Still no active professional footballer in Germany has come out. Ex-footballer Marcus Urban wants to change that. The date has now been set.

The group coming out in professional soccer, announced by gay former youth international Marcus Urban, is to take place on May 17, the International Day Against Homophobia. “People from Austria, Germany and England want to come out,” the 53-year-old told RTL. “I’m happy about the process, which is actually a bit unsettling. But I’m really happy about the trust that’s being placed in me.”

May 17 is therefore intended to be the first of many offers to come out publicly and in a group. After that, it should be possible on the 17th of each month. The offer is open to athletes and club officials, regardless of their gender. “It is no longer an issue at all whether you are gay or heterosexual. But in soccer, it has just hardened. It has remained that way. However, it is crumbling,” said Urban.

With the ‘Sports Free’ campaign, Urban and his colleagues want to prepare for the coming out on a digital platform. Several Bundesliga clubs have already donated or pledged large sums of money to ‘Sports Free’, including Borussia Dortmund, VfB Stuttgart, SC Freiburg and FC St. Pauli, Urban announced at the end of December.