According to a survey by the Coletivo de Torcidas LGBTQ+ Canarinhos, last year 74 episodes of prejudice were recorded in stadiums, media and social networks. In 2021, there were 42 reported cases of homophobia in football. Prejudice actions are usually carried out in*:
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- swearing on the field,
- chants in stadiums,
- offensive comments.
Onã Rudá, one of the representatives of the collective and also founder of the LGBTricolor fans, from Esporte Clube Bahia, reinforces that there are many actions to be taken by clubs, federations and the Sports Court to curb homophobia and educate fans towards an environment free of discrimination.
In an interview with Curto News, he cites the CBF General Competition Regulations (RGC) of 2023, published in February, which indicates the possibility of sporting punishment for a club in case of discrimination.
“For the LGBT community in football, without a doubt the change and alteration of the RGC and the CBF’s entry into this debate made all the difference”, he assesses.
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The activist considers, however, that it is necessary to go beyond punishments, as transformation involves educating society.
“It doesn’t just involve punishing acts, but also education, building awareness, understanding awareness. There is a need for much more visibility actions, because there is a lot that can be done to ensure there is more inclusion in football”, he argues.
For Rudá, it is necessary to build a protocol that standardizes and directly guides how all referees in Brazil should act in each situation of discrimination. Today there are referees who stop matches because of homophobic chants, but others do not even record them on the score sheet, which ends up harming the actions in the Superior Court of Sports Justice.
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Clubs and awareness campaigns against LGBTphobia
“On May 17th, you see several clubs taking a stand on social media for the LGBT cause, it became a kind of rule. But not everyone gets this speech off paper”, comments the journalist João Abel, author of the book “FAGOT! Structural homophobia in football".
Representation of LGBTQIA+ people in football
Ao Curto, he emphasized that sanctions on clubs for discriminatory acts by fans are important, but it is necessary for teams to really immerse themselves in awareness campaigns.
“Campaigns to explain to fans why that attitude is considered discrimination, and not part of football culture as some people argue. Within football, LGBTQIA+ people do not feel represented. Fans feel that they have the legitimacy to be homophobic towards rival teams, precisely because LGBTQIA+ people are on the margins in the football environment, so, as they are not there, there would be no problem in using this pejorative charge”, explains the writer.
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João Abel compares the situation with the racial struggle within football, which has grown in recent years due to the protagonism of black players, who also took a stand and gave visibility to this flag. “As LGBTQIA+ people do not see themselves included in football, the flag carried by them is still marginalized”, he assesses.
According to the RGC, penalties for clubs with discriminatory fans can range from a warning and a fine of R$500, to prohibition of registration or transfer of athletes and even loss of points*.
*(With information from Agência Brasil)
Originally published on May 17, 2023
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