“It’s a shame that when someone does come out that it’s such a strange thing,” Beckham explained, referencing Daniels. He was the country’s first footballer to come out since Justin Fashanu in October 1990. “But there’s still a lot of work to be done.” Blackpool FC forward Jake Daniels recently came out, becoming Britain’s first active openly gay male professional footballer. “I played for 22 years, I saw a lot of racism and homophobia and do think it has changed” he told The Londoner’s Diary. David Beckham said he believes that there is “still work to be done” in overcoming homophobia in football.