Soccer player Collin Martin who plays for Minnesota United has announced that he is gay. It’s a significant announcement because he is only the second US soccer player to come out during their professional career.
The midfielder made the announcement on Twitter just before his team took the field for a Pride themed game last week. Alongside an image of himself draped in a rainbow flag Martin said he was proud to share news of his own sexuality.
Martin said he had shared his sexuality with friends, family and teammates for many years and only been greeted with kindness and acceptance.
The soccer player said he hoped many more gay athletes would find the courage to share their sexuality with their fans.
Martin has been playing the professional league for six season, four with DC United and six season with his current team.
In 2013 British footballer Robbie Rogers shared that he was gay, a few months later he signed to LA Galaxy – making him the first player who has publicly stated that they are same-sex attracted to play professional soccer in the USA.
Soccer is a sport that has had very few players who have publicly acknowledged that they are same sex attracted, leading to concerns that homophobic attitudes persist in the sport.
At the World Cup in Russia Mexico was recently fined after their supporters were caught shouting homophobic slurs during a game.
OIP Staff
