04 March 2023 , 20:00
468
0
A gay Labour MP has admitted he feared how football fans would treat him after he’d come out.
But devoted Sheffield Wednesday fan Clive Betts said the reaction had been overwhelmingly positive.
Mr Betts, who has been the MP for Sheffield South for more than 30 years, said one fan also personally apologised to him about homophobic chanting.
In an interview with GB News, to be broadcast on Sunday, Mr Betts said sometimes fans are “not always the most polite” in the comments they make in their chants.
“I went to my first away game after I came out at Leicester, where I went to see Sheffield Wednesday play.
Teachers, civil servants and train drivers walk out in biggest strike in decade
“Fans came up to me and said, ‘Great to see you back, you're still the same football fan you were before’. And I thought that was a change of approach.”
He went on: "Even more remarkably, I went to Brighton, and sometimes you get one or two rude comments from away fans at Brighton with Sheffield Wednesday fans.
“Someone came up to me at half-time and said: ‘Oh, I've been doing some chanting which was homophobic. I suddenly realised you were there. It wasn't intended for you, it was wrong. And I've come to apologise’.”
Keen football fan Clive taking part in an MPs vs Journalists match (Daily Mirror)Mr Betts also opened up about his decision to come out saying it was “the best decision he’d ever made”.
He revealed his sexuality in 2003, following a newspaper sting which found he had employed a Brazilian man in his office who had previously worked as an escort.
“I knew I was gay for ages,” he told host Gloria De Peiro.
“When I came out, lots of friends said to me, ‘Oh, why have you just said that now? We all sort of knew you were’. You live in a little cocoon of your own. When I was brought up in Sheffield people weren't out. There was hardly any gay scene, it was hardly talked about."
He added: “You know, if people talked about it, they were often quite disparaging remarks. So, that was a different time. People's understanding, people's comments, people's views of the issue of sexual equality and sexuality have changed over the years.
“Life has moved on, life has changed. And you know, that's good. So hopefully in coming out and being open about it, I've maybe helped other people who are still concerned about that and still worried about it and living something which isn't their true lives. It's one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.”