Louis Posted January 8, 2014 Report Share Posted January 8, 2014 http://www.zeit.de/sport/2014-01/thomas-hitzlsperger-homosexualitaet-fussball Google translation: Four months ago, Thomas Hitzlsperger moved out of the public life as a professional footballer. Now he turns again to the public. The Munich has decided to go with one in the world of football so far taboo topic on the offensive: "I express myself to my homosexuality," Hitzlsperger says in an interview with appearing on the Thursday edition of TIME, "because I under the discussion of homosexuality seeks to promote professional athletes. " He had the feeling that now, after the end of his career, a good time had come for it. The awareness of being gay, was "a long and difficult process" in the life of 31-year-old former midfielder, who completed a total of 52 games for the German national team between 2004 and 2010. "Only in recent years dawned on me that I would rather live with a man," says Hitzlsperger. It manifests itself as open as it has done no other German professional before him. Homosexuality would "simply ignored" in football. To date, he do not know a football player himself, who did this to his subject. Hitzlsperger played in youth for Bayern Munich, in 2000 he moved to the English Premier League club Aston Villa. After that, he was captain of VfB Stuttgart, gained experience at Lazio in Serie A, playing for VfL Wolfsburg in 2012 and returned to the Premier League for Everton back. "In England, Germany or Italy homosexuality is not a serious issue, not in the cabin at any rate," said Hitzlsperger recalls. He had always resented the contradictions that were set up in the football world in dealing with homosexuality. Professional sport is a competitive sport absolutely hard "struggle, passion and will to win are inextricably linked." The do not fit the stereotype that many people made up by a homosexual, namely: ". Gays are sissies" Hitzlsperger says: "I've never been ashamed of that so I've been '. Nevertheless, the sayings of the colleagues were not always easy to bear. "Think about it again: There sit twenty young men at the tables and drink, because it lets you grant the majority, as long as the jokes are reasonably funny and the chatter about homosexuals is not massively offensive.." In the TIME interview Hitzlsperger reported, among others, on the stage of life in which his homosexuality itself was for him on the topic and the reactions of Germany coach Joachim Loew and team manager Oliver Bierhoff, after he had informed them about the issue before the public . go Hitzlsperger since 2009, a columnist for TIME ONLINE. In the interview series Everything but football he talks regularly about relevant social issues and tries to look at the phenomenon of football from a different perspective. Most recently, he spoke about doping, excessive salaries and also about homosexuality in football . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hafnia Posted January 8, 2014 Report Share Posted January 8, 2014 Fair play to him, could he have come out whilst playing??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Posted January 8, 2014 Author Report Share Posted January 8, 2014 No chance.Fans can't even take it when a correct decision goes against their team. Imagine what it'd be like for a player to be singled out on a situation where people are looking to gain the advantage for their team by emotionally traumatising him. Although it can be a positive thing, look at Robbie Rogers' career. He was loaned to Stevenage because he couldn't get a game at Leeds and after he announced he was gay, he retired from football. Then there was a clamour from clubs to sign him, he ended up at LA Galaxy in MLS, that's quite a step up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lowensda Posted January 8, 2014 Report Share Posted January 8, 2014 No chance. Fans can't even take it when a correct decision goes against their team. Imagine what it'd be like for a player to be singled out on a situation where people are looking to gain the advantage for their team by emotionally traumatising him. Although it can be a positive thing, look at Robbie Rogers' career. He was loaned to Stevenage because he couldn't get a game at Leeds and after he announced he was gay, he retired from football. Then there was a clamour from clubs to sign him, he ended up at LA Galaxy in MLS, that's quite a step up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lowensda Posted January 8, 2014 Report Share Posted January 8, 2014 Zoo, don't read it buddy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mirallas Posted January 8, 2014 Report Share Posted January 8, 2014 WHo on earth would write an article in the newspaper saying "i'm gay" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Hafnia Posted January 8, 2014 Popular Post Report Share Posted January 8, 2014 One day this will all be as irrelevant as it should be... Gonna need a few more to come out first. MikeO, Peter H, Matt and 3 others 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sibdane Posted January 8, 2014 Report Share Posted January 8, 2014 One day this will all be as irrelevant as it should be... Gonna need a few more to come out first. Completely agree with this. Like Hollywood and actors: there's so many that it's no big deal anymore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shukes Posted January 8, 2014 Report Share Posted January 8, 2014 I know this subject is causing a big concern with ametuer teams though. I am torn through ignorance if i am honest. I have many gay friends and collegues and dont think of it as being any different anymore. Though i have listened to another side of an argument when a friend i play seven a side with ( Spurs fan ) asked me if i would be ok getting changed with women in the room? of course i answered " Hell Ye! ".... but i also conceded the point that people may be uncomfortable getting undressed in front of the opposite sex. He then asked is that so different.... i didn't really know how to answer that, which is where i still think people.. myself included can still be a bit ignorrant. On the subject about Hitz... who cares, he still had a hammer of a shot on him. Shame we never had the chance of celebrating one of them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hafnia Posted January 8, 2014 Report Share Posted January 8, 2014 I told a gay friend, "I can look at a bloke and admire his looks and happily be comfortable with that at a level some would question themselves". His response "I look at the odd woman and find her attractive, quite comfortable that I will still be gay" That's the problem with the attitude towards gay people, like anything there is a spectrum. Gay people prefer their own sex to the opposite from one degree to another. Half the people with unease towards gay people often find it difficult to accept the complexity of sexuality. An American beauty captured that one perfectly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter H Posted January 8, 2014 Report Share Posted January 8, 2014 Completely agree with this. Like Hollywood and actors: there's so many that it's no big deal anymore. It broke my heart when I found out that Neil Patrick Harris was gay, not because he was gay but because I could not stop thinking about it while watching Barney Stinson in how I met your mother. The word over compensation cropped up in my head and now I cant help thinking that Barney is gay and Robin is his fag hag. Fair play to Thomas though, it is however alrady a non issue for me. Hope that the rest of the world feels the same. Its 2014 now, some people are gay, deal with it world! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c1982 Posted January 8, 2014 Report Share Posted January 8, 2014 Good for him... sad that it's headline news but it was always going to be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeO Posted January 8, 2014 Report Share Posted January 8, 2014 I told a gay friend, "I can look at a bloke and admire his looks and happily be comfortable with that at a level some would question themselves". His response "I look at the odd woman and find her attractive, quite comfortable that I will still be gay" That's the problem with the attitude towards gay people, like anything there is a spectrum. Gay people prefer their own sex to the opposite from one degree to another. Half the people with unease towards gay people often find it difficult to accept the complexity of sexuality. An American beauty captured that one perfectly. I'd go further than that and say that half (probably more than half) of people uneasy with gay people find it difficult to accept the complexity of their own sexuality. I had a gay mate (through work) years ago who I went on holiday with on two occasions.....was a total non-issue for me because he was just a mate; I was comfortable with who I was and so was he, but in several colleagues eyes I was gay by association. Madness. It's like saying if you're mates with a Red you're suddenly going to become a Liverpool fan. Like others have said, hopefully one day this won't even be back page news, let alone front. Good on yer for bringing that day a little closer Hitz! Sibdane 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cornish Steve Posted January 8, 2014 Report Share Posted January 8, 2014 ... in several colleagues eyes I was gay by association. Admittedly, it's taken me time, but these days I don't give a toss what others think about the people with whom I associate. We enjoy spending time with our children's former music teacher, who is gay. Once, when visiting London, I sat for quite a while in a doorway just chatting with someone homeless. At a social event, I always make a point of sitting with the person no-one else will sit with. If others want to think, by association, that I'm gay or an outcast or an idiot, that's fine by me. (Of course, in the latter case, they could be right. ) Right now, I am particularly proud of my younger daughter. She attends a performing arts high school that's a 90-minute school-bus ride away. At that school, several teens are obviously and openly gay, and, on the bus last year, they were being picked on. So, my daughter has made a point to befriend them. Several times, in the last few months, my daughter has hosted an evening at our house with just these gay young men. I admit that it takes an effort for me to join in their conversations, but it always takes effort to get to know those who are different in some way. Thank God for the initiative of my daughter in making her friends feel at home in our house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest blueboy122 Posted January 8, 2014 Report Share Posted January 8, 2014 Fair play to him. Couldn't careless regarding a players sexuality just as I couldn't careless about what colour underwear they have on Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verreauxi Posted January 8, 2014 Report Share Posted January 8, 2014 One day this will all be as irrelevant as it should be... Gonna need a few more to come out first. So true...being gay and then having the guts to speak about it somehow stirs up quite the psuedo-controversy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rubecula Posted January 9, 2014 Report Share Posted January 9, 2014 I have Gay friends and Gay relatives, frankly I don't care and I don't really think I need to know. It is their lives not mine and I do not go around telling folks about my private lives. It is IMO sad that being Gay is made out to be newsworthy. I don't care. What I care about is, if a person plays for Everton they are good enough to pull on the shirt. Not what they do in the bedroom. I once met a former player coming out of a knocking shop (brothel) I was amazed but I didn't care what he had been up to. Scoring goals for Everton is still how I remember him mostly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brett Angel Posted January 9, 2014 Report Share Posted January 9, 2014 i remember seeing hitzlberger cream his shorts when he seen sterlings run for the first time..... sterling should have a 'chase me, chase me' caption on him everytime he's on the move. he beats his missus up also..... it will only be time he has his own article soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nikica Posted January 9, 2014 Report Share Posted January 9, 2014 I told a gay friend, "I can look at a bloke and admire his looks and happily be comfortable with that at a level some would question themselves". His response "I look at the odd woman and find her attractive, quite comfortable that I will still be gay" That's the problem with the attitude towards gay people, like anything there is a spectrum. Gay people prefer their own sex to the opposite from one degree to another. Half the people with unease towards gay people often find it difficult to accept the complexity of sexuality. An American beauty captured that one perfectly. Funny that you say this. I quite often look at men and admire their appearance but I don't think I would want to do anything sexual with them. I questioned myself for a while, but now I have come to the conclusion that I'm straight and just admire the male form from an aesthetic perspective. There are lots of footballers I think are good looking guys, for instance, but I don't think about them sexually. I am very attracted to women so I know I'm not gay, but I did wonder for a while if I might be bisexual. As I say though I've come to terms with it all and realise now that I just find the male form interesting to look at. On the subject of Hitzlsperger, it really doesn't matter. Nobody should be marginalised because of their sexuality (or race, nationality etc for that matter). If he is gay then it shouldn't be a problem, and isn't for most of us. It's just a shame that he wasn't confident enough to say this whilst he was still playing, and highlights that there is still some homophobia present within football. People have killed themselves over things like this and it just seems so tragic and unnecessary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Posted January 10, 2014 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2014 http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/soccer/english-soccer/hitzlsperger-where-i-come-from-homosexuality-is-un-normal-1.1649380 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted January 15, 2014 Report Share Posted January 15, 2014 http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/25735717 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.