Never a league that shies away from embracing a social or political movement — especially when it’s a worthy one, as is the case here — in order to increase its fanbase, the NFL has quickly pushed out a new marketing initiative in the wake of Raiders’ DL Carl Nassib’s announcement that he is gay. The first active NFL player to make such an announcement, Nassib has been widely commended for his declaration, including by commissioner Roger Goodell.
Now the NFL, which got on board with the Black Lives Matter movement only after it was popular and profitable to do so, is looking to grow its LGBTQ+ fanbase with a new ad campaign. In a video that debuted on Monday, the NFL proclaims “Football is gay,” “Football is lesbian,” “Football is beautiful,” “Football is transgender, “Football is queer” and “Football is for everyone.”
The spot ends with a rainbow version of the NFL shield and the line, “The NFL proudly supports the Trevor Project,” a nonprofit organization devoted to preventing suicides among LGBTQ+ youth. As part of his coming-out announcement, 28-year-old Nassib, who made a $7.5 million base salary in 2020, donated $100,000 to The Trevor Project. The NFL, which made $12 billion last year, matched him.
“This spot is about celebrating Pride, and the importance of inclusion,” NFL chief marketing officer Tim Ellis told Outsports. “It’s imperative that we use our voice and leverage the NFL platform to drive positive change, which includes supporting what our players care about and what they stand for.” Outsports was told by league spokesperson Samantha Roth that the video is a “direct response” to Nassib revealing his sexual orientation.
“It’s OK to not fully understand the LGBTQ+ experience for you to be an ally,” NFL diversity director Sam Rapoport told USA Today Sports last week. “You don’t need to be an expert in all the terms. You just need to try. It’s critical for the person who identifies as LGBTQ+ to control the time when they are ready to speak about these issues. It’s then incumbent on everyone else to send signals that it’s OK to do so.”
That the NFL is spreading a message of tolerance and inclusivity is unequivocally a good thing. Still, one wonders whether the NFL could have launched this type of campaign a year ago, or five years ago, or a decade ago — and whether, with a more open expression of solidarity from their employer, other gay players before Nassib might have felt more compelled to be open about their sexuality.
To the NFL’s credit, the league has actually taken some steps toward fighting racial inequality in the U.S. after paying lip service to the BLM movement. Hopefully, it does the same thing in this circumstance and actively continues to support the LGBTQ+ community — and maybe draws in some new fans along the way.
“The NFL family is proud of Carl courageously sharing his truth today,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said last week. “Representation matters. We share his hope that someday soon statements like his will no longer be newsworthy as we march toward full equality for the LGBTQ+ community. We wish Carl the best of luck this coming season.”
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