Geordie Shore star Gaz Beadle urges gay footballers to 'have the balls' to come out
Alexis Holt October 27, 2016
Geordie Shore personality Gaz Beadle has urged gay professional footballers to come out, taking aim at the sport and fans who shout homophobic chants at matches.
Beadle wrote in his column for the Daily Star that gay footballers should come out "if [they] are happy enough to let [their] balls slap against another lad."
He wrote: "Yes, private life is private…I know that. But what f***ing misery it must be to live a lie. You can only do something about a s*** situation if you stand up against it and challenge it head on (no pun intended)."
Estimating that out of the some 4,000 professional footballers in the UK, at least 40 must be gay or bisexual, Beadle asked: "Where are you all? Or have gay lads been put off joining the sport because of the potential abuse they might get? If so, that's a f***ing crime."
As well as suggesting that gay footballers should come out in order to be visible, and taking aim at those who go to lengths to hide their sexuality, Beadle did go on to say he didn't think people should be forced into coming out.
"Don't get me wrong. I am not saying that anyone should be forced to come out. Everyone has to do it in their own time, if at all. I have to admire our Nathan in Geordie Shore, who had the courage to come out during the show," he goes on.
Slamming fans who chant homophobic slurs at matches, Beadle wrote: "As a football fan, it makes me cringe to think that football fans would hurl anti-gay abuse at a player. Would they do it on the street if they saw a gay guy? Hopefully not. Mind you, some c***s would."
Concluding: "Yes, there have been footballers who we all know are gay and have gone to great lengths to keep it out of the papers. We'd respect you more for facing up to it, lads, instead of spending a wedge to preventing us all finding out that you're not into lasses after all. I think we've probably guessed and don't care anyway. Time to grab the bull by the horns. Again, no pun intended."
After identifying as bisexual, Geordie Shore's Nathan Henry came out as gay last December.
More: gaz beadle, geordie shore, nathan henry
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