“The last taboo” in football
Will the documentary be followed by the big group coming out?
February 12, 2024, 7:01 p.m
Fear of insults, concern about immense pressure: still no professional footballer in Germany has come out as homosexual. There are even positive examples internationally. A documentary highlights progress and concerns – and a group coming out has already been announced.
The message that Justin Fashanu shared with the world has lost none of its meaning. “The bottom line is: Be true to yourself,” Fashanu once said. In 1990, Fashanu became the first active professional footballer to make his homosexuality public. Eight years later, at just 37, he took his own life.
The fate of Fashanu is the darkest chapter of the film “The Last Taboo”, which is now starting on Amazon Prime and deals with homosexuality in men’s professional football. A look into the past makes you think. Looking into the present gives hope – at least a little.
There are positive examples. There is the case of US professional Collin Martin, whose team San Diego Loyal left the pitch in solidarity after a homophobic insult from an opponent. Or Jakub Jankto. After the Czech international’s coming out, those responsible feared the worst when his club Sparta Prague played against rivals Banik Ostrava.
What happened when Jankto was substituted on? Nothing. No insults, no insults – Jankto’s sexuality was simply not an issue. The reactions could also be the same in German stadiums. “In my opinion, fans are definitely much further ahead than those in charge. This has been evident in the club scene here in Germany for a long time,” says sports scientist Tanja Walther-Ahrens.
Hitzlsperger: “Perceive tensions”
And yet there are almost no openly homosexual professional footballers in Germany or worldwide. “There aren’t nearly as many homosexual players coming out as there are,” said ex-national player Thomas Hitzlsperger, who came out in 2014, to “Playboy”: “That’s a disappointment when you consider that the general conditions are different “All in all, we’ve improved.”
He calculated to the Munich “Abendzeitung”: “Depending on which studies are used, five to ten percent of the world’s population are homosexual. There are around 500,000 active professional football players, which would mean a total of 25,000 to 50,000 homosexual players.”
Worry, fears, inner conflict: the pressure and possible consequences are apparently still far too great. A group coming out could provide relief and relief. Marcus Urban, board member of the Association for Diversity and Society, would like to push it forward. A date is planned for May. “It would be a big step that would attract a lot of attention,” said Hitzlsperger.
And what about the future? “I think the environment would be ready for this,” said Hitzlsperger: “But I can’t say what society will look like in five or ten years. I sense tensions. Unfortunately, it will remain the case in the future that you have to raise your voice .” Like Justin Fashanu.