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Soccer star Jakub Jankto scores his first goal since coming out… & the crowd went wild!
Jankto, who has been struggling this season, says he's most excited for the fans.
Jakub Jankto publicly came out as gay last February. And now, the pro soccer player is finally on the board.
The Czech native recently scored his first goal as an out gay man, and it was a big one! The shot propelled his club, Cagliari of Italy’s Serie A, ahead in the 68th minute of their contest against Empoli.
In addition to winning the game, Jankto’s triumph saved their season. With the struggling Sardinian club facing relegation, they need every victory they can get.
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When the ball ricocheted off Empoli’s goalie, Jankto gained control and shot it through the net.
Score!
The goal was significant for multiple reasons. On a historical note, Jankto became the first out gay player to score in one of Europe’s “Big Five” leagues, illustrating the significance of his accomplishment. The Czech winger is currently one of only four out gay male pro players in the world, along with Collin Martin, Josh Cavallo and teenager Jake Daniels (Zander Murray retired last year).
And on a personal level, Jankto needed the goal to boost his career. His coach, Claudio Ranieri, has criticized his play in recent weeks.
Last year, Jankto was cut by his team, Sparta Prague, due to off-field issues. Up until last weekend, his spot on Cagliari wasn’t guaranteed, either: the club had only won four of its last 26 games prior to Sunday’s victory.
After the game, Jankto said he was excited for the fans.
“I’m giving my all for the team and the fans,” he said. “I’m even happier for them than for me: they came again today, almost 700, they make so many sacrifices to follow us. For this, I thank them. They are fundamental.”
When Jankto publicly came out in February 2023, he said he wanted to be live an open life.
“Like everybody else, I have my strengths, I have my weaknesses. I have a family, I have my friends. I have a job, which I have been doing as best as I can for years, with seriousness, professionalism and passion,” he said.
“Like everybody else, I also want to live my life in freedom without fears, without prejudice, without violence, but with love. I am homosexual, and I no longer want to hide myself,” he added.
In subsequent interviews, Jankto has talked about the freedom he’s now enjoying. He says he realized staying closeted was holding him back– on and off the pitch.
“I also thought to myself: ‘Well look, Jakub, you are a professional footballer, but you have your life that you have to live like you want.’ And for me, that was fundamental,” he told the BBC.
Though his coming out video is only 37 seconds, it’s been viewed more than 30 million times, making it the second-most watched video in Czech history!
Jankto says the outpouring of reaction made him recognize the significance of his announcement.
“When you receive thousands, maybe millions, of messages from people saying they appreciate me and thank me, it makes me really happy, and the people were amazing,” he said. “But it does put pressure on me. It’s not easy to be the first guy at my level who says: ‘Yeah, I’m gay.’”
The fans, however, have made sure that Jankto feels welcome. When he appeared in his first match post-coming out, they showered him with a standing ovation.
While the moment would’ve been special under any circumstances, it especially resonated with Jankto, because the match was played in his home country: the Czech Republic.
“For me, the strongest moment in my career. A minute I will never forget,” he posted on social media. “3 points, great atmosphere. Thank you to all the people at the stadium! We keep pushing.”
Along with being himself on the pitch, Jankto is also now free to live openly off of it. He told ESPN dating men without restrictions, or fear of being outed, is one of his greatest joys.
“I didn’t want to hide. Maybe I’m watching a YouTube video or a TikTok, or messaging someone, or you’re dating guys, and you’re scared someone will see it,” he said. “You’re hiding your phone. I didn’t want to have to do that, that was a bad feeling. Maybe if I date a guy, I had to hide, too. You weren’t sure he wouldn’t write [about you]. I couldn’t do what I wanted with life, and I decided I had to speak.”
Now, Jankto is speaking and scoring. He hopes other LGBTQ+ athletes can view his story as inspiration.
“If you say that gay people are proud of me, I say that I’m proud of you, because I know how you feel,” he said. “I know how people feel if they have to hide something, and I wish you good luck and stay strong, because there’s no reason to be scared.”
With a goal now under his belt as an out gay man, Jankto can breathe. There are 11 games left in the season, and he still has a chance to represent the Czech Republic at the summer’s European Championships in Germany.
What a chapter to his story that would be.
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