Ex rugby captain Gareth Thomas bids to outlaw homophobic chanting at football matches

Draft bill launched by Conservative MP Damian Collins would amend the 1991 Football Offences Act

Liverpool midfielder Jordan Henderson wears a rainbow captain's armband in support of LGBT players and fans (Getty)

Ex-Wales rugby captain Gareth Thomas is backing a move to make homophobic chanting at football matches illegal.

The athlete – who came out as gay in 2009 - supports a draft bill launched by Conservative MP Damian Collins to amend the 1991 Football Offences Act.

The Football Offences Act made indecent or racist chanting in sports stadiums illegal. It also outlawed chucking objects inside the premises and going onto the pitch without permission.

The proposed amendment will make indecent chanting or gesturing with reference to sexual orientation or gender identity illegal.

Mr Collins, chair of the digital, culture, media and sport committee, said: "The proposed amendment, which I will present to the House of Commons, seeks to extend that legal protection to LGBT+ players and fans."

In a report last year, the committee said fans who exhibit homophobic attitudes at matches should face “immediate, lengthy bans” and sports authorities must adopt a “zero tolerance” approach.

The committee heard instances of fans hurling abuse from the stands, posting it on social media, and even distributing homophobic leaflets at a match.


 The former rugby player who made 100 appearances for Wales kept his sexuality a secret until telling his wife 
 (Getty Images)

It also heard about the impact of homophobic “banter” among teams in locker rooms and the way this affects the mental health of players who are not open about their sexuality.

A 2016 report from Stonewall found nearly three-quarters of football fans - 72 per cent - claimed to have heard homophobic abuse while watching live sports.

Kirsty Clarke, director of sport at the campaign group, said: "Homophobic, biphobic and transphobic chanting are still sadly a feature of some football terraces. We’re keen to see legislation put in place that outlaws discrimination on the basis of all protected characteristics.

"We very much look forward to working closely with MP Damian Collins, the committee and the government to ensure that comprehensive measures are taken so that all LGBT fans feel safe and accepted in sport.

"We’re also working closely with the Premier League and other partners on measures to tackle hate crime within football such as education and training."

Thomas, who is often known by the nickname "Alfie" due to supposedly resembling the alien title character in the TV sitcom Alf, has previously spoken at length about his sexuality and coming close to killing himself after his wife left him three months after he came out.

The former rugby player, who made 100 appearances for Wales, kept his sexuality a secret from everyone until telling his wife.

"My career life was very public, but behind what happened on television and wearing my Wales rugby jersey with pride I was slowly dying,” he told BBC Wales in 2014.

"I'm not sure if it was because I was gay that I felt such depression, it was just that I was lying to everyone."

Speaking to The Independent back in 2010, he said he hoped his decision to come out had broken stereotypes.

He said: "I hope it shows gay people come in all types. There may be an 18-year-old who put his rugby boots away because he was gay and thought he wouldn't be accepted, but now he can go back to the cupboard and dust his boots down."

Addressing the ordeal of keeping his sexuality a secret, he said: "I used to visualise it as a little ball. I know it's crazy, but I'd imagine this little ball in my stomach and I'd have an encounter with a man and the ball would just be there.

“Then from that day to the next encounter, be it one month, two months, three months, all I could see was this gold liquid dripping out of the ball. That was the real me seeping out ... I didn't want it to be there. I'd walk along cliffs and think it would be much easier if I just fell off."

The bid for homophobic chanting to be made illegal at football matches comes after Fifa fined the Mexican Football Federation $10,000 (£7,500) for "discriminatory and insulting" anti-gay chant "puto" during Mexico's opening match against Germany.

The Mexican Football Federation has repeatedly been fined by Fifa over fans shouting the homophobic slur in recent years.

Fans use the chant - which literally translates as male prostitute – as a device to distract players trying to score goals. Those who support the chant say it is more similar to coward or wimp.

On Saturday, the Mexican team tweeted to thank its fans for not shouting the slur during the South Korea match - saying Mexico "won on and off the pitch".