Czech soccer player Jakub Jankto, who belongs to Getafe, announced this Monday that he is gay. “I’m gay and I don’t want to hide anymore,” he said in a video he posted on his social networks. The 27-year-old winger, who is on loan at Sparta Prague, is the first player in the Spanish league to openly admit his homosexuality, a subject that has always been taboo in the world of men’s professional football.
Jantko bravely opened up to express his condition and put an end to his fears. “Like everyone else, I have strengths, I have weaknesses, I have a family, I have friends, I have a job where I’ve done my best for years, with seriousness, professionalism and passion. Like everyone else, I want to live my life in freedom. Without fear, without prejudice, without violence, but with love,” said the footballer, who created a Twitter account just to publish the video in which he revealed his homosexuality.
Jankto’s announcement has generated a significant outpouring of support from the world of football. The club he currently plays for, Sparta Prague, revealed that the player had previously discussed his sexual orientation with the board, the coach and his team-mates and that everything else is part of his private life. “No more comments. No more questions. You have our support. Live your life Jakub,” concluded the Czech club.
For its part, Getafe, which still holds the rights to the Czech, also joined in the messages of support: “Our greatest respect and unconditional support for our footballer Jakub Jankto.” From the Getafense club, they define Jankto as “a very correct and charming boy, but he didn’t fit sportily”. He only played 15 games before going on loan this summer but he showed his concerns went far beyond the sport. “He is an artist, he likes to paint graffiti and has visited many museums. He’s a very cultural boy, he spoke several languages. She liked to get to know the cities where she played, but not only the most modern clothing stores, also because they are very
He joined Getafe in August 2021 for €6m after building his entire career in Italian football (Sampdoria, Udinese and Ascoli). Capped more than 40 times for the Czech Republic and with a market cap of €15m (according to specialist site Transfermarkt), he returned to his country last summer where he was a regular at Sparta Prague until his injury kept him off since October remote.
Jantko’s move forward was supported by the whole of European football. The signs of respect and affection were numerous. Both LaLiga’s and English Premier League’s official Twitter profiles responded to his announcement with the message “Football belongs to everyone”, while UEFA defined him as “a true inspiration who has the support of all European football”. Clubs like Barcelona, Atlético de Madrid, Juventus, Bayern Munich and Ajax have also expressed their affection for him. As they say in Getafe: “The focus here is on athletic performance, not on people’s sexual condition or the color of their skin.” {
Other cases in the world of football
You’ll have to go back as far as 1990 to find the first such statement from an active footballer, Justin Fashanu, and another would not come until October 2021, when Adelaide United’s Australian midfielder Joshua Cavallo spoke up. In May last year, 18-year-old Jake Daniels became the first active European professional footballer to come out as gay since Fashuano. “I’ve known I’m gay my whole life, but now I feel ready to say it and be myself. I don’t want to lie anymore, this is suffering,” Daniels said at the time.
Previously, Fashanu, who played for teams including Manchester City and Nottingham Forest, endured rejection from his former teammates when he came out as gay 23 years ago, aged 29, in an interview with The Sun tabloid. His career took a nosedive and he stopped rising from lower teams. His brother called him an outcast. He retired. He was accused of sexual abuse. And he committed suicide at the age of 37. Between one announcement and the other, there was that of Olivier Rouyer in 2008. The France forward came out of the closet years after retiring as a player and ending his coaching career.
In 2021, Australian Cavallo came out as gay at the age of 21. The winger received a surge of support from social media and was singled out as a source of inspiration by other youngsters. However, his reality is still exceptional in the world of football. The player didn’t take part in the recent World Cup in Qatar for fear of gay rejection in the Arab country.
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