Football v Homophobia's Jon Holmes: "We need to recognise the rolling back of people's rights this Pride Month"

This year’s Pride Month is an opportunity to not only celebrate inclusivity, but to tackle anti-discrimination in football.

A UK-based freelance journalist and media consultant, Jon Holmes is the comms lead for Football v Homophobia, an international initiative that exists to challenge discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity and expression at all levels of football.

Holmes, who also writes for Outsports – a global leader for LGBTQIA+ inclusion in sports – sat down with FIFPRO to discuss the importance of visibility, how football can better navigate Pride Month, and why it’s a time for both celebration and acknowledging the struggles of others.

FIFPRO: Why is celebrating Pride Month in football significant?

Jon Holmes: LGBTQ football supporters are passionate about marking Pride Month at their clubs. It’s an important time of year for them to celebrate the progress we've all made but also recognise the work that there is still left to do. Pride Month is, of course, a celebratory occasion, but in this current climate we’re sadly seeing LGBTQ rights being rolled back in so many different parts of the world.

It's a tough time out there for our trans and non-binary siblings, who are finding themselves in difficult political situations – and these things do correspond into football in different ways.

Why is that visibility in football important?

It sends a powerful message. The feeling of belonging, the feeling of being authentic to yourself, can empower you and help produce your best performance. We're fortunate in the women's game where we have considerable LGBTQ representation – from the players on the pitch all the way up to administration and executive level. In men's football, though, it's much more limited because of the uniformity and masculinity element. The way the men’s game is developed means we haven't got out-visible role models in the same numbers compared to the women's game.

Having said that, we’re now seeing the men's game understand a lot more the connection between authenticity and mental wellbeing when you are LGBTQ. FIFPRO recently did an interview with Josh Cavallo, in which he talked about the significance of his story. We're in an age now where the way content is picked up and the whole ecosystem of that means Josh mentioning the death-threat type messages he receives on social media then gets amplified and turned into this big talking point. That can be difficult when there is a history of sensationalism in the media around this topic.

Josh is a young man who’s walking a path very few have walked before him. There were so many different parts of that interview that were positive. The understanding that Joe Hart had as an interviewer; we don't get to see many examples of players engaging with this topic because it's still seems taboo or potentially controversial. So, to get that dialogue going between Joe and Josh, and for them to explore that we're in a much better place now for players if they were feeling able to share that part of who they are with their team-mates, was positive to see.

What do you see as the main gaps in LGBTQIA+ inclusion in the current game and how do you feel they should be tackled?

There can be a lack of understanding or a reluctance to engage in the topic. We do see a lot of fear around getting things wrong and that really does hold people back. We’re also seeing people not wanting to engage with DE&I, such as in USA, and the way that spreads out throughout business, front office in teams, and the tone of message makes it sound like inclusion is now something that's not to be encouraged.

As we’ve seen with Josh Cavallo and Adelaide United, most people in a team environment understand why you might want to come out, why you might feel comfortable to share that with your team-mates, and how that good energy can make you the best version of yourself.

But there are also other complications coming in now, such as the pressure that some people might feel in terms of their faith or their background; if they're in that locker room environment and being asked to take part in some sort of show of Pride support or anti-homophobia initiative, they might feel like they can’t engage with it. And that can often overshadow a lot of the activations themselves.

How can football better navigate that?

If time is dedicated to explaining why we have campaign activations, the importance behind them and really humanise the topic, it can make a real difference. We need to have that communication. We need to make sure people explain to us why they might find it uncomfortable to wear a t-shirt with an anti-discrimination message on it, and then we can put it into that wider context of how we should have a zero tolerance policy to all forms of discrimination – whether that's sexism, racism, discrimination against people with disabilities, all these different things that can have a damaging effect in football.

And it can be challenging to set aside that time because of the demands placed on players and their schedules today, but football is such a powerful force for good that clubs needs to set aside that time.