So now for the real test.
Jakub Jankto has done the brave bit, the part that no doubt seemed impossibly hard at times in his career.
He has told the world he is gay and not just any old world — the football one. You know, that progressive, open-minded sport that brought you a men’s World Cup in Qatar, a Saudi Arabian sponsor of the women’s World Cup, a ban on Germany turning the Allianz Arena rainbow and petty threats when a bunch of well-meaning but weak international teams tried to make history’s lamest political stand by wearing an armband that stood for nothing.
To come out amid that backdrop must have taken either real guts, an absolute need to do it for his own happiness or, probably, both.
Because despite the uplifting stories of Australian Josh Cavallo, Blackpool’s Jake Daniels and the many high-profile female players who are LGBTQ+, Jankto is a bigger test for a game that so often recently has you wondering if it is making progress or not when it comes to supporting minority groups.
— Jakub Jankto (@jakubjanktojr) February 13, 2023
Jankto, aged 27, plays for Sparta Prague in the Czech Republic, on loan from Getafe in Spain’s top division, meaning there will be thousands watching him each week. And that is suddenly a much bigger…
