World’s only openly gay active pro footballer is concerned for LGBTQ community ahead of Qatar 2022, writes Paul Smith
It seems a bit premature in 2018 to be asking a major sport in the Middle East to allow a lesbian or gay player to stay on.
The decision to bar football’s first openly gay active player was taken by Egypt’s Football Association (FA), who declared that the footballer was ‘excommunicated’ from the team.
The man is Mohamed Salah, the captain of the Egyptian Premier League’s Liverpool FC side and a fierce campaigner for the LGBTQ community. After the FA decision Salah left without a word.
“The Egyptian FA have taken one of the most significant decisions in many months and have shown just how far they have fallen short of human rights,” said Salah.
“I am shocked and saddened by what is happening in Egypt, it has all the makings of a very bad day. This was not supposed to be the case in the Middle East.”
In a tweet announcing his intentions to leave Egypt, Salah said this was to ‘end homophobic bigotry.’
The decision comes after Salah’s father, Hassan Salah, wrote to the FA in 2011 to request LGBT acceptance in the Egyptian league, in an attempt to highlight the football’s need for diversity.
“A lesbian or a gay person who, just like you or me, loves football and wants to play the sport professionally, why shouldn’t they be allowed to join the team, be selected and play?” read the letter, which remains on the FA’s website.
Salah’s story began for him over 20 years ago. He began playing football at the age of six at his local club, Al-Hilal, as a winger, but