German Pro Footballer Thomas Hitzlsperger comes out

From BBC Sports:

Former Aston Villa midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger has revealed he is gay.

The 31-year-old, who won 52 caps for Germany and also played for West Ham and Everton, made the announcement in newspaper Die Zeit.

He is the most prominent footballer to publicly reveal his homosexuality and said it was "a good time" to do so. "I'm coming out about my homosexuality because I want to move the discussion about homosexuality among professional sportspeople forwards," he added.

The midfielder said he has only realised "in the past few years" that he would "prefer to live together with another man", adding: "I've never been ashamed of the way I am."

Hitzlsperger had this to say to the Guardian:

"In England, Italy and Germany being a homosexual is no big thing, at least not in the dressing room... I was never ashamed of being who I am but it was not always easy to sit on a table with 20 young men and listen to jokes about gays. You let them get on with it as long as the jokes are somewhat funny and not too insulting.

"Being gay is topic that is 'ignored' in football and not 'a serious topic in the changing room'. Fighting spirit, passion and winning mentality are intrinsically linked, that doesn't fit the cliché: 'Gays are soft'."

Support throughout the sports world has been strong:

Congratulations to Thomas Hitzlsperger on bravely being the first player to have played in the PL to 'come out' http://t.co/9boXWNpnFZ
— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) January 8, 2014

Brave and right decision. Respect, Thomas Hitzlsperger. His outing is a important sign in our time. pic.twitter.com/c69Oml2Ocp
— Lukas-Podolski.com (@Podolski10) January 8, 2014

Thomas Hitzlsperger has shown a lot of courage today. Sad times when people have to wait till they retire from their chosen profession...
— Joseph Barton (@Joey7Barton) January 8, 2014

Congratulations to Thomas Hitzelsperger - welcome to the club!
— John Amaechi OBE (@JohnAmaechi) January 8, 2014