“He passed me by and insulted me for my sexuality”, the complaint of goalkeeper Nicolás Fernández against a rival for homophobic attacks

A footballer sued a rival for insulting him during a game for being homosexual. It happened last Saturday when his club, Huracán de Pellegrini, faced Argentina de Trenque Lauquen. Now, the same club is being asked for an exemplary sanction.

the archer Nicola Fernandez, 27 years old, he cuts the consortium in the Trenque Lauquen League, and was the first Argentine footballer to publicly declare his homosexuality, in 2020.

“From the first minute, their striker (Benjamín Orosco) passed me by and he insulted me for my sexuality. I warned the referee and from there he started paying attention, “said Fernández.

In an interview published by Old newspaper, the goalkeeper specified that during the second half and when he was about to take a free kick, the attacker, who was at the barrier, insulted him again. This time, screaming.

“In that situation, the referee heard him and expelled him for the homophobic insult. Also, he left everything established in the relationship. The truth is that I hope there is an exemplary sanction to prevent it from happening again “, the goalkeeper wanted.

Far from calming things down, the expulsion of the striker sparked the fury of rival fans, who they used the homophobic insult to keep attacking the goalkeeper.

After the sequence, the referee Marcelo Saavedra stopped the game. The Argentine captain had to approach his fans to ask them to abandon their attitude, but no. The spiral of violence continued to grow.

That tension has been transferred to the pitch and the match ended up with five expelled: three from the hurricane and two from Argentina. Players ended up in a fight between shouts and insults.

While it sounds anachronistic, homophobic culture has always been rooted in football. And it keeps repeating itself every weekend. It is in the songs of the fans, in the weekly charges against the current rival and also in the players themselves.

After what happened, Nicolás Fernández posted a letter on social networks detailing what had happened and publicly asked “accept diversity”.

The complaint of the attacked goalkeeper

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I am writing to you as a footballer of the social and sports club Huracán de Pellegrini. Today I represented the Huracán club in the match for the ninth round of the Trenquelauquense De Fútbol League, in which we faced the Trenque Lauquen Football Club Argentino.

I raise this note to inform you of the discriminatory act I suffered during the course of the last game.

For almost 90 minutes I lived in a situation of constant harassment from one of the players of the rival team. On repeated occasions I have received homophobic slurs and insults referring to my sexual orientation, which is in the public domain. The referee noticed what had happened and sent the player off.

Now, situations like this threaten not only the possibility of exercising my right to play sports fairly and enjoy competition on the same terms as others, but they also create environments that are disrespectful of diversity, which has a negative impact on all people. players, coaching staff, fans and the general public.

refusal and silence

From social networks, Fernández has gotten an overwhelming display of affection and support from a vast industry. Pellegrini’s Hurricane himself has posted a statement of support for his footballer on his official goals.

“We repudiate what happened yesterday! Sport is a place where respect must be a motto. We accompany you Nico and we never lose your convictions because you are a reference for those who cannot or dare not raise their voices. And today, all this must change, ”they posted.

Meanwhile, there was silence from Argentina: no explanation or apology. And as published by some local media, the leaders of that club presented themselves with a lawyer from the local league to “soften” the penalty, both for the player and for the club.