Juliana Francis Blog: Retired German football star becomes first Premier League player to come out as gay - after 'realising he preferred to live with another man’

Announcement: Former West Ham United midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger has announced he is gay

Thomas Hitzlsperger today became the first Premier League footballer to come out as gay after recently realising he 'preferred' men.
The 31-year-old German international midfielder, who ended his playing career in September due to persistent injuries, said he came out in a bid to break the taboo of homosexuality in sport.
In what as a landmark moment for football, he told Germany's Die Zeit newspaper that now was ‘a good time’ for him to reveal his sexuality.
Hitzlsperger said: ‘I'm coming out about my homosexuality because I want to move the discussion about homosexuality among professional sportspeople forwards.
The retired footballer said he has only realised ‘in the past few years’ that he would ‘prefer to live together with another man’, saying the issue is otherwise taboo inside the dressing room.
‘I've never been ashamed of the way I am,’ he added, although he conceded it has not always been easy to live with some of the comments dished out on the subject.
‘Just picture 20 men sat around a table together drinking - you've just got to let the majority be, just as long as the jokes are halfway funny and the talk about homosexuality doesn't get too insulting,’ he said. ‘In England, Germany or Italy, homosexuality is not taken seriously as an issue, at least not in the dressing room.’
The 31-year-old is the first high-profile German player to publicly reveal that he is homosexual.
Justin Fashanu was the first professional footballer in Britain to come out in 1990 before he took his own life eight years later, aged 37. But he never played in the Premier League, which began in 1992.
Hitzlsperger played 52 times for Germany between 2004 and 2010 and spent his club career at Aston Villa, VfB Stuttgart, Lazio, West Ham United, VfL Wolfsburg and Everton.
He used to live with fiancée Inga Totzauer in Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, but split up with her in June 2007 only one month before they were due to wed.

Teams: Hitzlsperger spent his club career at Aston Villa (left), Stuttgart, Lazio, Wolfsburg and Everton (right)

Big moment: The 31-year-old footballer ended his playing career in September due to persistent injuries

Former England footballer Gary Lineker said on Twitter: 'Congratulations to Thomas Hitzlsperger on bravely being the first player to have played in the Premier League to "come out".'
Lineker later tweeted that he was looking forward to interviewing Hitzlsperger for the BBC One show Football Focus this week. 'A man, hopefully, paving the way for others to follow,' he added.
BT Sport football presenter Jake Humphrey added: 'In 2014 it shouldn't be an issue that a pro footballer is gay. Sadly it still is, therefore, huge credit to Thomas Hitzlsperger.'

And Queens Park Rangers midfielder Joey Barton said: 'Thomas Hitzlsperger has shown a lot of courage today. Sad times when people have to wait till they retire from their chosen profession.'
Former Leeds United and US winger Robbie Rogers announced he was gay last year, and Hitzlsperger is the latest high-profile sports person to speak about their sexuality in public.
Tennis star Martina Navratilova came out publicly as gay in 1981 while John Amaechi was the first NBA (National Basketball Association) player in the US to openly admit to being gay in 2007.

Love life: Hitzlsperger pictured with his former partner Inga Totzauer at home in Sutton Coldfield in March 2002

Another announcement: Former Leeds United and US winger Robbie Rogers said he was gay last year

Ex-Wales rugby union captain Gareth Thomas, plus England and Surrey wicketkeeper Steven Davies, have both also come out in the last five years.
Olympic boxing gold medallist Nicola Adams topped the Independent's annual 'Pink List' poll of influential lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in November 2012.

'I want to move the discussion about homosexuality among professional sportspeople forwards'
Thomas Hitzlsperger

And last month Tom Daley revealed he was in a relationship with a man, while two other Olympic divers have previously come out.
Australian Matthew Mitcham announced he was gay in 2008 shortly before he won a gold medal at the Beijing Olympics.
And four-time Olympic diving champion Greg Louganis revealed he was gay following his retirement in 1995. The full interview with Hitzlsperger will be published in the Die Zeit newspaper on Thursday.

Chris Basiurski, chair of the Gay Football Supporters' Network, said: 'We really welcome this news.

Gay sports stars: Last month Olympic diver Tom Daley (left) revealed he was in a relationship with a man. And Olympic boxing gold medallist Nicola Adams (right) topped a list of influential LGBT people in November 2012

Early death: Former England Under-21 international Justin Fashanu was the first professional footballer in Britain to come out in 1990 before he took his own life eight years later, aged 37

‘It shows that we are moving one step closer to creating that atmosphere in football where players at all levels would be able to come out should they want to, safely and free from discrimination.

'In 2014 it shouldn't be an issue that a pro footballer is gay. Sadly it still is, therefore, huge credit to Thomas Hitzlsperger'
Jake Humphrey, BT Sport presenter

‘We hope that one day current players would feel able to come out and that eventually a player’s sexual orientation will not be a news story. But for now, we wish Thomas Hitzlsperger well.’
And a spokesman for campaign group Stonewall told BBC Sport today: 'It's fantastic that he has been brave enough to openly discuss his sexual orientation.
'Every sports star who is willing to speak out makes it just that little bit easier for gay players and fans, and we hope, a new generation of footballers will feel confident enough to be themselves.'

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 committed suicide 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.’
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.’
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.’ Davies, now 27, has played eight one-day internationals and five Twenty20 internationals for England.
Robbie Rogers (soccer) - 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.’