“It’s a shame you’re asking me that question”
Nagelsmann comments on homosexuality in football
March 30, 2026 – 5:00 p.mReading time: 1 min.
The national coach talks about the coming out of the youth coach of a Bundesliga club – and it becomes clear.
National coach Julian Nagelsmann has spoken out emphatically in favor of a more open approach to homosexuality in football. The occasion was the coming out of Christian Dobrick, the U19 coach of FC St. Pauli.
On RTL and “ntv” Nagelsmann praised Dobrick’s move: “First of all, I think it’s good that he gathered the courage to do it. It’s a great liberation for him.”
The 38-year-old also criticized the fact that the topic is still not a matter of course in football. Nagelsmann said: “I think it’s a shame that we still have to discuss this. It’s a shame that you have to ask me this question.”
The topic is already much more anchored in society. “Unfortunately in football it will probably take a while. I don’t think that’s right.” Nagelsmann said he has homosexual friends and knows what it feels like to not be able to talk openly about your own sexuality for a long time. “This is torture.”
Dobrick recently made his homosexuality public in interviews with the magazine “Stern” and RTL. The 29-year-old criticized top-class male football: “In professional football, gays are still considered aliens.” So far, no active professional has come out in the top three German leagues. A player’s sexual orientation has long ceased to play a role in women’s football.
