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Jake Daniels makes it count for gay sportspeople

KEVIN McCALLUM

In 2020, Jack Daniel’s launched its first global ad campaign in more than 100 markets. “Make it Count” was, according to Forbes, the Tennessee whiskey’s very first tagline. It wanted to inspire people to carry out small actions, to do the things they have always wanted to do.

The company shot “firsttimer” ads, featuring people doing just that. Finding the moment and the strength to do the thing that they should and want to do. A young caddie takes the driver of his pro golfer and smashes the ball down the fairway.

That the ads were shot in Kyiv during lockdown seems more poignant now.

“Make It Count is a simple articulation of living boldly and making the most of every moment,” said Matt Blevins, Jack Daniel’s global brand director.

At the beginning of this week, Jake Daniels decided to make it count. The 17-year-old Blackpool footballer, who made his professional debut just a few weeks ago, came out as gay. It was a moment that has been heralded by many, a huge step in a sport, a macho-dominated culture that has not been accepting of those who are gay or even just a little different.

“For a long time I’ve thought I would have to hide my truth because I wanted to be, and now I am, a professional footballer,” said Daniels.

“I asked myself if I should wait until I’ve retired to come out. No other player in the professional game here is out.

“However, I knew that would lead to a long time of lying and not being able to be myself or lead the life that I want to. Since I’ve come out to my family, my club and my teammates, that period of overthinking everything and the stress it created has gone.”

It was not an easy journey nor an easy decision. Daniels has known he was gay since he was six. He, his family, the club and Sky Sports all played a part in the planning of the announcement, and, when Daniels felt it was the right time, he spoke loud and proud.

The reaction has been immense, with Gary Neville, the former Manchester United defender turned TV pundit admitting football has not dealt with the issue of sexuality at all well. “What he has just done

takes incredible courage,” Neville said on Sky. “In a dressing room, that would seem like the unthinkable to announce you are gay.

“I can’t imagine how difficult that has been. All I would say is it’s a day of great importance for Jake and his family, but also for English football. It is a big, big moment for football.”

Would or could this happen in SA or, indeed, Africa? In 2006, former president Jacob Zuma used his Heritage Day speech to say that same-sex marriages are “a disgrace to the nation and to God”, words that pretty much sum up the man himself.

“When I was growing up an ungqingili [a gay] would not have stood in front of me. I would knock him out.” Zuma then tried to back-track, but ended up tying himself in knots of obfuscation and doublespeak, which, again, were the mark of his presidency and remain the language of government.

Take the R22m flag nonsense. Mondli Gungubele, minister in the presidency, said this week that the cabinet has indeed okayed sport, arts & culture minister Nathi Mthethwa’s decision to raise the flag, but that the “financial issues were separate”.

Of course they are. It’s as separate as the banning of homosexuality in Qatar and allowing them to host a World Cup, as separate as Fifa saying Qatar will not arrest same-sex couples, but does not want public displays of affection.

There is hope that Daniels’ announcement will have a domino effect on other gay footballers, giving them the courage to come out before they head for the relative safety of retirement, where they are allowed to find their voice and speak the truth they once feared would harm their careers. We shall wait and see. On Monday, Daniels changed his life and his career forever with a moment of bravery. At the age of 17, he is a gay man and a professional footballer. At 17, Jake Daniels made it count.

SPORTSDAY

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2022-05-20T07:00:00.0000000Z

2022-05-20T07:00:00.0000000Z

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