Two gay Premier League football stars, including England international, 'are to come out before the start of next season'
- Two premier league footballers to announce they're gay before next season
- They would be first to come out while still in top flight of English football
- One is an England international player and both have backing of their clubs
- See the latest news and results from the Premier League
Two Premier League players are preparing to come out as gay - which would make them the first British footballers to make the announcement while still playing at the top levels of the game.
One of the men is believed to be an England international star and both have already told their families and friends and have the full support of their respective clubs and the Football Association.
The Daily Mirror reports the men will come out publicly before the start of the next season.
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One of the men is believed to be an England international star and both have already told their families and friends and have the full support of their respective clubs and the football association (file image)
A source told the newspaper: 'The stigma has completely gone and the public are far more accepting.
'It has always been such a macho game and, unfortunately, perhaps more than in any other sport, there can be an aggressive mob mentality in the stands.
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'But finally the tide is turning and more and more sports people are openly gay.'
The paper also reports that another famous player came out to friends in 2011 - but shortly afterwards a homophobic slur was painted on his car.
Nottingham Forest and Norwich City striker Justin Fashanu remains the highest profile star to reveal he was gay, but he suffered years of abuse and eventually killed himself in 1998 aged 37.
Loss: Nottingham Forest and Norwich striker Justin Fashanu (left) came out as gay but suffered so much abuse he killed himself in 1998. Former West Ham player Thomas Hitzlsperger, right, came out as gay after he retired
More recently the captain of England women's team, Casey Stoney, announced she was gay, shortly after former Germany and Aston Villa midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger came out.
Arsenal defender Ms Stoney said she has never hidden her sexuality in football circles because it is 'accepted'.
She told BBC Sport: 'I feel it's really important for me to speak out as a gay player because there are so many young people struggling with being gay.
'You hear about people taking their own lives because they're homosexual, now that should never happen. They should never feel those pressures.
'How can I expect other people to come out and speak about themselves if I'm not willing to do that myself?'
German football star Hitzlsperger said diver Tom Daley's acknowledgement that he was in a same-sex relationship helped him to come out as gay.
The German international midfielder became the first Premier League star to reveal he was homosexual, saying that he had recently accepted that he 'preferred men'.
England Women's football captain Casey Stoney (pictured left) is openly gay and Welsh rugby player Gareth Thomas (right) came out in 2009
Hitzlsperger, who ended his playing career in September 2013 due to persistent injuries, said that other sportsmen's revelations about their sexual orientation, including those of Tom Daley, had made him feel that he was not alone.
The former Aston Villa, West Ham and Everton player said he had also felt empowered by Welsh rugby player Gareth Thomas, who publically announced he was gay in 2009, and John Amaechi, who became the first NBA (National Basketball Association) player to speak out about his homosexuality.
Hitzlsperger said that he was also encouraged by former Leeds United and US winger Robbie Rogers announced he was gay last year, and hoped that he too might be able to encourage other footballers to do the same.
'I read about John Amaechi, Gareth Thomas and Tom Daley,' Hitzlsperger told The Guardian newspaper.
'They weren't footballers but the fact that they went public gave me the feeling that I was not alone. I began to think that I could help other footballers who might be in the same shoes, so that they could see that here's someone who was even an international.'
OTHER GAY SPORTS STARS WHO TOOK THE DECISION TO GO PUBLIC
Justin Fashanu (football) - Britain's first black footballer to command a £1million transfer fee was also the first top-flight player to publicly admit his homosexuality. He came out in 1990 - in the dressing room his sexuality was less of a secret, and a clash of personalities with Nottingham Forest manager Brian Clough contributed to his decline. After admitting he was gay, Fashanu struggled to reignite an already stuttering career, and retired in 1997, blaming his downfall on prejudice in the English game. He killed himself in May 1998 aged 37.
Greg Louganis (diving) - The American won a silver medal at the 1976 Olympic Games and followed that with a brace of golds in 1984 and 1988. Louganis' autobiography, which spent five weeks at number one on the New York Times best-seller list on its release in 1995, detailed his rise to global prominence and subsequent decision to come out as a homosexual living with HIV.
Martina Navratilova (tennis) - The Czech-born nine-time Wimbledon champion came out publicly as gay in 1981, a short time after she was granted US citizenship. The decision hit her sponsorship revenues. ‘Prior to being a [US] citizen, I couldn't speak my mind about being gay,’ she said. ‘But since then I have pretty much said what I think, which has cost me dearly in endorsements.’
Diver Greg Louganis (pictured left) and tenins player Martina Navratilova have both come out as gay
Donal Og Cusack (hurling) - The much-decorated Irish star is one of the leading lights of the fast-paced Gaelic game, and became the first elite Irish sportsman to reveal he was gay in his autobiography, 'Come What May', released last year. ‘Whatever you may feel about me or who I am, I've always been at peace with it,’ he wrote.
John Amaechi (basketball) - The American-born Briton was the first NBA player to openly admit to being gay in 2007. The 6ft 10in star used his autobiography, Man In The Middle, to make public his sexuality, and admitted afterwards the reaction from the public had been encouraging, saying: ‘I can't say there hasn't been any negative reaction at all, because there has. But I've been wildly overwhelmed by the positives.’
Gareth Thomas (rugby union) - Thomas, who was Wales' most-capped player and a former British and Irish Lions captain, publicly announced he was gay in December 2009 at the age of 35. He said: ‘I just want to thank everyone for the amazing response I have received, on behalf of me, my family and friends. I hope that by saying this I can make a big difference to others in my situation. But for now, I just want to focus on being a rugby player.’
Diver Tom Daley (pictured left) and footballer Robbie Rogers, who now plays for Los Angeles Galaxy
Steven Davies (cricket) - The England and Surrey wicketkeeper became the first active professional cricketer to openly admit to being gay in February 2011. Davies, whose friends and family had known for five years and who had told his England team-mates the previous year, told The Sun: ‘I'm comfortable with who I am - and happy to say who I am in public. To speak out is a massive relief for me, but if I can just help one person to deal with their sexuality then that's all I care about.’
Robbie Rogers (football) - Former Leeds winger and United States international Rogers revealed he was gay in February 2013 and at the same time announced his retirement from football at the age of 25. He wrote on his blog that he had been afraid of revealing his sexuality, adding: ‘Now is my time to step away. It's time to discover myself away from football.’ Four months after his announcement Rogers resumed his playing career by signing for the Los Angeles Galaxy.
Tom Daley (diving) - Daley, who won bronze in the men's 10 metre platform competition at the London 2012 Olympics, revealed in December 2013 that he was in a relationship with a man. The 19-year-old made the announcement in a self-made Youtube clip, saying: ‘Come spring this year my life changed massively when I met someone and they made me feel so happy, so safe and everything just feels great - and that someone is a guy. Of course I still fancy girls but right now I'm dating a guy and I couldn't be happier.’
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