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US Footballer Colin Martin Comes Out In Touching Twitter Post

US Footballer Colin Martin Comes Out In Touching Twitter Post

Martin, who plays for Minnesota United, thanked his teammates for their support

Claire Reid

Claire Reid

Minnesota United midfielder Colin Martin has announced he's gay in a touching Twitter post.

His announcement makes him the only openly gay male athlete to be currently playing in one of the US' major sports leagues - which seems kind of shocking in 2018, although a similar situation exists across most of the world's top sports.

In the post he thanked his teammates for supporting him and encouraged others in a similar position to come out, adding that he believes 'sport will welcome them'.

He wrote: "I have been out as a gay man for many years to my family and friends, and this includes my teammates.

"I have played Major League Soccer for 6 seasons: 4 seasons with DC United and 2 seasons with Minnesota United. Today, I'm proud that my entire team and the management of Minnesota United know that I am gay."

He also shared a photo of himself wrapped in a rainbow flag.

LA Galaxy's Robbie Rogers came out back in 2013 but retired from the sport last year - a number of other athletes, including basketball player Jason Collins, have previously announced they are gay but all have since retired. This means Martin is the only male gay athlete currently out while in a major US league.

Commenting on Martin's post, Rogers wrote: "Love this! So, so inspiring thank you Collin! Good luck this season, except against the LA Galaxy."

Martin's dad, also commented to say:

Is someone cutting onions?

The post has been retweeted 16,000 times and liked 76,000 and, other than the odd bellend, most of its two thousand comments have been positive.



Enjoy Pride, mate. It's not like you've got a World Cup to worry about, eh?

Featured Image Credit: Twitter

Topics: LGBTQ, Football