Futebol Inglês e Homofobia

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English Football, Sexuality, and Homophobia: Gay Fans’ Perspectives of Governance 
and Visibility 
 
 
 
 
David Letts 
University of Winchester, UK 
 
 
 
Rory Magrath 
Solent University, Southampton, UK 
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Abstract 
Professional football (soccer) has typically been a hostile and volatile environment for sexual 
minorities. In recent years, however, a significant body of academic evidence has 
documented how lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT+) people are becoming 
increasingly accepted in the football industry (e.g., Cashmore & Cleland, 2012; Cleland, 
2015; Cleland, Magrath & Kian, 2018; Magrath, 2017a, 2017b, 2018; Magrath, Anderson & 
Roberts, 2015). Problematically, however, this research has been largely restricted to the 
attitudes of ostensibly heterosexual male fans, and has thus, inadvertently, excluded the 
voices of the LGBT+ community. In this chapter, we address this void by presenting data 
collected in the first-ever academic research dedicated to the experiences of LGBT+ football 
fans. Specifically, we draw on semi-structured interviews with 35 openly gay male fans to 
address the role of the Football Association (FA) – English football’s governing body – as 
well as the clubs themselves, in tackling homophobia in football. Additionally, we also 
explore the effectiveness of the Rainbow Laces movement. 
 
 
 
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Introduction 
Men’s English football’s position as the country’s largest spectator sport has frequently led to 
it being used to highlight a range of political and social issues. Examples of this are witnessed 
in the sport’s efforts to tackle the issues of racism and, more recently, homophobia both of 
which have coincided with wider society’s increased awareness and resulting attitude 
changes in these areas (Cashmore & Cleland, 2014). Given the sport’s national importance 
and platform for these wider societal issues, the perspectives of football fans in relation to 
these issues have received increased academic interest in recent years (Cashmore & Cleland, 
2014; Cleland & Cashmore, 2016a, 2016b; Magrath, 2018a). 
A significant body of academic research has documented how sexual minority 
individuals are becoming increasingly accepted in the football industry (e.g., Cashmore & 
Cleland, 2012; Cleland, 2015; Cleland et al., 2018, 2021; Magrath, 2017a, 2017b, 2018b, 
2021; Magrath, Anderson & Roberts, 2015). While demonstrating improved attitudes 
amongst the sport’s spectatorship is significant, it is important that this attitudinal change is 
translated into inclusive behaviour. Therefore, understanding the lived experience of LGBT+ 
fans is essential in gauging how the environment – including awareness, attitudes and action 
– has altered from their perspective. However, thus far, academic research examining 
homophobia in the sport has exclusively focused on the attitudes of ostensibly heterosexual 
male fans, and has, therefore, inadvertently excluded the LGBT+ community’s perspective 
(Cleland & Magrath, 2020). 
As such, this chapter aims to address the existing void in academia relating to LGBT+ 
football fans’ perspectives of acceptance and inclusivity towards sexual minorities. In doing 
so, we present data collected in the first-ever academic research project dedicated to the 
experiences of LGBT+ sports fans through an examination of the role of governing bodies, 
professional clubs, and the various interventions in place – such as the Rainbow Laces 
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movement – designed to make English football a more inclusive space. Focusing on gay male 
fans, we show that the lack of visibility of governing bodies’ work is problematic in that it 
calls into question their commitment to tackling homophobia. In contrast, however, 
professional clubs were seen to play a more proactive role in engaging with LGBT+ Fan 
Groups, thus making these fans welcomed in the sport. Finally, while these fans were 
supportive of the Rainbow Laces movement, they also felt that it lacked a long-term legacy; 
that it was, at present, too restricted in its overall focus. Accordingly, by focusing on those 
fans that it affects most – LGBT+ fans – this research is important in that it highlights 
English football’s positive and negative attempts to tackle homophobia. 
 
The Foundations of Football, Masculinity and Homophobia 
While the invention of machinery and transportation necessary for industrialization began in 
the early-1700s, the antecedents of most of today’s sporting culture can be traced to the years 
of the second Industrial Revolution—the mid-1800s through early-1900s. It was around this 
time that the organization, regulation, and codification of most dominant sports – including 
football – occurred (Guttmann, 1978). Around this time, sport – particularly men’s 
competitive teamsports – was thought to instil the qualities of discipline and obedience 
necessary in dangerous occupations (Rigauer, 1981). Factory workers, in particular, were 
required to sacrifice their time and health for the sake of earning wages at a level required to 
support their dependent families. Predictably, in service to industrialized interests, 
participation in sport thus taught boys to reinforce the value of self-sacrifice (Anderson, 
2009). 
 Importantly, the gender segregation conventions of the time enabled sport to play an 
important role in ‘masculinizing’ – and ‘remasculinizing’—boys. Given the emergence of an 
apparent crisis of masculinity – one characterized by a moral panic of the softening of boys’ 
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virility (Filene, 1975) – men were forced to demonstrate their heteromasculinity by aligning 
their “gendered behaviors with an idealized and narrow definition of masculinity” 
(McCormack & Anderson, 2014). Kimmel (1994) argues that, in this context, idealized 
attributes included the repression of pain, concealing feminine and/or same-sex desires and 
behaviors, and simultaneously committing acts of violence against oneself and others. Carter 
(2006, p. 5), for example, wrote that sport provided a “clear hierarchical structure, autocratic 
tendencies, traditional notions of masculinity and the need for discipline.” This combination 
of events essentially led to masculinity becoming synonymous with homophobia (Kimmel, 
1994). 
 While sport found cultural value for the first time during this period, this would re-
emerge a century later, in the 1980s. At this time, the heightened HIV/AIDS epidemic – 
which had particular prevalence among gay men – fed the perception that homosexuality was 
dangerous and illicit (Weeks, 1991). This elevated deleterious cultural attitudes toward 
homosexuality to an all-time high by the end of the decade. Clements and Field (2014), for 
example, show that the British Social Attitude Survey reported that 75% of the British 
population believed the same-sex sex was ‘always wrong’ or ‘mostly wrong’ (see also Watt 
& Elliot, 2019; see Twenge, Sherman & Wells, 2016, for a discussion of the US context). 
The existing discriminatory attitudes were also confirmed in law by the Conservative 
government’s introduction of Section 28 in 1988, prohibiting the promotion of homosexuality 
in British schools (Epstein & Johnson, 1998). Given this hostile environment, it is perhaps 
unsurprising that LGBT+ individuals either tended to avoid participating in sport or simply 
hid their sexual identities (Pronger, 1990). Instead, sexual minority participation occurred 
primarily at amateur levels or in gay-only leagues (Jones & McCarthy, 2010). 
Ultimately, the period demonstrated what Anderson (2009) termed homohysteria. 
Here, heterosexual individuals feared being perceived as homosexual and subsequently began 
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to “align their gendered behaviors with idealized and narrow definitions of masculinity” 
(McCormack & Anderson, 2014, p. 114). As such, during this period, sport provided an 
important environment for boys and men to provetheir masculinity and consequently reduce 
the likelihood of being perceived as gay (Burstyn, 1999). This resulted in football becoming 
an increasingly masculinized space, especially for white, working-class males; many of 
whom were adjusting to increased levels of unemployment and the associated emasculation 
as a result of no longer being able to provide for their families as they had done previously 
(Nayak, 2006). 
Academic research examining the relationship between sport and homophobia during 
the 1980s and 1990s highlighted a worrying trend of anti-LGBT+ attitudes in line with 
broader societal views at the time (e.g., Griffin, 1998; Hekma, 1998; Messner, 1992; Pronger, 
1990). Interestingly, although there exists no empirical research on English football from 
around this time, we can draw upon the experiences of Justin Fashanu. Fashanu, who was 
best known for his playing career at Norwich City and Nottingham Forest, was the world’s 
first openly gay male professional footballer when he publicly came out in 1990 (Cleland, 
2014). The result was catastrophic, and Fashanu faced backlash and vilification from fans, 
fellow players, and even members of his own family. In 1998, having been accused of sexual 
assault in the US, he took his own life (Gaston, Magrath & Anderson, 2018). 
No active elite (male) player in England has publicly come out since Fashanu, with 
the negativity surrounding his situation posited as a likely concern for those considering 
doing so. Indeed, Magrath (2017b. p. 63) has previously described Fashanu as a 
“trendsetter—symbolic of the fractious relationship between football and homosexuality.” 
This hypothesis also served to be largely accurate throughout the 1990s, as professional 
footballers remained closeted. Even those who were heterosexual – as evidenced perhaps 
most notably by former England defender, Graeme Le Saux – were not safe from 
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homophobia. Because of his middle-class background and failure to conform to football’s 
traditional, working-class masculine ideals, Le Saux was routinely abused by teammates, 
managers and fans about his supposed homosexuality (Magrath, Cleland & Anderson, 2020). 
 
The Decline of British Homophobia 
Since the turn of the millennium, views regarding homosexuality – and sexual minorities 
more broadly – improved significantly in the UK and across most of the Western world 
(Clements & Field, 2014; Watt & Elliot, 2019). This societal advancement has permeated 
through many facets of modern-day society, perhaps most notably through the introduction of 
same-sex marriage in a variety of countries across the worldi. Despite these improved 
attitudes, however, there are claims that football remains resistant to broader social trends of 
inclusivity. A 2016 British parliamentary inquiry into homophobia in sport, for example, 
claimed that, “Despite the significant change in society’s attitudes to homosexuality in the 
last 30 years, there is little reflection of this progress being seen in football” (DCMS, 2017). 
This narrative has largely been facilitated by a range of non-academic polls and surveys 
conducted by high-profile organizations. Leading LGBT advocacy British charity, Stonewall, 
for example, recently claimed that 72% of English football fans regularly witness 
homophobic abuse, and that 20% would be ‘embarrassed’ if their favorite player came out. 
 Critiques of these surveys have highlighted significant methodological weaknesses, a 
lack of rigor, a lack of restriction on participation measures, and inclusion of ‘leading’ 
questions (see Magrath, 2020; Magrath & Stott, 2019). Accordingly, surveys of this kind 
report a “‘hearts and minds’ study of perceptions and fears, not necessarily reflecting 
empirical realities” (Anderson, Magrath & Bullingham, 2016, p. 5). Indeed, when examining 
scholarly research, the realities are far different. 
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Evidencing the academic reality, Cashmore and Cleland (2012, p. 377-8) documented 
a “new and surprising image” regarding football’s growing acceptance of homosexuality. 
Specifically, their research showed that 93% of 3500 fans had no objection to an openly gay 
player being contracted to the team they supported. These fans resented being held 
accountable for the lack of openly gay players, and almost half believed that clubs, agents 
and governing bodies were truly responsible for this trend. Despite these inclusive findings, 
however, Pearson’s (2012) ethnography of ‘carnival’ii fans in English football identified use 
of terms such as ‘gay’ and ‘queer’, and that such language would likely “have made it very 
uncomfortable for an openly gay fan to join a trip with the carnival fans” (p. 168). Magrath’s 
(2018b) research on ‘homosexually-themed chanting’ further interrogates the complex nature 
of this language, and that there is no negative intent or effect – something which McCormack 
(2011) argues is essential when judging this language (see also McCormack, Wignall & 
Morris, 2016). 
 In addition, inclusive attitudes have also been documented on fans forums—which is 
significant given that this platform allows for anonymity and the potential to voice more 
honest, yet less widely-accepted views. For example, Cleland’s (2015) analysis of a fans’ 
forum documented that those who engage with this medium are “displaying more inclusive 
attitudes towards the presence of gay footballers” (p. 136-7). And further supporting this, a 
similar study at the time of Thomas Hitzlsperger’s coming out in 2014 demonstrated vastly 
improved acceptance when compared with Justin Fashanu’s coming out some years earlier. 
The results found that only 2% of over 6,000 comments analyzed included pernicious 
homophobic intent and those holding orthodox views were often confronted by other forum 
users (Cleland, Magrath & Kian, 2018). 
At least partly responsible for English football’s changing culture is the influence of 
LGBT+ Fan Groups aligned to various professional clubs. These groups have emerged over 
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the past decade to combat English football’s traditional hypermasculine environment and to 
provide greater visibility for sexual minority football fans to network in an environment from 
which they have traditionally been excluded (Willis, 2015). LGBT+ advocacy groups broadly 
exist to support sexual and gender minorities in their ongoing pursuit of social and legal 
equality (Formby, 2017). In football, however, Lawley’s (2019) analysis of LGBT+ Fan 
Groups concludes that they have only limited ability to challenge the overwhelmingly 
heteronormative culture of English football. This, he argues, is because such groups create 
“counterspaces which present different norms…[and] they have a limited ability to widen the 
impact of their change to the mainstream” (p. 9). Accordingly, he calls for the 
implementation of greater education in order for the central messages of LGBT+ Fan Groups 
– that of greater overall inclusion and tackling discrimination – to be successfully 
disseminated. 
 Finally, English football has also delivered specific initiatives to combat 
discrimination in this area. The most prominent of these efforts has been through the work of 
Kick It Out, whose remit of tackling racism was broadened around the turn of the millennium 
to include all forms of discrimination. Since then, initiatives such as The Justin Campaign 
and Football v. Homophobia have been formed specifically to challenge sexual and gender 
minority discrimination in football. In addition, the Football Association (FA) – English 
football’s governing body – amended their regulations in 2007 to ensure that they addressed 
homophobic abuse, placing it on par with FA rules against racist abuse. The FA’s most recent 
policy, Opening Doors and Joining In, has been criticized for its lack of clarity and simplistic 
understandings of discrimination (Magrath & Stott, 2019). Separate analysesalso conclude 
that the FA’s discourse on its commitment to LGBT+ inclusion displayed “non-performative 
institutional speech acts” (Bury, 2015, p. 212). Lastly, Rainbow Laces – a movement 
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introduced by Stonewall in 2013 to raise awareness of LGBT+ inclusion in English football – 
has been critiqued as tokenistic and ineffective (Bury, 2015). 
 
LGBT+ Fans Project 
English professional football has undergone considerable structural and social change over 
the past three decades (King, 2002). The inception of the English Premier League (EPL) – 
and its subsequent development into the world’s most popular football league (Millward, 
2011) – is at least partly responsible for the notable expansion of both domestic and global 
fan cultures of the English game (Giulianotti, 2002; Pearson, 2012). Interestingly, however, 
while research has typically focused on English football’s ‘traditional’ demographic – 
heterosexual, white, working-class men (Pfister, Lenneis & Mintert, 2013) – the 
diversification of fandom has resulted in a growth of research on under-represented fans’ 
experiences. This includes research on gender (and the apparent ‘feminization’ of fandom) 
(Pope, 2017; Toffoletti, 2017), ethnicity (Kilvington, 2016), religion (Poulton, 2020; Poulton 
& Durrell, 2016), and (dis)ability (García, de Wolff, Welford & Smith, 2016). But despite 
this diversification of fandom, in addition to the liberalizing of attitudes, LGBT+ fans’ voices 
have been largely overlooked from this body of work. 
Against this backdrop, one of us (the second author) embarked on a research project 
to examine the lived experiences of LGBT+ fans of English professional football clubsiii. By 
conducting in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 35 openly gay male fans of various 
English professional football clubs, it focused on four specific areas: (1) LGBT+ fans’ 
attendance at English professional football matches; (2) General stadium climate for LGBT+ 
fans; (3) Understanding chanting and language in football; (4) The role of national governing 
bodies, professional clubs and various interventions in tackling discrimination. 
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Aside from sexual orientation, participants in this research largely reflected the 
traditional demographic of English football stadia (Goldblatt, 2014). All were male, all but 
one was White (the exception was Asian Indian), aged between 19 and 67, and were 
working-class or lower middle-class (as determined by participants providing their 
occupation and/or educational status). Additionally, each participant met the project’s 
eligibility criteria, which included: self-identifying as openly gay, lesbian, bisexual and/or 
transgender; supporting a team who, at the time of data collection, competed in the EPL or 
English Football League (EFL), and were either season-ticketholders or attended 
approximately 50% of their team’s matches, either at ‘home’, ‘away’ or a combination of 
both. Overall, fans represented 23 separate clubs currently competing in English professional 
football. 
Providing a backdrop to the specifics of governance initiatives discussed later, 
participants in this research clearly acknowledged that English football had become 
increasingly acceptant of homosexuality in recent years (Magrath, 2021). Over 74 per cent of 
participants said that they felt ‘safe’ attending matches and that previous feelings of 
intimidation and anxiety had dissipated in recent years. Furthermore, gay male fans in this 
research believed that homophobic chanting in stadia had considerably declined in recent 
years, with all from the youngest two age cohorts (18-24 and 25-35) reporting that they had 
never witnessed any homophobic chanting. This decline in antisocial behaviour 
supports Cleland and Cashmore’s (2016) suggestion that English football – particularly in the 
EPL – is becoming an increasingly sanitized environment. 
The next sections of this chapter outline some of the key findings related to the 
research project’s fourth theme: the role of national governing bodies and professional 
football clubs in tackling discrimination and promoting inclusion. It is important to note that, 
for this chapter, we only rely on data focused on the experiences of gay male fans; future 
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publications – including those under review at the time of writing – address the experiences 
of lesbian, bisexual, and transgender fans, as well as the project’s other objectives. 
 
Governance 
English football has become an increasingly positive environment for sexual minorities in 
recent years (Cashmore & Cleland, 2012; Cleland, 2015; Cleland, Magrath & Kian, 2018; 
Magrath, 2017a, 2017b, 2018, 2020; Magrath, Anderson & Roberts, 2015). During the same 
period, bureaucratic initiatives designed to completely remove homophobia from football 
have been introduced. High-profile organizations such as Kick It Out, Football v. 
Homophobia, and The Justin Campaign have been influential in this process; however, the 
Football Association have been criticized for being too slow to take action (see Caudwell, 
2011). The gay male fans in the current research were also critical of the FA for what they 
saw as a failure to ensure greater levels of LGBT+ inclusion. 
 Interestingly, countering previous research – which has questioned the FA’s 
commitment to tackling discrimination (Poulton, 2020) – participants in this research 
acknowledged the organization’s work, albeit simultaneously querying its effectiveness. For 
example, Warren, a lifelong West Bromwich Albion fan and season-ticketholder, said that, 
“I’m pretty sure the FA are doing work on this, but they could definitely be doing more—
even if it’s just to tell us what they’re doing.” Similarly, Lionel, a Burnley fan currently 
attending university, said that, “The FA have done a lot of work recently, but it’s still not 
enough. There are still no openly gay players, so I think there’s room for improvement on 
their part.” Wilson, a Reading season-ticketholder, said that, “I think they need to do more, to 
be honest. They sometimes make good attempts to appear inclusive, but it’s just not enough.” 
And Fabio, a Norwich City fan, said that, “They’ve made steps in the right direction, but I 
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don’t think it’s been quick enough…More is still needed, particularly as it’s the main 
organization [in English football] we’re talking about.” 
 Two-thirds of participants believed that the FA must be more transparent with their 
efforts to tackle homophobia in English football. David, a Huddersfield Town fan who works 
in radio, said that, “They can always do more, but it’s also about showing more visibility for 
what they’ve done already.” Similarly, Liam, a Leeds United season-ticketholder, said that, 
“They should increase their visibility and reach out to the LGBT community a bit better to 
show that they are making an effort to make the game more inclusive.” Nick, a Newcastle 
United season-ticketholder who also works as a football coach, said that, “It would be good 
for them [the FA] to show us exactly how committed they are to challenging discrimination.” 
And Jeff, an Arsenal fan, said that, “I’d love to see the FA shouting a bit louder about the 
stuff that they’re doing…I think that’s one of the main issues.” Moreover, further evidencing 
the FA’s apparent lack of visibility, only one of the 35 gay male fans interviewed for this 
research were aware of the FA’s most recent anti-homophobia policy—Opening Doors and 
Joining In (see also Magrath & Stott, 2019). 
 To address this lack of visibility, participants in this research made specific 
recommendations as to how the FA could be more effective. Noel, a West Ham United 
season-ticketholder, said that, “To deliver the message better, they could use social media a 
lot more…Post and promote a lot more information about what they’re doing.” Greater 
influence on social media was also recommendedby Jim, a Sheffield United fan: “Talking 
more about diversity on social media – especially relating to homophobia – and tagging clubs 
would be useful.” For others, such as Anton, a West Ham United fan, it was the “importance 
of reaching out to fans and making them aware of their policies…Just saying that they’re on 
the website isn’t good enough—they need to be proactive.” Finally, Leon, a lifelong 
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Tottenham Hotspur fan, recommended “more of a dialogue between the key groups of people 
involved…Having a high-profile player from each club would help, too.” 
 According to these fans, then, the FA’s attempts to tackle homophobia in football are 
both weak, and largely invisible, hence the call for greater transparency. Interestingly, 
however, Bury’s (2015) analysis of FA policy concludes that LGBT+ visibility is important, 
yet also overlooks institutional power struggles (in an environment apparently dominated by 
heterosexual white men). But given that the LGBT+ community have made great strides into 
English football in recent years, we argue that a growth of visibility – particularly from a 
powerful organization such as the FA – would likely be a positive step for demonstrating 
their commitment to inclusion. 
 
Clubs 
Alongside the FA, professional football clubs have also played a significant role in tackling 
homophobia (Magrath & Anderson, 2017). LGBT+ fans’ presence in English football has 
been made increasingly visible through the recent emergence of LGBT+ Fan Groups 
(Lawley, 2019). For example, at the time of writing, almost half (42) of English clubs 
competing in the EPL or EFL have an officially sanctioned LGBT+ Fan Group. Previous 
work for this project has acknowledged that these groups are important as they provide 
visibility, familiarity, and social networking for LGBT+ fans. Here, we outline the gay male 
fans’ assessment of their club’s commitment to tackling homophobia in football – showing 
that there were some mixed perceptions, and that these were dependent on the club in 
question. 
 Elliott, a lifelong Leicester City fan who works in recruitment, said that, “The club is 
doing a good job around LGBT issues. They communicate regularly with the group [Foxes 
Pride] and listen to our ideas.” Similarly, Mason, a Huddersfield Town fan, said that, “They 
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[the club] have been good. They support us regularly in the programme and on social media 
and are generally pretty visible with everything that’s going on.” Frazer, a retired Tottenham 
Hotspur fan, also spoke of his club’s engagement with inclusivity on social media: “Spurs 
have always been great…They’ve been really supportive and promote the anti-discrimination 
policies in the programme. They’re making steps in the right direction.” And Anton, a West 
Ham United fan, said, “I can’t think of anything more the club can do. We’ve got a lot of 
recognition and support, and we have good access if there are any issues.” These responses 
typified just over half of the gay male fans interviewed for this research. 
 In contrast, however, the remainder of participants were less satisfied with their club’s 
efforts at tackling homophobia. Warren, a West Bromwich Albion fan, said that, despite his 
club’s support for Proud Baggies, they could still do more: “We’ve had a few issues in the 
past, but the club haven’t really done enough to address it. They could definitely do more to 
approach and tackle homophobic chanting inside the ground.” Jason, a Bournemouth season-
ticketholder, believed that “accusations of political correctness prevent the club from being 
more supportive.” He also believed that the increase of social media abuse directed toward 
English clubs (see Kilvington & Price, 2019) was a key reason as to why “they [the club] 
hardly ever put anything online.” And Nathan, a season-ticketholder at Millwall – who, at the 
time of writing, do not have an LGBT+ Fan Group – criticized the club for “leaving 
everything like this up to the fans…The club won’t set a group up – it’s up to us to do 
anything.” 
 Thus, according to the gay fans in this research, professional clubs – despite having 
played a key role in the LGBT+ community’s growing involvement in football (see Magrath 
& Anderson, 2017) – are inconsistent in their approach to inclusion. Indeed, while some 
clubs are actively involved in LGBT+ Fan Groups, others seemingly adopt a more laissez-
faire attitude. Coupled with the fact that, despite a rapid recent increase, over half of 
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professional clubs – including some of England’s most elite – currently have an LGBT+ Fan 
Group, this is clearly problematic, and arguably fuels opinions that English football is still 
failing in its attempts to reach-out to minority fans. 
 
Rainbow Laces 
Finally, this chapter analyzes gay male fans’ perceptions of the Rainbow Laces movement. 
Introduced by Stonewall in 2013, the Rainbow Laces campaign – a period in the English 
football season when all professional clubs’ players are encouraged to where rainbow-
coloured laces – was designed to combat homophobia (and biphobia and transphobia) in 
sport. While initially restricted to a small number of sports, its take-up has increased each 
year; indeed, the movement is now regularly embraced by football, rugby union, cricket, 
darts, cycling, and athletics. It has also grown in visibility, largely thanks to the support of 
Sky Sports, who have formally backed the initiative since 2016. Despite the movement 
having previously been critiqued as tokenistic, gay male fans in this research were 
overwhelmingly positive about the increased prominence of Rainbow Laces. 
 For example, Adie, a Newcastle United season-ticketholder, said that, “The campaign 
is a great step in the right direction. I think with Sky’s support and it being on TV, people 
have been made more aware, and that’s one of the most important things.” Martin, a Crystal 
Palace fan, said that, “It’s such a great idea…It makes people actually discuss homophobia in 
football, and that’s important.” And Fabio, a Norwich City fan, answered in a similar vein: 
“Rainbow Laces has been extremely effective, I think…It’s one of the most successful 
campaigns, because it gets it out in the open.” These responses were indicative of all of the 
fans in this research; indeed, there were no dissenting voices regarding the campaign’s 
presence. That said, however, fans were critical of the long-term legacy of the campaign. 
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 Leicester City fan, Elliott, said that, “The movement is really good…Sadly, every 
single season it just fizzles out and there’s no legacy.” Similarly, Grant, a Crawley Town fan, 
said that, “It’s worked in terms of raising visibility, but I’m not sure it’s been very effective 
in the long-run.” Wilson, a Reading fan, described the Rainbow Laces movement as having 
“good intentions” but also “restrictive” due to its relatively short time span. This was raised 
by almost a third of participants in this research, who felt that the movement was ineffective 
as a consequence. Other participants – including Leon and Noel – also critiqued the 
movement for being “too static.” Instead, Leon suggested that: “It could be more dynamic – 
perhaps by doing different things each season. I think people get fed-up with seeing the same 
thing.” And finally, four participants also wanted to see their clubs better engage with the 
movement as a whole to ensure the overall visibility of Rainbow Laces—and thus ensuring 
that LGBT+ fans might be more encouraged to attend matches. 
 
Concluding Comments 
The findings of this study largely support previous work in this area by demonstrating more 
inclusive attitudes towards sexual minorities than previously seen in sporting environments 
(Anderson, Magrath & Bullingham, 2016)—particularly within British football (Cleland, 
2015; Cleland, Magrath & Kian, 2018). It is evident that the demographicdynamics of 
football fandom are changing, and previous work has demonstrated that attitudes of 
heterosexual fans are becoming more inclusive and accepting toward sexual minorities in this 
environment. Although some research has been critical (e.g., Magrath & Stott, 2019; Poulton, 
2020), it is likely that the combination of anti-homophobia initiatives introduced by the sport 
and social advancements more broadly have aided this development over recent years. 
The addition of these findings to the existing armoury of academic research provides 
a new and valuable perspective to understanding the complex relationship between football 
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and societal advancements. It is of critical importance that the findings outlined here 
illuminate the viewpoint of the minority population themselves, which sets it apart from 
previous work in this domain. Comprehension of the LGBT+ population’s standpoint is 
essential in understanding how the environment is perceived by those previously 
marginalized by the sport’s heteronormative culture. As explored earlier in this chapter, there 
have been several developments in tackling LGBT+ abuse and increasing inclusion within 
English football; the findings here show mixed feelings toward these initiatives. 
In summary, the research highlights three broad recommendations for football clubs 
and governing bodies to address in order to improve upon the foundations currently in place. 
These include improving awareness of existing policies/initiatives; improving engagement 
with LGBT+ fan groups; and focusing on improving visibility in this area. 
Indeed, supporting previous work, there was a very real lack of awareness regarding 
the FA’s flagship initiative—Opening Doors and Joining In. Of the 35 openly gay men 
included in this research, only one had heard of this campaign; this is an astounding – and, 
clearly, problematic – statistic, particularly given that the strategy is directly focused on the 
participant population. If not reaching those who are directly impacted by its intended 
outcomes, questions arise as to its overall effectiveness. In line with this, the emphasis of 
responses centred on increased awareness (an area the existing initiative apparently fails on), 
rather than having policies in place which are not publicized effectively. Accordingly, it is 
recommended that the FA do more to make these policies visible and ensure that they are 
active documents rather than tokenistic gestures. 
 We also evidence mixed perceptions of professional clubs’ engagement with LGBT+ 
inclusion. Central to this process is the increased emergence of LGBT+ Fan Groups – which 
almost half of the 92 English professional clubs – at the time of writing – had aligned to 
them. It is evident that the clubs which actively participated and encouraged their associated 
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LGBT+ Fan Group had a significant impact on members’ perception of their value—and 
commitment to the inclusion of LGBT+ fans. Conversely, clubs which failed to engage with 
these groups (if one existed) left these fans feeling disillusioned, and questioning the club’s 
loyalty to them. Therefore, clubs need to make conscious efforts to engage with these groups, 
and encourage the formation of a group if one does not already exist. 
Finally, we acknowledge the role of the Rainbow Laces movement. The gay male 
fans in this research were critical of the various limitations of this campaign – namely their 
short-term nature and lack of legacy. They also reported that the publicity of high-profile 
events is of significant importance to their feeling recognized and accepted within the sport 
(see also Lawley, 2019). This particular emphasis on the importance of awareness and 
visibility departs, in some ways, from previous research which has critiqued them as 
‘tokenistic’ (Bury, 2015). Clearly, as this research has shown, these visibility initiatives are 
recognized and appreciated by the LGBT+ community and, as such, should be encouraged 
throughout the sport. Alongside this, education work for staff and players can add further 
depth to these actions and embed their value more widely throughout the football industry. 
In relation to all of these points, the underpinning premise centres on strengthening 
the dialogue between both clubs and governing bodies and the sport’s LGBT+ population in 
order to understand the concerns and issues faced first-hand from those experiencing them. 
English Football has a clear opportunity to utilize the existing LGBT+ community within the 
sport, which is readily accessible through dedicated fan groups, to build on this research and 
align further efforts with the sport’s LGBT+ fans’ perspectives. Policy and action driven 
from this standpoint will help to ensure the work is appropriate and best addresses the needs 
of the population in question. This research highlights that the top-down approach seemingly 
taken up to this point distances initiatives from those they intend to help and risks 
disillusionment from those within these quarters. 
 20 
 Recognizing LGBT+ fans’ perspectives in relation to British football’s efforts around 
sexual minority awareness and inclusion is fundamental to establishing an effective strategy 
which accounts for the real-life experiences of those within the minority group itself. The 
initial work here clearly outlines a desire for increased proactive engagement with policies 
and initiatives, whereby most respondents considered more publicity to be a priority to 
furthering the effectiveness of work in this area. Additionally, a framework from a central 
policy could help individual clubs to confidently, and appropriately, engage with LGBT+ 
supporters’ groups; this would help to redress the disparity witnessed across the clubs 
represented in this study. Future research should aim to explore the experiences of others 
within the LGBT+ community and broaden the validity of these findings. 
 
 
 
 
 21 
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 27 
Author Biographies 
David Letts is a PhD student at the University of Winchester, UK. 
 
Rory Magrath is an Associate Professor of Equality and Diversity at Solent University, 
Southampton, UK. 
 
 
i More information can be found about the global legality of same-sex marriage here: 
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/10/29/global-snapshot-same-sex-marriage/ 
ii ‘Carnival’ fans are typically defined as those who take an active role in proceedings at English matches, such 
as drinking and chanting. 
 
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/10/29/global-snapshot-same-sex-marriage/