World Cup coach hopes more footballers will come out as gay
Julian Nagelsmann hopes more gay footballers will come out (Getty Images)
Julian Nagelsmann, Germany’s head coach for the upcoming FIFA World Cup, has said he hopes more gay and bisexual players in men’s football will “summon the courage” to come out, as the sport continues to grapple with a lack of LGBTQ+ representation.
Nagelsmann made the comments to RTL/ntv, as per Eurosport, on 30 March following Christian Dobrick, a member of the coaching staff at German Bundesliga soccer club St Pauli, publicly coming out last week. He is the first known coach at a Bundesliga men’s club to do so.
Nagelsmann praised Dobrick’s decision as “very good” and acknowledged the personal toll of staying closeted, saying conversations with gay friends had helped him understand how “liberating” it can be to speak openly.
He added that it is “a shame” the issue remains a topic of discussion in modern football.
Despite football’s global reach, out gay or bi men remain rare at a professional level, particularly among active players and coaches.
Out gay footballers
(YouTube/Sky Sports)
Josh Cavallo is one of a handful of professional footballers to have come out as gay.
The Australian sportsman, who plays for Southern League Premier Division Central club Stamford, came out in 2021. It made him the first active male professional footballer to come out.
A year later, in 2022, then-17-year-old Jake Daniels became the first professional footballer in the UK to come out since Justin Fashanu in 1990.
In December 2023, Daniels told Daily Star Sport how after coming out, he’s received nothing but support from his teammates and the main pressure he feels is to simply prove that he’s a good footballer, as all players do.
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