Former Aston Villa, West Ham and Germany worldwide midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger introduced he was gay, on this day in 2014.
The then-31-year-old ended his taking part in profession in September 2013 as he suffered from persistent accidents and advised Germany’s Die Zeit newspaper that now was “a good time” for him to disclose his true sexuality.
Hitzlsperger was the primary Premier League footballer to come back out as gay, after former Leeds and United States winger Robbie Rogers revealed he was gay alongside his retirement in February 2013 on the age of 25.
His announcement got here as he wished to additional promote the dialogue of homosexuality amongst skilled sportspeople.
In an interview with Die Zeit, Hitzlsperger mentioned: “I’m coming out about my homosexuality because I want to move the discussion about homosexuality among professional sportspeople forwards.
“Just picture 20 men sat around a table together drinking – you’ve just got to let the majority be, just as long as the jokes are halfway funny and the talk about homosexuality doesn’t get too insulting.”
Hitzlsperger represented Germany 52 occasions between 2004 and 2010 and spent his membership taking part in days with Aston Villa, Stuttgart, Lazio, West Ham and Wolfsburg earlier than calling it a day at Everton.
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