Openly Gay and Bisexual Men Who Changed Professional Football

Every person named in this article has publicly confirmed their own sexual orientation through their own words, in public. No one is labelled gay, bisexual or queer on the basis of rumour, inference or third-party claims. Where a person has described themselves in specific terms, those terms are used. Where a person's career level, country and timing of coming out are relevant to understanding the full picture, those details are included.

This article covers men's professional football only. The situation in women's football — where openly LGBTQ+ players have competed at the highest international levels for decades — is meaningfully different and would require its own treatment.

Justin Fashanu came out publicly in 1990, in an interview with The Sun newspaper. He was the first professional footballer in England — and one of the first in the world — to do so while still registered as a professional player. He had been, years earlier, the first Black British footballer to be sold for £1 million, when Brian Clough signed him from Norwich City for Nottingham Forest in 1981. By 1990, his career had fragmented significantly, partly due to injury, partly due to what Fashanu described as the treatment he received after coming out.

The reception was devastating. Managers including Brian Clough publicly distanced themselves from him. His brother John, also a professional footballer, issued a public statement disowning him. The British press coverage was hostile. Fashanu continued to play in lower leagues in England and North America. He died in 1998.

Fashanu's story is not primarily a sporting story. It is a story about what the culture of English football cost someone for telling the truth about himself. The Justin Fashanu Foundation was established in his memory and continues to work on LGBTQ+ inclusion in football. The contrast between how his coming out was received and how Jake Daniels's was received — thirty-two years later — is a partial measure of how much has and has not changed.

Thomas Hitzlsperger came out as gay in January 2014, several months after retiring from professional football. He had made 52 appearances for Germany, played in the Bundesliga and the Premier League (Aston Villa, West Ham, Everton), and won the Bundesliga with VfB Stuttgart. He is the most internationally prominent men's footballer to have come out — though he did so after his career.

Hitzlsperger has spoken clearly about why he waited: 'I did not want to be a gay footballer. I wanted to be a footballer. I knew what was expected and I wanted to give my best in a career that was already complex enough.' His coming out was widely covered and respectful in treatment — a contrast with 1990. He has since worked in football administration at Stuttgart and has been a public advocate for LGBTQ+ inclusion in the sport.

His career and coming-out are often cited as evidence of progress in media treatment, even as they also illustrate the ongoing reality that elite-level male footballers feel unable to come out while active.

In May 2022, Jake Daniels, then 17 and playing for Blackpool FC in England's Championship, came out publicly as gay. He became the first active professional male footballer in England to come out since Fashanu in 1990. The announcement was made through a statement released by his club, which supported him in the decision.

Public reaction was overwhelmingly supportive — from players, managers, football governing bodies, campaign organisations and the general public. Daniels has described the response as broadly positive while also being honest about ongoing challenges, including comments and abuse at certain grounds.

He continues to play professional football. His case is often discussed by campaign organisations as evidence that the climate for LGBTQ+ players, at least in English football, has shifted — while also being used to note that his position at Championship level is different from what might face a player in the Premier League or international football.

Josh Cavallo came out in October 2021 while playing for Adelaide United in Australia's A-League. His announcement was widely covered internationally because he was, at the time, the only openly gay player in a top-division men's professional league anywhere in the world. Cavallo has spoken about the response being positive and has continued playing. He has been vocal about mental health and the difficulty of carrying the responsibility of being a public figure in this specific way. Australia did not qualify for the 2026 World Cup.

Collin Martin, an American midfielder, came out in 2021 while playing in Major League Soccer. He is the first active MLS player to publicly identify as gay. Martin has spoken about the decision and has continued playing at MLS level.

Zander Murray is a Scottish professional who came out in October 2022 while playing in Scotland's lower professional leagues. His announcement was covered in Scottish and UK media and was met with widespread support from players and organisations.

All three are active or recently active professional players. None is participating in the 2026 World Cup.

Anton Hysén, son of the former Sweden and Liverpool defender Glenn Hysén, came out in 2011 while playing in the Swedish lower leagues. He was the first active professional player in Scandinavia to come out. His announcement was covered extensively in Sweden and internationally and he has remained an advocate for LGBTQ+ visibility in football.

Hysén's case is a useful reference point because it shows that the current wave of players coming out did not begin in 2021 or 2022 — there were earlier examples, in different countries, at different levels of the game.

Looking at these cases together, several patterns are visible. First, every publicly confirmed gay or bisexual men's professional footballer either plays or played at a level below the very top tier of international football, or came out after their career at that level ended. Second, the coming-out decisions of active players have been met with considerably more support in recent years than earlier examples — particularly Fashanu — received. Third, the progression from Fashanu in 1990 to multiple active players today represents genuine change, even if elite-level men's football remains without any openly gay current international.

Fourth: none of these men is required to be visible for your benefit. Their decisions about disclosure are their own, made in contexts that include real professional, social and safety considerations. The appropriate response to this history is not to demand that more players come out faster, but to work toward conditions in which disclosure is not a professional sacrifice.