Saudi-owned Newcastle United Face Backlash for Tweet Supporting Gay Footballer Jake Daniels Because Of Appalling State of LGBT-rights in the Gulf State Where Homosexuality Is Punishable by Death

MAIL ONLINE: Newcastle United's Twitter account shared message of support for Jake Daniels / Blackpool FC player Daniels, 17, was hailed for coming out as gay yesterday / However, fans pointed out Newcastle are owned by a Saudi-led consortium

Newcastle United have been accused of hypocrisy for tweeting their support for gay footballer Jake Daniels because of the LGBT rights record of their Saudi owners.

Blackpool FC player Daniels, 17, yesterday became only the second British football player in history to come out while still playing.

He was hailed by figures across the sport, as well as others including Prince William and Boris Johnson.

Reacting, Newcastle United wrote on Twitter: ‘Football is for everyone. Newcastle United and the whole football community is with you, Jake!'

However, the club's social media accounts were quickly inundated with comments from angry fans who pointed out that its owners are a Saudi-led consortium with the Gulf state criticised for its LGBT and human rights records.

The consortium bought Newcastle in October in a move that led to accusations of 'sportwashing'. » | Danyal Hussain for MailOnline | Tuesday, May 17, 2022

Related.

Fans Point Out the Obvious as Saudi-owned Newcastle United Back Gay Footballer Josh Cavallo

Newcastle United sent a message of support to gay footballer Josh Cavallo. Fans pointed out the "hypocrisy" given the club is now majority owned by a Saudi Arabia-led group.(Getty/Matt King)
PINK NEWS: Fans have criticised Newcastle United for not seeing the “hypocrisy” in its support for Josh Cavallo after the club’s takeover by Saudi Arabia.

Earlier this month, Newcastle United Football Club (NUFC) announced it had been taken over by a Saudi Arabia-backed fund, ending billionaire Mike Ashley’s ownership of the club. As a result, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) – chaired by crown prince Mohammed bin Salman – now owns 80 per cent of the club, with the rest divided between RB Sports & Media and PCP Capital Partners.
Saudi Arabia has one of the worst LGBT+ rights records in the world. There has been strong backlash from fans, LGBT+ fan groups and human rights groups over the takeover. » | Maggie Baska | Thursday, October 28, 2021

Fury as German Ex-football Boss Says: 'There's No Place in Football for Gays'
MAIL ONLINE: A former soccer boss today sparked fury by declaring: ‘There is no place in football for gays.’

Rudi Assauer, who formerly headed up Schalke 04 in Germany's Bundesliga, went on to say: ‘Perhaps they are OK in other sports but not in football.

‘If a player came to me and said he was gay I would say to him: “You have shown courage.” But then I would tell him to find something else to do.

‘That's because those who out themselves always end up busted by it, ridiculed by their fellow players and by people in the stands. We should spare them these witch-hunts.’

His outburst is set to enrage world footballing authorities who are making concerted efforts to rid the game of homophobia.

Asked whether he had ever met a gay footballer during his many years as both player and manager, 65-year-old Assauer replied: ‘No, never.

‘When I was in Bremen, I heard that our masseur was gay. So I went up to him and said: 'Look, son, do me a favour - look for another job.’

Assauer's comments come in a week when homosexuality has been in Germany's spotlight for other reasons.

Guido Westerwelle, the country's openly gay foreign minister, was criticised for taking his lover on an official government trip to South America. >>> Allan Hall | Friday, March 12, 2010

Pro Footballer Says He’s Bisexual and Living with Boyfriend in Moving Open Letter

PINK NEWS: An anonymous footballer has written about his bisexuality in the wake of Australian pro player Josh Cavallo proudly coming out as gay.

Cavallo, 21, was praised for his courage and bravery after sharing his truth last month, becoming the only current openly gay male player playing professional top-flight football.

His actions have inspired another footballer to open up about his sexuality, according to Mundo Deportivo, a Spanish national sports newspaper that published a letter from an anonymous pro.

Bisexual footballer: ‘At least for now, I do not want to say who I am’

The athlete, a member of the Royal Spanish Football Federation, has not chosen to come out publicly as the “message itself is more important than the name”.

In the letter, the footballer also reveals that he is living with his boyfriend of more than three years. » | Josh Milton | Monday, November 1, 2021

Hidden Homophobia: Is Germany Really as Liberal as It Seems?

SPIEGEL ONLINE INTERNATIONAL: Germany last week celebrated the coming out of former professional football player Thomas Hitzlsperger. But discrimination remains a fact of life for gays and lesbians in the country. How truly liberal is German society?

A gay couple that was seeking to open a restaurant near the Bavarian town of Freying received an anonymous letter early last year. "Stay away. We don't need people like you here," it read. Additional threats followed, including a faked obituary and an open, though anonymous, letter claiming that one of the two was HIV-positive and that there was a danger that diners could be infected. The restaurant was never opened.

Can a story like be really be true? In Germany of all places, a country that was last week enraptured by the coming out of former professional footballer Thomas Hitzlsperger and where it seemed like the entire country supported him?

Hitzlsperger made his announcement in the influential weekly Die Zeit, unleashing a tidal wave of media backing. "Respect" blared the left-wing Berlin daily Die Tageszeitung. Its conservative counterpart Bild chose the exact same headline, marking one of the very few times when the two publications have concurred. Everyone in the country seemed to be in agreement when it came to Hitzlsperger's courageous step.

Yet the jubilation was so great that it at times seemed a bit too much for the occasion. A former football player came out. Is that really such a monumental event? Of course its progress when it is made clear that homosexuality exists in the world of football as well. No player the caliber of Hitzlsperger had thus far gone public with his homosexuality.

But the rejoicing sounded suspiciously self-serving and smug: "We are so amazingly liberal that we can even get excited about a gay professional football player," the message seemed to be. "Germany is so much better than Russia, where homosexuals are openly discriminated against, and superior to France, where hundreds of thousands take to the streets to protest gay marriage."

One could almost feel the relief at the fact that the positive reaction to Hitzlsperger's announcement was large enough to cover up the normal hostilities, clichés, stereotypes and discrimination against gays that exist in Germany. But they were there. Even as Bild pronounced its "respect" for Hitzlsperger, the paper's columnist Franz Josef Wagner wrote in an open letter to the former German national team player: "Nobody thought that you are gay. You were athletic, a power-player." The prejudice was clear, even as it was hidden behind the admiration. » | Anna Kistner, Dirk Kurbjuweit, Ann-Katrin Müller and Simone Salden | Monday, January 13, 2014

Verwandt »

Josh Cavallo on Being the First Openly Gay Pro Footballer — Still Playing | One Plus One | ABC News

Aug 11, 2022 When Josh Cavallo posted a video on social media called 'Josh's Truth' he wasn't sure what the reaction would be. The Adelaide United player was to become the first openly gay professional footballer currently playing worldwide. In his first longform TV interview the 22-year-old speaks with Courtney Act about finding acceptance and dealing with abuse.

'IT WON'T CHANGE' | Ex-Brazil Star Richarlyson Comes Out as Bisexual but Laments Homophobia in Football and His Homeland

THE SUN: FORMER Brazil international footballer Richarlyson has come out as bisexual.

Former footballer Richarlyson revealed he is bisexual on a podcast in Brazil
But he hit out at the ongoing homophobia in the sport and in his homeland.

The two-cap Selecao star had been reluctant to reveal his sexuality due to the possible fallout it could have.

Richarlyson opened up on dating both men and women in his appearance on the Nos Armarios dos Vestiarios podcast.

The 39-year-old said: "All my life I've been asked if I'm gay.

"I've had a relationship with a man and I've had a relationship with a woman as well.

"But then I speak here today and soon the news will be printed, 'Richarlyson is bisexual'.

"And the meme is ready. They will say, 'Wow, but swear? I had no idea.'

"Man, I'm normal, I have wants and desires. » | Joshua Jones | Friday, June 24, 2022

Kinnock's Son, Gay Rumours and a Flirty Blonde Prime Minister: Meet the Very Unusual Danish Leader Who Dragged David Cameron and Barack Obama into That Embarrassing 'Selfie' Row

Helle Thorning-Schmidt

MAIL ONLINE: Helle Thorning-Schmidt, 46, is an unconventional head of state / The Danish PM has been nicknamed 'Gucci Helle' for her wardrobe / Husband Stephen, Neil Kinnock's son, had to fight off 'gay' rumours

Her sexy wardrobe (and racy reputation) have earned her the nickname ‘Gucci Helle’ in her native Denmark.

It’s the kind of profile you would normally associate with, say, a footballer’s wife, or a model, not a prime minister.

But then Danish leader Helle Thorning-Schmidt, 46, who dragged Barack Obama and David Cameron into that embarrassing ‘selfie’, is not a typical head of state, not by British standards anyway.

How many premiers, for example, when heckled at a public meeting about their wardrobe would have replied bluntly: ‘We can’t all look like s***.’ » | Paul Bracchi | Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Jake Daniels: Blackpool Player Says Coming Out Will Allow Him to Be 'Free' and 'Confident'

Screenshot from the accompanying video | I am ready to be myself - Daniels
BBC: Blackpool's Jake Daniels said his decision to come out as the UK's only openly gay active male professional footballer would allow him to be "free and confident".

The Championship club forward is the first professional in the UK men's game for more than 30 years to come out while still playing.

Speaking to Sky Sports, the 17-year-old said: "Now is the right time to do it.

"I feel like I am ready to tell people my story."

He added: "Since I've come out to my family, my club and my team-mates, that period of overthinking everything - and the stress it created - has gone. It was impacting my mental health. Now I am just confident and happy to be myself finally. With video » | BBC | Monday, May 16, 2022

Jake Daniels: Why Blackpool forward's decision is a watershed moment for British football »