Homosexuality in American football

Reception

The generally masculine environment that exists in football, along with the hypermasculinity promoted by sportscasters, make it difficult for a player to come out. Heterosexuality is flaunted in NFL locker rooms with the passing of pornographic magazines and videos, and visits to strip clubs. Anti-gay slurs are sometimes used in the locker room. Fear of backlash from employers, teammates and fans has stopped players from coming out.

While Green Bay Packers head coach Vince Lombardi was known to treat his players roughly in practices and during games, he insisted on unconditional respect for gay players and front office staff. Demanding "Nothing but Acceptance" from players and coaches toward all people, Lombardi would fire a coach or release a player should they insult the sexual orientation of anyone. During his time in Washington, Lombardi's assistant general manager, David Slatterly, was gay, as was PR director Joe Blair, who was described as Lombardi's "right-hand man". According to son Vince Lombardi Jr., "He saw everyone as equals, and I think having a gay brother (Hal) was a big factor in his approach...I think my father would've felt, 'I hope I've created an atmosphere in the locker room where this would not be an issue at all. And if you do have an issue, the problem will be yours because my locker room will tolerate nothing but acceptance." Upon his arrival in Washington, Lombardi was aware of tight end Jerry Smith's gay sexual orientation. "Lombardi protected and loved Jerry", said former teammate Dave Kopay. Lombardi brought Smith into his office and told him that his sexual orientation would never be an issue as long as he was coaching the Redskins; Smith would be judged solely on his on-the-field performance and contribution to the team's success. Under Lombardi's leadership Smith flourished, becoming an integral part of Lombardi's offense, and was voted a First Team All-Pro for the first time in his career, which was also Lombardi's only season as Redskin head coach. Lombardi invited other gay players to training camp, and would privately hope they would prove they could earn a spot on the team. At the Washington Redskins training camp in 1969, Ray McDonald was a gay player, with sub-par skills, who was trying to maintain his spot on the roster, but this time with Lombardi as the Redskins' new head coach. True to his word, Lombardi told running back coach George Dickson, "I want you to get on McDonald and work on him and work on him – and if I hear one of you people make reference to his manhood, you'll be out of here before your ass hits the ground."

Before Super Bowl XLVII in 2013, San Francisco 49ers player Chris Culliver on media day during an interview with The Artie Lange Show, was asked if he thought any gay players were on his team which he replied "No, we don't got no gay people on the team, they gotta get up out of here if they do...Can't be with that sweet stuff." He also opined that any gay players should wait 10 years after retiring before coming out. Culliver received backlash for his comments. Culliver later apologized for his "ugly comments" that were "not what I feel in my heart".

The NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement in 2011 contained added protections banning discrimination based on sexual orientation. In 2013, the NFL Rookie Symposium planned for the first time to have speakers on the issue of sexual orientation. The same year, NFL player Chris Kluwe was released by the Minnesota Vikings, which he believed was due to his being outspoken in support of same-sex marriage. He said that special teams coach Mike Priefer in 2012 made homophobic remarks and criticized the player for his views on same-sex marriage, a charge Priefer denied. Kluwe also alleged that head coach Leslie Frazier told him to stop speaking about same-sex marriage. In December, former teammates on the 1993 Houston Oilers said that at least two key players on the roster were generally known by the team to be gay and that they were accepted by the team. Teammate Bubba McDowell said showering with the gay teammates was "no big deal". In 2014, ESPN reported on Michael Sam's showering habits in the St. Louis Rams locker room, but later apologized that it "failed to meet the standards we have set in reporting on LGBT-related topics in sports."

NFL player Ryan O'Callaghan came out publicly as gay in 2017; he came out to Kansas City Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli before his NFL career ended in 2011. In 2019, O'Callaghan said "I think it's safe to say there's at least one on every team who is either gay or bisexual. A lot of guys still see it as potentially having a negative impact on their career."

In June 2021, the NFL tweeted in support of the LGBTQ+ community by advocating for The Trevor Project and matching player Carl Nassib's donation of $100,000 while linking the website for fans to donate as well. After Nassib officially came out, Morning Consult conducted a survey gauging the likelihood of watching the NFL. The survey was concluded with the result of 1 out of 3 LGBTQ+ adults are more interested in watching the NFL following Nassib coming out. This contributes to the general goal of the LGBTQ+ community of gaining more representation within sports so that more LGBTQ+ athletes feel comfortable to participate.

Ahead of Super Bowl LVI, the NFL partnered with GLAAD made history by hosting an event where associates of the NFL were able to mingle with supporters and officials of GLAAD. "LGBTQ athletes need to see more stories of athletes like them, who are supported by their teammates, because so many of them are accepted, just as they are," GLAAD Deputy President and COO Darra Gordon said in her remarks. "I hope young LGBTQ athletes see posts from tonight and know that they have a rightful place to be out in the NFL, in football, in sports, and at any cultural milestone they aim for."

Players coming out

After NWFA player Alissa Wykes came out as lesbian in the December/January 2002 edition of Sports Illustrated for Women, the league's owner Catherine Masters condemned her for pursuing her own "personal agenda", stating that the league had received "hundreds of phone calls. Gay people were saying it was horrible. Straight people were saying it was great." In 2003, as a panel member at the first National Gay/Lesbian Athletics Conference in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Wykes joked that she felt "great empathy for the women on my team who are straight. I mean—a straight female football player?"

Division II college football player Brian Sims came out as gay to his team in 2000 while playing for Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, and publicly told his story in 2009. Alan Gendreau was openly gay to his Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team from 2008 through 2011, but the team made no mention of it to the media. Otherwise, he could have been the first publicly out gay active player in Division I college football.

After he retired, NFL player David Kopay in 1975 was the first major professional team-sport athlete to come out as gay. Before Carl Nassib's coming out, many experts believed that the first openly gay active NFL player would not be a current athlete, but instead an already out high school or college player who ends up in the NFL. CBSSports.com reported in April 2013 that one NFL team had a player that was not openly gay, but his teammates were aware that he was gay and did not care. That same month, Ayanbadejo said there were up to four NFL players who were considering coming out as gay on the same day with the hope that any backlash would be shared and the pressure on one person reduced. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell emphasized that discrimination based on sexual orientation was unacceptable in the NFL. His statement came after players said they were asked during the NFL Scouting Combine if they liked girls. In November 2018, former player Jeff Rohrer became the first known current or former NFL player to be in a same-sex marriage.

In February 2014, Sam publicly came out as gay after his college career had ended, and he became the first publicly gay player drafted in the NFL when he was selected in the seventh round of the 2014 draft.

In 2017, Scott Frantz publicly came out as gay, joining My-King Johnson as two of the first openly gay players in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision. Later that same year, Frantz became the first openly gay college football player to play in a game for an NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision school.

In 2018, Bradley Kim of the Air Force Academy came out as gay, thus becoming the first openly gay football player to play for any military academy in the United States; open homosexuality was forbidden in the U.S. Armed Forces until 2012.

In August 2019, free agent Ryan Russell came out publicly as bisexual in an essay he penned for ESPN.

In June 2021, Raiders defensive end Carl Nassib came out as gay via Instagram. He announced a $100,000 donation to The Trevor Project as part of the post. Nassib was entering his sixth NFL season and the second year of his three-year contract with the Las Vegas Raiders. He became the first openly gay player to play in an NFL game on September 13, 2021. He later became the first openly gay player in an NFL playoff game on January 15, 2022.

Media coverage

The way media covers LGBTQ+ athletes in football has changed quite a bit over the years. It started out with a lot of sensational stuff that turned everything into big drama. Early stories often treated coming out like some kind of disruptive event. That approach just reinforced old stereotypes instead of helping people see these athletes as regular humans with real lives. These days, sports journalism tends to pay more attention to what the players actually accomplish. Reporters dig into their personal backgrounds too. They highlight how these athletes contribute to their teams in meaningful ways.

Fans and analysts have started looking at players from the LGBTQ+ community in a different light. That shift comes partly from memoirs and personal stories that are now out of there in the public eye. Those accounts show the heavy emotional work it talks to keep performing at the high level while hiding parts of yourself. The secrecy can weigh people down in ways that affect everything. Former NFL players who open up about this have helped expand how folks think about things like masculinity in the sport. They touch on vulnerability too. Mental health issues in football get more discussion because of it.

The framing in media still plays a big role in how people make sense of athletes who come out publicly. Research on major examples, like Carl Nassib's announcement about his sexuality, points this out clearly. Such coverage can steer wider talks around acceptance in sports. It influences views on team dynamics and what leagues owe their players. The NFL and college football programs keep pushing diversity efforts and inclusion programs. Media reception stays key to how the public grasps the experiences of LGBTQ+ athletes.

• Posthumously outed

Selected in the NFL draft, never played in the league

Placed on injured reserve, never played in the league

Practice squad member, never played in the league

References

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