Jake Daniels comes out as gay: reactions to a landmark moment for British football

Blackpool forward, 17, is the UK’s only openly gay male professional footballer

Jake Daniels made his first-team debut for Blackpool against Peterborough on 7 May 
Jake Daniels made his first-team debut for Blackpool against Peterborough on 7 May 
(Image credit: News Images/Alamy Stock Photo)

Blackpool’s Jake Daniels has become the UK’s first male professional footballer to come out as gay since Justin Fashanu in 1990. The 17-year-old has been widely praised for telling his story and he believes that now is “the right time to do it”.

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Mike Starling is the former digital features editor at The Week. He started his career in 2001 in Gloucestershire as a sports reporter and sub-editor and has held various roles as a writer and editor at news, travel and B2B publications. He has spoken at a number of sports business conferences and also worked as a consultant creating sports travel content for tourism boards. International experience includes spells living and working in Dubai, UAE; Brisbane, Australia; and Beirut, Lebanon.