's manager Brian Clough famously described him as a "bloody poof". Fashanu was interviewed for the July 1991 cover story of Gay Times, and Fashanu revealed that no club had offered him a full-time contract since the story first appeared. In the morning of 3 May 1998, he was found hanged in a deserted lock-up garage he had broken into, in Shoreditch, London, after visiting Chariots Roman Spa, a local gay sauna. In his suicide note, he stated: "I realised that I had already been presumed guilty. I do not want to give any more embarrassment to my friends and family," in reference to allegations of sexual assault made against him.In August 2010, Hope Powell, the openly gay coach of the England women's team, was named in 68th place on The Independent newspaper's Pink List of influential lesbian and gay people in the UK.
In 2013, David Haigh became the first openly gay managing director of an English football club. In November 2017, Pink News credited David Haigh along with Robbie Rogers and Thomas Hitzlsperger with paving the way for LGBT players and managers in football.
Many players have come out in recent years, including Casey Stoney, captain of the England women's team, who came out in February 2014. Liam Davis, a non-league player with Gainsborough Trinity, revealed in 2014 that he had been out as gay for four years; he is the country's only openly gay male semi-professional player. In June 2020, ex-player Thomas Beattie came out as gay.
In August 2017, Ryan Atkin came out as gay, becoming the first openly gay match official in English football. In 2025, former Premier League referee David Coote came out as gay, saying he had hidden his sexuality during his career for fear of receiving abuse.
In July 2019, an anonymous Twitter account called 'The Gay Footballer' announced that they were a professional footballer playing in the EFL Championship. After saying they intended to come out publicly, they later deleted the account.
On 16 May 2022, Blackpool player Jake Daniels came out as gay, making him the only current gay male professional footballer in the UK. He said that doing so would allow him to be "free and confident", and it was described by the BBC as a "watershed moment".
No player has ever played in the English Premier League while openly gay; German player Thomas Hitzlsperger, who had played in the league while closeted, stated in January 2014 that he thought it would be a long time before this happened. Players such as John Ruddy, Richarlison and Lucas Digne have spoken about their belief that a gay teammate would be accepted and supported. In July 2020, a current Premier League player revealed he was gay but would/could not come out.
In 2025, retired defender Tony Powell publicly came out as gay. His experiences of being a closeted gay footballer were explored in the documentary The Last Guest of the Holloway Motel. He had, incidentally, been a teammate of Justin Fashanu at Norwich City during the 1970s and 1980s.
In 2025, author Grant Bage revealed that while researching former England and Ipswich Town manager Alf Ramsey, he had discovered documents indicating an unnamed Ipswich player had been charged with and had admitted in court to committing an act of gross indecency in 1955, prior to the legalisation of homosexual activity in the United Kingdom. Bage also reported that other documents indicated that Ramsey had supported the player, arguing with the club's directors in favour of his inclusion back in the squad following his conviction.
Homophobia and homophobic abuse
On multiple occasions there have been reports of homophobic chanting by fans attending matches, and arrests made or fines issued to fans and clubs. In December 2011, a Southampton fan was banned for three years for homophobic chanting. In August 2019, Bristol Rovers were fined by the FA for homophobic chanting by their fans. In December 2019, Brighton players were subjected to homophobic abuse by Wolves fans; two people were arrested. On 1 February 2020, two West Ham United fans were arrested in London Stadium by the police for directing homophobic chants towards Brighton & Hove Albion fans during a Premier League match.In January 2023, there were alleged homophobic chants by Nottingham Forest fans, aimed at Chelsea fans, by Manchester United fans against Everton manager Frank Lampard, by Manchester City fans, also aimed at Chelsea, and by Liverpool fans against Chelsea, for which three people were later arrested. The FA said that they would charge the clubs whose fans had targeted Chelsea, with the chant in question having been defined as a homophobic slur by the Crown Prosecution Service in January 2022. In March 2023 there were homophobic chants during a match between Leeds United and Brighton, with Leeds later being fined £150,000. In April 2023, three Wolverhampton Wanderers fans were arrested following homophobic chanting during a match against Chelsea. In July 2023, a Fulham fan was banned for three years for homophobic chants, and later that month, Wolverhampton Wanderers were fined £100,000 due to homophobic chants by their fans. In May 2023, a LGBTQ+ Manchester United supporters group criticised chanting from their own fans against opposition players.
Heterosexual players, such as Sol Campbell, Ryan Allsop, Billy Gilmour and Conor Gallagher have been the victim of homophobic abuse by fans. Another heterosexual player, Graeme Le Saux, was homophobically abused by fellow player Robbie Fowler.
In August 2014, Malky Mackay and Iain Moody were accused of sending each other racist, sexist and homophobic text messages. Moody left his job as sporting director of Crystal Palace as a result. Mackay apologised for the texts. The League Manager's Association defended Mackay, claiming that the texts were merely "banter"; the LMA later apologised for this. Mackay denied being racist, sexist or homophobic.
In April 2014, Colin Kazim-Richards was found guilty of making a homophobic gesture at Brighton fans. In December 2021, Walsall player Manny Monthe was banned for seven matches for making a homophobic comment during a game.
In January 2022, Ian Holloway said he felt English football was homophobic.