Homosexuality in football: Lessons to be learned

"I think I was kind of naive at the time," Nilla Fischer told DW, reflecting on an interview she gave eight years ago, in which the interviewing reporter asked her if she was currently in a relationship.

"Of course, I thought about it, if I was going to answer it truthfully or not, but then I was like, OK, I’m with this woman, so why not?" 

There followed a sudden spike in interest in Fischer's personal life, the scale of which took her by surprise. "Of course, it was then in every magazine, that Nilla Fischer is coming out and living with a woman," she continued. “That’s also where I wish that we would come to, that it’s not a big thing, not this whole 'coming out story,' but I think it will be very many years until we reach that." 

While Fischer’s relationship was press-worthy, in her professional world, both in Sweden and then in Germany during a successful six-year spell at VfL Wolfsburg, it was unremarkable. "It’s easy in the club and in the team to be who you are. I’ve been so well treated at every club I’ve played at," said Fischer. 

While homosexuality continues to be a taboo subject in men's football, openly gay players have long been accepted as a fact of life in the women’s game. "It’s totally normal in women’s football," says Fischer's former teammate, VfL Wolfsburg goalkeeper Almuth Schult. "I’ve experienced that openness throughout my whole career," she told DW. "I grew up with it, so did many other female players. We’ve never known it any other way."

Eintracht Frankfurt’s Laura Freigang was of the same opinion. "The level of acceptance in women’s football is high, within the teams and also across the league. It’s just not an issue." 

Looking across at the men’s game, the three players offer words such as "masculinity" and "manly" in providing explanations for the persistence of silence on the topic of homosexuality. 

"There’s an idea that if you’re gay then you can’t really play football, because you're not manly enough," said Almuth Schult. "I think that fundamental way of thinking in football ought to be rolled back and reappraised somewhat." 

Schult was among the more than 800 signatories of an open letter published recently by football culture magazine 11Freunde pledging support to any gay player in the men’s game who makes the decision to come out. Laura Freigang was part of the German national team that also lent its support to the campaign. 

"Sexuality is still a taboo topic in men’s football," Freigang told DW. "It's not like that in the women’s game, which is why I think we can contribute to the campaign and offer our opinions. It has to be discussed, and I think it’s great that support is coming from other professionals," she said. 

During her time in Wolfsburg, Nilla Fischer imported from Sweden the practice of wearing a captain’s armband in rainbow colours, as a symbol of tolerance. The 36-year-old, who was outlived by the armbands when she returned to Sweden to rejoin Linköpings FC in 2019, was also a fan of the 11Freunde campaign - though not of what it says about the state of the game. 

"It's sad that it’s something that is probably needed, to get players to feel that they have the support," she told DW. "It’s a really a good thing that they do it, it’s just a pity that it’s kind of needed." 

Fischer hopes that men’s football might learn something from the open and tolerant atmosphere of the women’s game. But she acknowledges the difficulty of transposing values from one context to another.  

"I don’t have an answer, but I think it’s important to try to educate the younger players about good values, how you’re supposed to treat each other," she told DW. "From us they could learn the lesson that it’s OK to be who you are, we still accept you." 

While initiatives like the 11Freunde campaign can help prepare the ground for openly gay players and sensitize people in football for the topic of sexuality, ultimately, in Laura Freigang’s words, "someone will have to be the first." She sees the creation of a tolerant climate as a collective responsibility. 

"You can’t force anyone to do anything, and I would never want to, but the question is, if someone has the courage to take the first step, how can we receive them and support them, so that more and more people will dare to discuss the topic or live more openly?"  

And for Fischer, the benefits far outweigh the costs. "It feels so much better to be who you are than to hide or be scared or worried the whole time, so it’s totally worth it in the end," she told DW. "To get to a more accepting environment and more people being who they are, someone has to start. There’s not another option."