'I'm Scotland's first openly-gay footballer - I'm asking for huge change'

When footballer Zander Murray decided to come out in September 2022, he was on holiday in Benidorm. He made a Facebook post revealing his sexuality , put his phone down and went to sleep. When he woke up, his life had changed forever.

"I woke up to madness, it just went crazy viral," the striker, who scored 100 plus goals and holds the club record for number of goals scored in one season, tells The Mirror . Zander had become the first Scottish professional footballer to come out as gay and one of the few actively playing footballers in the world .

He was met with messages from people of all walks of life - from young footballers to people outside of sports - who had been struggling with their sexuality and identity, pain and suffering that Zander was all too familiar with.

"We're in a mental health crisis, but particularly if you're struggling with sexuality or identity , it can feel very volatile and tough. You feel that you're alone and I know all too well what that's like, particularly being involved in a hyper-masculine sport. I know how challenging it was for me, there were some really dark moments."

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Zander wanted to change the conversation and ensure that nobody else had to go through life experiencing the same pain and suffering he did from ages 13 to 29, "thinking the only way out was to end it all".

He became a proud ambassador for LGBTQ+ charity Stonewall, and regularly works with Scottish LGBT inclusive education charity, Time for Inclusive Education. As a motivational speaker, he attends workshops in schools, football academies and corporate organisations to share his story and promote positive movement in the LGBTQIA+ community.

Four years on, Zander has won several awards including the Unicorn of the Year award from charity ‘Somewhere: For Us’ and a Proud Scotland Award in the Sport & Recreation category. In 2023, he was named by Attitude Magazine as one of the LGBTQ trailblazers changing the world, and, in a landmark moment, his cherished jersey that he scored his 100th goal wearing was placed in the Scottish Football Museum.

"There's been a collective of wild moments from a little guy from Kingston State in Glasgow," Zander mused, and now he's partnered with Millwall Romans, Millwall FC’s LGBTQ+ football team to build long-term support structures for LGBTQ+ teams and create environments where every player feels genuinely welcome from day one - starting with the launch of the Pride Playbook .

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The Pride Playbook is a practical blueprint designed to help clubs establish and support LGBTQ+ inclusive teams. Zander, who wrote the foreword which he hopes "touches people's heartstrings, whether they're from the community or their allies", said the playbook gives clubs the steering they need to support the LGBTQ+ community within football.

The urgency for change has never been more pressing. According to research conducted by Censuswide, a staggering 81% of LGBTQ+ fans report having personally experienced or witnessed homophobic behaviour in or around a stadium.

"It is startling that so many fans still witness homophobia, and even more so that Millwall stands alone as the only club to fully integrate an LGBTQ+ team," Zander says. "We need more allies. Your captains, your managers, your coaches. People to stand up and be there for you, to understand the cause. It's a full holistic approach that's needed and this book definitely gives clubs the absolute steadying for them to go ahead and integrate that."

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Millwall Romans is the first LGBTQ+ team, but it doesn't want to be the last. It's calling on Premier League and EFL clubs to adopt or create LGBTQ+ teams, as new research reveals 41% of all football fans in the UK believe football clubs across the top four leagues should have one, with this figure rising to over eight in ten among the LGBTQ+ community.

Aside from being a history-making team, the atmosphere at Millwall Romans is as electric and unapologetic as you'd hope. "I've seen first-hand how amazing they are. It's just so unique. Everyone's talking about Ariana Grande and Eurovision," Zander said.

"For me it was such a culture shock being in that environment compared to the majority of my years in mainstream football where these conversations are rare. It would've been so nice to fall back on a team like this and I didn't have that grown up. I know for a fact, it will save life, and it can empower so many people to be their authentic self."