Collin Martin is the first openly gay, professional, soccer player in the United States. He has supporting teammates and coaches and loves playing soccer. He is on the San Diego Loyal team and plays in the USL soccer league.

Martin says that his team is in second place at the moment and has four games until the playoffs which he is hoping to win. Martin says “A mini goal for us is to go into the playoffs for the first time as a club…”

Back in 2018 Martin was slowly coming out to his family, friends, and teammates and a big step was moving to San Diego. He felt that he didn’t want to lie to his teammates anymore and wanted to live a more authentic life. When his second season came around he felt the need to share his sexuality with the public. His goal was to set an example and give courage to other players and young people. 

His own courage came from his existing support from his family, friends, and teammates from Minnesota and San Diego. “A big step was moving from Minnesota to San Diego,” Martin said. Martin didn’t realize the impact he could have on other people and he wants to share his positive experiences. Martin stated “I was extremely embraced for that first season and by the time the second season came around it just felt like I had to share that with more people…”

He mentioned that he was worried about coming out as gay because of the possible support he could lose. However after he came out he was surprised that it did not affect his career in bad ways whatsoever. He said that the only effects on his career were good ones such as extra support from his team and coach.

The Raiders coach resigned recently due to homophobic and racist emails that were surfaced. Martin stated that his coach has been unequivocally supportive to Martin and his teammates. Martin sees two polar opposites in the situation, one being the coach of the Raiders, and his own coach. He also said that he was also defended by the public when a slur was directed at him. Martin stated that homophobia and other forms of hate have been on the decrease but there is still lots of work to do.

Martin says that he feels accomplished and that he has set a good example for other queer athletes. When he came out he felt like a weight was lifted off of his shoulders. He has received unconditional love and support from those around him.

Martin’s advice for queer athletes in high school is to not be afraid to be themselves and express their identity to those who support them because people should give their loved ones a chance.