Xagain said:

Mafia...back me up on this...

muirdo said:

i was pissing myself laughing when i was doing this and not one of you have commented on it.

muirdo said:

If vinny squeezed my nades that hard I would be singing like MJ

DynamicSavior said:

So if Prince came out saying he was gay would you stop liking hes music?

oldpurple said:

What are you talking about? Prince IS gay. We settled this in M&M a while ago. Where were YOU at?

DynamicSavior said:

and the differance is?

does it mean that if you are gay you cant kick a ball for a team that you play for?

oldpurple said:

Did I say that? Hell no. What it all boils down to is closeted celebrities should come out and use their position to help uplift us all. Something to that effect...People won't listen to me, but they'll listen to celebriites in half a heart beat. Shit. If I was famous that's what I'd be doing.

re-reading the story, i have to admit that i wouldn't
mind mark owen "calling" me a few times or so

Justin1972UK said:

I see where you're coming from but I can't think of a worse reason for outing someone. If a player has made disparaging remarks or homophobic comments, then this happens... fair enough. But to 'out' him due to the actions of a (minority) bunch of stupid fans, that's not his responsibilty.

Plus, to 'out' him this way only adds the added 'shame' factor, like it was forced upon him or something. It doesn't exactly make him a role model or inspirational to those dealing with these same issues in real life.

What they get up to in their spare time, is completely their own business. If they wish to come out, they should be allowed to when they want to.

But, granted, as a gay man of course I share your interest. Who wouldn't want to know who these players are?! But I don't think 'outing' them - to stick two fingers up to the minority of idiot fans - is the way to go about changing attitudes.

Just my , Justin; no hard feelings.

onenitealone said:

Co-sign.

DynamicSavior said:

I hate this idea of celebrities as the examples for us all to follow and social saviors of the modern era. I don't need a celebrity to condone anything about me or affirm my life and don't really care whether they're gay or straight or what their feelings are about that any more than I do whether they're republican or democrat.

Granted, there are people who do look to celebrities, but in my opinion that's sad.

I can't help but like some good gossip, like onenightalone, but I don't think celebrities have any more of an obligation to share their personal lives with the world than any of us do.

Xagain said:

Especially when you see how easy it is for anybody to become a celebrity these days.

If gay celebrities wish to act as role models, more power to them. But we all meet people on a daily basis whose stories/lives are just as inspirational. They just go unnoticed. I don't think dragging people out of the closet - famous or not - sets any positive example at all.

onenitealone said:

What I dislike most about anybody being in the closet is that to remain closeted, you have to adopt certain patterns of homophobic speech and behaviour, so your cover isn't blown. Even the thought of a closeted non-heterosexual hearing a homophobic remark in company and letting it pass without comment, repulses me.

This veil of homophobic attitude would be amplified to the nth degree when a closet-case operates within a traditionally "macho" enviroment like football.

I don't particularly think that celebrities of any ilk should be held up as role models by anybody. My comments about "pissing off" a minority of the players' supporters relate specifically to football. If we were talking about ice skaters or tennis players, I wouldn't care less. You know and I know that the majority of English and Scottish football fans belong to a specific demographic.

Personally, if I could add something to the water supply which made every queer's hair turn green tomorrow, I would. There'd be every shade of green from sage, through to emerald, to florescent. But whatever the specific hue, there'd be an awful fucking lot of green-haired people walking around.

Justin1972UK said:

If that's not the fucking truth...btw...what I said TOTALLY didn't come out how I meant it. I just couldn't convey what I was thinking into words well. That's all.

Justin1972UK said:

Again, I see where you're coming from but I still think it's down to the individual as to when they actually come out. We both speak from the vantage point of being happy with ourselves, who we are and being out of the closet. It's easy for us to speak up for ourselves - and others - having gone through that 'transition'.

To the person still stuck in that closet, it can be a terribly stifling experience. You have no other point of reference of what it is to be gay other than what the media dishes out. Or what your peers have to say about it. It's a journey that most people make alone and - usually - have to work out for themselves. I'm sure many of us have said and done things that we all regret; it's only with time, growth and self-awareness that one develops.

So I understand what you're saying but I just don't think life's that easy for a lot of people. Whether they're a footballer, tennis player or just Joe Bloggs like you and I. I, too, long for some utopian ideal - where 'labels' are discarded - to happen. But dragging people out of the closet won't bring that any closer. People should be proud of who and what they are, definitely - but can only make their own minds up.

Again, though - this is only my two cents.

Well, Sol Campbell is neither a rebel or a goalscoring midfielder and as far as I know he's not a pop star.

Kieron Dyer is another name being mentioned on footy forums.

Marrk said:

I'll be very happy if that's the case.

(Sorry, thinking out loud ).

ConsciousContact said:

You reckon?????

onenitealone said:

I never had any transition.

At eleven years-old, as soon as I realised what sex is, I realised I was attracted to other men - and if anybody asked me, I told them the truth.

The only thing I obviously didn't learn at the time was all the different names which could be used to explain my proclivity. Nor did I realise that I'd be one of only two openly-gay people during my school years.

The saddest thing about all this is that I received an email a couple of years ago, via FriendsReunited.com, from a fellow pupil. He wrote to tell me that he "admired" my "bravery" and wanted to know how my life had developed after school. I never replied. Whilst he was "admiring my bravery", I was routinely beaten, spat on, insulted and generally abused. He was on the soccer team and dating girls all the while. He's in the Royal Air Force now in another county - and still in the closet, 18 years after leaving school.

Justin1972UK said:

God, you stick to your guns don't you?

Well I admire your bravery. I come from a small Welsh ex-mining town and you come Hull, is it? I can just imagine the sort of environment you grew up in. To be openly gay at that age - especially in school - must've been quite gruelling sometimes. You must be a tough cookie.

In my case, I had people calling me 'gay', 'bent', you name it, from about the age of 7. (Even though I had no concept of what it was or what it means. I only knew that - from their perspective - it was something to, supposedly, be ashamed or make fun of). And I was bullied on a daily basis right up until I was 17/18. So I know where you're coming from. But throughout my teens, I was in complete denial about it. I would not let my personality or sexuality be defined by other people. Plus, in a weird way - and I don't mean this literally - I was almost asexual! I was so innocent, so young for my years - everybody was ahead of me in that sense. It was only when I went to Uni, got away from that environment, was able to think for myself and - oh yeah, fell head over heels for some guy - that I had to question my own impulses. Before that, they were placed right on the backburner. I was in complete and utter denial. But not necessarily aware of it.

That's not the half of it but I had to go through my own transition. But people have been and will go through far worse than me. Everything is relative. It's what you learn from these experiences that makes you a stronger person. That's why I could never judge anyone when it comes to this matter. It's a journey that so many people have to figure out for themselves. There are no rules. If only! But, again, I totally see your point.

I had a feeling one of them would be a Chelsea midfielder. Not naming any names.

JDINTERACTIVE said:

can you at least post pics, then?

HamsterHuey said:

I know. All this and 'I know a secret...'.

onenitealone said:

OK, well he used to play for West Ham.

JDINTERACTIVE said:

Hun, I am gay and would not know any of the Dutch teams, let alone UK teams.
Pics please.

HamsterHuey said:

Jermain Jenas, Darren Ambrose

if i stood a chance at scoring, i'd be wishing it were becks or ronaldo. since i'd never have a chance to take advantage of a footballer's sexuality, it just doesn't matter to me who's gay and who's not.

They all seem gay to me anyway.

Check out these galleries: http://www.gaysports.co.u...index2.php