Evra, retired footballer for major English Premier League teams (notably Manchester United) and for the France national team, has recently come forward to speak about his experiences with negative attitude toward homosexuality in English football club dressing-rooms during the 2000s.
In an interview with French magazine LE PARISIEN, Evra revealed:
[quote] When I was in England, they brought someone to talk to the team (unspecified) about homosexuality. Some of my colleagues said, âIt is against my religion, if there is a homosexual in this locker room, let him leave the clubâ and other comments. At that time, I said, âShut up!â I played with players who were gay. Face to face, they opened up with me because they were afraid to speak otherwise. There are approximately two players per club who are gay. But in the world of football, if you say so, itâs over.
Since Evraâs retirement around ten years ago, the Premier League has taken steps forward to encourage acceptance of sexualities, and has introduced numerous measures to foster an inclusive environment, the foremost of these measures being the Rainbow Laces campaign. The efficacy of these efforts must be questioned, however, when examining the current climate within the game around homosexualityâcertain fans still shouting abuse from the stands, certain players publicly espousing homophobic attitudes, and most of all sponsors and owners supporting and taking money from homophobic organisations.