Bridget Gordon
Writer | Advocate
While the developers of Football Manager didn’t know the risks gay footballers might face in the current climate, and while some fans of a more liberal persuasion might want to believe they would be embraced and accepted, there are enough people who know better. Including, it must be said, queer footballers. Which is probably why gay men in English football are afraid to go public. Or why just coming out to their teammates is a Big Deal. Or why they won’t even disclose to the Football Association, after receiving an invitation to do so in a safe and confidential environment. (That FA chairman Greg Clarke seemed so mystified that no one took him up on the offer is also illustrative of the wider institutional blind spots surrounding the issues.) Make no mistake: there are gay men in the Premier League, and they’re not going public. Because they know what would happen.