The Professional Football League (LFP) joined forces on Monday, November 7 with a listening unit against homophobia, aiming to “accompany” players who “remain silent” about their sexual orientation, a-t- she announced. Called “Cry of the locker room”, the operation piloted by the Ovale Citoyen association aims to provide “the best possible personalized support” to the players concerned, “by guaranteeing a circle of consent and respect”, specifies the LFP in a press release. The cell is accessible “by phone and chat”.
The National Rugby League (LNR), the UNFP footballers’ union and the Provale rugby union are also involved. The LFP indeed observes that “many [de sportifs] remain silent, very often for fear of rejection or the impossibility of a career”. So far, no current Ligue 1 player has publicly disclosed their homosexuality. Coming outs are very rare in professional football globally.
In 2021, Josh Cavallo, an Australian league footballer, was one of the first active players in the first division to come out as gay, receiving many messages of support. “It is precisely through information, through example, that we can free this speech. It is often said that sport is a reflection of society, yet we observe this freedom of speech in society. Sport must now be able to go beyond that, ”explained Philippe Lafon, director general of the UNFP. The LFP has also announced that it has obtained the FIER Sport label from the FIER Foundation, rewarding organizations for their “good conduct in terms of the inclusion of LGBTQIA+ people”.
The League has been committed for several years to the fight against discrimination, by joining forces with several organizations such as Licra, SOS homophobia, Foot Ensemble and PanamBoyz & Girlz United.exte
