American footballer comes out, retires from pro soccer

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USA midfielder Robbie Rogers (9) elevates to get a past off against Costa Rica defender Junior Diaz (15) during the second half a FIFA World Cup Qualifier match at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C., Wednesday, October 14, 2009. The USA and Costa Rica tied, 2-2. (Chuck Myers/MCT)

A few weeks ago, Robbie Rogers tweeted a link to a new blogpost he had written and commented that he needed to “get some shit” off his chest. It was his letter to the world, declaring that he was gay. People come out all the time, but this was a little different – this was a professional soccer player coming out to the world in the middle of his career at the tender age of twenty-five. This was someone who had played for the United States national team along with spending a few years in the MLS (Major League Soccer) as well as playing in England for some well-known teams like Leeds United. In a sport that still has so much hatred and racism that manages to poke its head through the fabric of our beautiful game, this was a breath of fresh air.

However, at the same time, he announced that he would be retiring from the same sport that had been his safe place while he kept his secret. I personally found that his walking away from the game was the only dark cloud over his announcement. He quite literally had the world at his feet in the form of a soccer ball. So why walk away?

It was not for lack of support. The American soccer community, including the commissioner of the MLS, came out in droves to lend their support for Rogers, just like they had when Megan Rapinoe very publically came out before the women’s team left for the London Olympics last summer. Support for Rogers came in the form of multitudes of tweets from not only various American players, but the same teammates that Rogers once lined up with on the field. Yet Rogers’ brave announcement that took so much courage barely made a blip on the radar of the rest of the country.

Robbie Rogers does not owe me or any of us anything. He does not have to continue playing soccer to make any sort of political statement. Robbie Rogers did not shed light on the biggest secret of his life to become any sort of poster boy or to gain notoriety; he did it to free himself and live an honest life. Both Rogers and Rapinoe symbolize the beauty in our unique American soccer community, a community that grows because of the passion and love inside it. They were equally supported by their teammates, their fans and beyond in a way that I believe would not have been seen in other parts of the world.

Robbie Rogers does not owe me anything. But I do feel like I owe him for his bravery. I owe it to him to ensure that his story is told and that one day, a player will come out in the near future and feel that he can still play at the highest level of his sport. We owe it to Robbie to cultivate an American soccer community that is always open and where players are judged not by who they love off the pitch but for the love of the game instead.