From Obscurity To Invisibility

When Thomas Hitslzperger, retired professional footballer,
recently came out as gay I privately applauded him for his choice,
whilst regretting that he had not done it whilst still a player.
At the same time I wonder at how within my lifetime football
had changed as a game. Football players were modestly paid
and it was a game you had to see live or play-it had no sponsors.
Though there were live commentaries on games on BBC radio.
And homosexuality was invisible. Now being gay is a life-style,
a choice where often projecting a self image becomes a bigger deal
than actually being gay, and we are still only 5% of  the population.
Now footballers are very highly paid and much is written about them.
The Red Top Press sell newspapers by the ton on the backs
of how they manipulate footballers reputations. Between the game's
sponsorship and how they they are written about football players
are very much spoken for rather than able to speak for themselves.
It is as if that were the true price of fame, much more than the pressure
to win games which comes with their salaries. The corporate sponsors
of  'the beautiful game' who rely on the press have yet to find the beauty
in the players in themselves, rather than in their performance, which permits
them to be themselves in public, including having their partner of choice.