Here was a young lad who wanted to share his truth and live authentically – coming out as gay at the very start of his career, in front of a global audience
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When Jake Daniels, a 17-year-old player for Blackpool FC came out yesterday, the outpouring of support from across global football warmed the hearts of even the most cynical sports fans.
Here was a young lad who wanted to share his truth and live authentically – coming out as gay at the very start of his career, in front of a global audience.
Fully supported by his club, the EFL, Premier League, FIFA, all the way through to national politicians and beaming Blackpool FC fans.
This immediate, genuine support was a moment of pride and a sign of just how football has changed since Stonewall’s Rainbow Laces campaign started in 2013.
Back then, the conversation about LGBTQ+ representation in football was practically non-existent.
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While same-sex couples were getting married, and almost every other sector was embracing diversity and inclusion, there was a deafening silence from leading football bodies and clubs.
Sadly, the only noise we heard was the homophobic ‘banter’ that too-often went unchallenged in the stands and was left to thrive on social media.
There was absolutely no sign at all that a gay or bi male professional player who came out would have the support of his teammates, club, league or the fans.
But, as Rainbow Laces re-launched in 2016, change was already starting.
The Premier League, Manchester United, Adidas and other leading sponsors had signed up as founding members of Team Pride and were championing the campaign to get other clubs and sports on board.
Football bodies all knew they had to lead efforts to change culture and show that football really was everyone’s game. Since then, we’ve seen incredible work on the pitch and behind the scenes to make LGBTQ+ inclusion in football a reality.
Rainbow Laces is now a yearly moment of unified celebration across football and indeed most other sports. Clubs, leagues and governing bodies give a much-needed platform to their LGBTQ+ fan groups and star players, from the men’s and women’s game, come out in support of LGBTQ+ inclusion.
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Stadiums are lit up in the pride flag’s iconic rainbow colours. More than a million people have bought Rainbow Laces and twelve million people see the campaign every year. The support is clear for all to see.
Behind the scenes, the Premier League, the FA and the clubs have been working with Stonewall to provide LGBTQ+ inclusion training at every level of the game – from the Premier League teams to community football. Every year, we see all these groups show up with a genuine determination and energy to play their part and fight for a more inclusive beautiful game.
At Stonewall we have been tracking fan attitudes for six years and it is clear that real change is happening.
Seven in ten fans who saw the Rainbow Laces campaign in 2021 think that LGBTQ+ people are part of the sporting community, and two thirds of fans now think anti-LGBTQ+ language is less acceptable than it was a year ago.
As a result of this support, we’ve seen a big jump in the number of fans who would take action if they heard abusive language – in 2017 40 per cent of fans would challenge anti-LGBTQ+ language on social media, but by 2021 this had increased to 49 per cent of fans.
Football is changing and we have to give enormous credit to everyone across the sport who have been part of that journey over the last six years.
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From LGBTQ+ fan groups to Premier League, from club community coaches to global sponsors – football has worked in unison to create an environment in which Jake can be true to himself as a gay man and a talented footballer.
For us at Stonewall, we hope Jake’s story will inspire millions more LGBTQ+ people to find community in sport.
We all have a part to play in making that a reality, so get your Rainbow Laces on and let’s make sport everyone’s game.
Robbie de Santos (he/him) is Director of Communications and External Affairs at Stonewall
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