Pro soccer player’s love for his boyfriend sparks joy. Is it a gay milestone in South America?
Ignacio “Nacho” Lago, a winger with Argentine second-tier club Colón, is being commended for his courage after what appears to be an unusual ‘coming out’ moment in professional soccer. The post Pro soccer player’s love for his boyfriend sparks joy. Is it a gay milestone in South America? appeared first on Outsports.
Mark
Professional men’s soccer in Argentina appears to have its first out player after a resurfaced video clip went viral on social media.
Ignacio “Nacho” Lago is a 23-year-old winger for Club Atlético Colón, the biggest team in the northeastern city of Santa Fe. Colón are currently joint top of the second-tier Primera Nacional league.
After Lago scored the final goal in the team’s 3-0 home win over San Miguel on Saturday, he became the subject of heightened interest from fans.
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An in-depth interview, which he gave to a local radio station last year, formed part of that focus. During his chat with the show’s hosts, Lago reacts warmly to a surprise video message from his boyfriend.
The interview clip has since gone viral on X, alongside images of the couple from Lago’s social media accounts, including an “I love you” post.
Several Argentine politicians and prominent journalists are among the many well-wishers praising Lago for his courage and recognizing the moment’s significance.
South America has never previously had an active out gay or bi player in men’s pro soccer. Colón attract crowds of around 30,000 to their home games.
Boyfriend tells pro soccer player: ‘I love you very much’
In the viral video clip, Lago is the guest on a weekly show called ‘Sangre y Luto,” which is a co-production between the station AIRE de Santa Fe and Colón.
The episode was recorded in May 2025 and uploaded to the club’s official YouTube channel two months later.
By this time, Lago had been with the club for nearly 18 months, having initially joined on loan from top-tier team Talleres, based in Cordoba.
His transfer was made permanent in January 2025, when he was in the middle of an eight-month lay-off due to a cruciate ligament injury.
He discusses his recovery with the hosts of the show, who then surprise him with pre-recorded video messages. The first is from his grandparents, who tell Lago how much they miss him and wish him the best as his comeback from injury continues.
The second message is from Lago’s boyfriend, who is named Gonzalo (the show’s co-host, Luciana Trinchieri, revealed this after the clip went viral).
“Hey, gordo!” he says (this likely translates as ‘hey, honey!’ in this instance).
“I hope you liked the surprise!” he continues. “I know your grandparents are a very important pillar of support in your life.
“All I can do is congratulate you and thank you for being such an excellent person.
“You’re such a professional. I know how much effort you put into this, I know you have a dream, and I love you very much.
“I’m sending you a huge kiss and thank you for defending the colors of my city.”
Lago is visibly moved, and tells the hosts that he wishes he could hug his grandmother, who is back home in Buenos Aires, and jokes that his grandfather Luis is very “demanding.”
In the conversation, it also becomes clear that it was Lago’s boyfriend in Santa Fe who organized the messages. Lago admits he had no idea the surprise was coming. “I don’t know how I didn’t notice,” he laughs, noting that they live together.
“It’s very much like him. He’s very thoughtful and shows his affection in this very special way.”
He goes on to describe their relationship as a deep, passionate bond, comparing that intensity to how he feels about soccer. “It’s an irrational love,” Lago tells the hosts. “We live it this way, just like with football.
“We’re obsessed, and we try to express what we feel.”
In the months following the interview, Lago continued to play regularly for Colón in what ultimately proved to be a disappointing season. This year, the team has performed much better, and the winger has already contributed three goals and an assist from seven league appearances so far.
It was reported last week that he is set to sign a new deal with his club that will keep him contracted until the end of next season.
Ignacio Lago, figura de Colón, posó junto a su novio: "Te amo". https://t.co/AaXVa1NYiz pic.twitter.com/mubLTYRX3R— MDZ Online (@mdzol) April 6, 2026
Is Lago the first out gay player active in South American men’s pro soccer?
The video clip and images continue to be shared prominently across X, with more and more soccer fans around the world now learning about Lago’s story.
Historically, very few players at any level of men’s football in South America who are gay or bi have ever felt comfortable sharing that part of their lives publicly.
An Outsports list from last year of 29 out pro and semi-pro players worldwide, past and present, featured a handful from South America. Brazilian players Emerson Ferretti and Richarlyson both played at the elite level and came out after retiring, with the latter having won two international caps.
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Meanwhile, two semi-pro goalkeepers — Messi (Brazil) and Nicolas Fernandez (Argentina) — came out while active in the lower leagues of their respective countries, and continued to play.
While the exact representation that Lago is providing remains unclear (his personal Instagram account is set to private at the time of writing, and he is yet to comment publicly on the video clip going viral), the enthusiasm for his visibility is obvious.
Outsports knows of only two other out athletes in elite men’s team sports in Argentina — basketball’s Sebastian Vega, and Olympic field hockey player Nico Keenan.
Colón were a top-tier (Liga Profesional) team until their relegation in December 2023, and Lago has been one of their stars of the season so far. When Outsports looked at the responses to the news online, there was overwhelming positivity.
One fan of the club posted about the winger on X: “He’s been playing for Colón for three years. We all pretty much know it. Besides being a great guy, he was always the best player on the team.”
The majority of Argentina’s biggest news publications, including La Nación and La Voz, have carried the story on their platforms.
While at one stage in recent years there were as many as six out gay men on professional soccer contracts around the world, that number has since decreased sharply after various players moved on from their clubs.
They now either play in semi-pro leagues lower down the pyramid, or they remain out of contract as they continue to search for new clubs or choose to pursue their lives away from football.
One who is currently active at a relatively high level is Alberto Lejarraga, the goalkeeper for Spanish fourth-tier team UD Sanse, who made LGBTQ soccer history when he married his husband last summer.
The news that Nacho Lago is not only living authentically but also thriving for Colón in Argentina is therefore an encouraging step forward for the men’s pro game.
The Santa Fe team has another home match this coming Saturday, against fifth-placed Racing de Córdoba.
It’s uncharted territory for soccer in South America, but the signs so far are encouraging that when Lago next steps onto the pitch, the goodwill towards him will be evident.
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The post Pro soccer player’s love for his boyfriend sparks joy. Is it a gay milestone in South America? appeared first on Outsports.
