German
football captain Philipp Lahm says gay players should not come out
for PinkNews.co.uk
30 August 2011, 11:02am
Gay footballers should stay in the closet,
German football captain Philipp Lahm has said.
The Bayern Munich captain, 27, wrote in his
autobiography The Subtle Difference that bullied gay players could be driven to
kill themselves.
He wrote: “I would not advise any gay
professional footballer to come out.
“I would fear that he could end up like
Justin Fashanu who after he outed himself was driven into such a corner that he
ended up committing suicide.”
Fashanu, who played for a number of British
teams, was the first footballer to come out. But he suffered bullying and abuse
and killed himself in 1998.
Lahm, who said he had “nothing against
homosexuals”, also addressed rumours about his own sexual orientation.
He said: “First, I am not a homosexual. I am
not married to my wife Claudia for appearances and I do not have a friend in
Cologne with whom I really live.
“This speculation doesn’t matter to me. I
have nothing against homosexuals and I find that there is nothing wrong with
homosexuality.
“But it never ceases to amaze me that these
isolated types, who tell these stories, can have a lot of influence on public
opinion. ‘Philipp Lahm homosexual’ […] do you not have anything more important
to talk about?”
Lahm’s book went on sale yesterday. He has
already had to apologise for criticising other players and managers.