Justin Fashanu was a remarkable figure in the footballing world during the 1980s and 1990s. He was the first openly gay professional footballer.
A huge journeyman, the forward played for teams in England, Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, and the United States. In total, Fashanu scored 133 goals in 365 appearances in a career spanning nearly two decades. He was only 37, however, when he ended his own life on 2 May 1998, only having retired in 1997.
Racism and especially homophobia have plagued the beautiful game for a long time. Fashanu had to deal with both of those. This didn’t stop him from achieving his dream of being a pro footballer for as long as he was.
Justin Fashanu’s Footballing Legacy
Notable Clubs
Fashanu only surpassed 30 appearances for just four different clubs throughout his career. Those clubs are Norwich City, who he began his professional career with, as well as Nottingham Forest, Notts County, and Torquay United.
His most prolific spell was with his boyhood Norwich, where he scored 35 goals in 90 games for the Canaries.
Justin Fashanu was loaned out to Adelaide City for two seasons before his next permanent move. His name had been linked with bigger clubs for some time, and his inevitable departure from Carrow Road came in August 1981 when he became Britain’s first £1 million black footballer when he signed for Nottingham Forest.
With Forest, he scored only three goals in 32 appearances. However, he was more known for his behaviour and drama from within the club’s own walls.
Fashanu Struggles at Forest
His goals and then confidence dried up as he failed to fit in with the playing and lifestyle demands of Brian Clough, especially after Clough had discovered his homosexuality and barred him from training with the side.
A famously difficult relationship with the club’s then-manager and Fashanu’s temper soon found him out of favour with the club.
In Clough’s autobiography, he addresses a situation that occurred after hearing rumours that he was going to gay bars.
Outraged, he riddled to Fashanu, “‘Where do you go if you want a loaf of bread?’ I asked him. ‘A baker’s, I suppose.’ ‘Where do you go if you want a leg of lamb?’ ‘A butcher’s.’ ‘So why do you keep going to that bloody poofs’ club?”‘
It was this kind of struggle, among other things, that led him out of the club that put his name on the headlines of footy newspapers all over the country.
In only a short time, he found himself down in the depths of the Third Division.
Justin Fashanu and His Coming Out Story
Justin Fashanu came out as gay in a public tabloid published by The Sun. They ran the headline as “£1m Football Star: I AM GAY” on 22 October 1990.
He was, of course, met with much backlash by the homophobic media. With enough hatred going one’s way, of course, it would derail one’s ambition.
In his own words, Justin Fashanu’s failure to achieve the success his talent deserved was due, in part, to his admission that he was gay. He blamed the toxic environment that surrounded him for his failure to solidify an international career with England.
He once said in an outburst, “You have got to understand that footballers are very narrow-minded people. It’s the nature of the business. When you put yourself in the firing line, you are open to attack. I know I’m there to be shot down in flames.”
Allegations and Suicide
Justin Fashanu was met with allegations that he had sexually assaulted a seventeen-year-old boy after a night of drinking. This was while he was living in the United States; the boy accusing Fashanu of these acts was from the state of Maryland.
He fled to England and sadly committed suicide on 2 May 1998. In his note, he wrote, “I realised that I had already been presumed guilty. I do not want to give any more embarrassment to my friends and family.”
He was then cremated at the City of London Cemetary and Crematorium.
Justin Fashanu will forever be remembered for not only his impressive journeyman status but also his status as a trend-breaking footballer.
Main Photo
