Australian A-League star first male player to reveal he's gay
He didn't want to hide his sexuality any longer
- by
Delicia Smith
An Australian soccer player has become the first former A-League player to come out as gay.
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Former Newcastle Jets player Andy Brennan made the courageous revelation, and revealed he had wrestled for a long time whether to be open with his sexuality, and couldn’t carry the mental burden any longer.
The 26-year-old who now plays for Green Gully SC says he first came out to a friend in November.
“Six months ago I thought about it a lot, tried to hide it and push it aside because of the way I thought it would be perceived by many,’’ Brennan told the Herald-Sun.
“You’ve got to realise that’s who you are and you’ve just got to be who you are – whether you’re gay or whatever, whoever you are.
“There will be people out there thinking 'why has he got to voice his own personal whatever to the world?’. The reason I wanted to do this in the first place was to make me feel comfortable.
“It’s been a big lift off my shoulders and I can just focus on playing football.”
"It’s taken me years to get comfortable saying this - I’m gay," he posted to his Instagram.
"I was scared it would affect my friendships, my teammates, and my family. But the support of the people around me has been so great and helped me get to the final step; being completely open.
"Being open is the best way for me to feel most comfortable and be myself. So… carry on! 🌈"
While he is comfortable with his decision to go public, he does not want to pressure others to do the same if they aren’t ready.
“This isn’t a call for those people to come out and tell everyone who they are. They shouldn’t have to, shouldn’t need to,’’ Andy said.