Being gay is no longer an issue in football

It can only be a matter of time before a current pro footballer announces he is homosexual.

And when that happens, I believe it will receive the full support of the footballing world.

Former Aston Villa and Everton midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger last week revealed he is gay, and it has become a major talking point.

Will such an announcement make as many headlines in five or 10 years’ time? No, I don’t think so.

But we are still waiting for the first player to reveal he is gay whilst currently playing and, when that happens, it will be a watershed moment.

There are always rumours about certain players, and I’ve no doubts whatsoever there are a number of current players who are gay but just don’t want it known.

Someone, however, is going to bite the bullet and, when they do, there will be a massive media focus on them.

But it will eventually disperse, and if one footballer comes out, then you might just find a few more quickly follow suit.

Listen, let’s not kid ourselves, they’ll get stick from away fans during matches.

You get stick, anyway, and most players these days are able to ignore the crowd, no matter what is being sung or shouted.

What I would expect, though, is for that player to have the full backing of his team-mates.

I don’t think for one second any of the other players would have a problem. Not in this day in age. We’ve moved forward from the way things were in the past when I was playing in England’s top flight.

Opinions have changed quite dramatically over the years in terms of how homosexuality is accepted. The younger generation don’t bat an eyelid at it. And that’s the way it should be.

We all know gay people. My lawyer is gay. Does that make any difference whatsoever? No, of course it doesn’t. So we continue to wait for the first player to come out and make such a revelation.

I’d like to stress if there are players out there who would much rather keep their sexuality to themselves, then they’re perfectly entitled to do so. Some might prefer to wait until they’ve hung up the boots before making it public knowledge just like Hitzlsperger.

If that’s the case, then fine. But football continues to move forward and things that would have been allowed to happen in the past will not be allowed to happen now.

If you were to poll every professional football in Britain, I’d be amazed if the vast majority and by that I mean over 90% would not offer gay team-mates their full backing.

It will be interesting to see if Hitzlsperger’s announcement, and the positive media coverage, convinces another footballer out there to do the same.