Blackpool’s Marvin Ekpiteta apologises for past homophobic comments after teammate Jake Daniels comes out
Jake Daniels said it was a relief to come out in an interview with Sky Sports on Monday.
Words: Alastair James; pictures: Twitter/@Big_Marvv and Sky Sports
Jake Daniels’ Blackpool teammate, Marvin Ekpiteta, has apologised for some previous homophobic comments he made on social media after Daniels came out earlier this week.
On Monday (16 May) Jake said it was a relief to come out in an interview with Sky Sports and has since been met with overwhelming support.
However, now-deleted tweets dating back to 2012 and 2013 from Ekpiteta have since resurfaced forcing the defender to apologise.
“I take full responsibility for these posts”
In a statement posted to his Twitter account on Tuesday (17 May) Ekpiteta said: “I want to wholeheartedly apologise for the offensive and completely inappropriate language I used, and for the sentiments I expressed.”
He said that he’d worked with a “wide and diverse range of people” since becoming a professional player and had “developed and grown as a person.”
“Yesterday, I was proud of Jake and all involved at Blackpool FC for what is a hugely positive moment for football as a whole,” he continued.
Ekpiteta also said he was “embarrassed” by the comments he made at 17, which “do not in any way reflect the values I hold now or the beliefs I have as a person or as a team-mate.”
Finally, he wrote: “Football needs to be a place where everyone can feel free to be true to themselves, and I am upset that the comments I previously made suggest otherwise. I take full responsibility for these posts, and I am sorry.”
— Marvin Ekpiteta (@Big_Marvv) May 17, 2022
While the response to Jake Daniels’ coming out has been mostly positive, there has been some homophobic abuse directed at the 17-year-old.
Stonewall’s director of programmes, Liz Ward, condemned the abuse as “unacceptable” and said the hate from a “tiny number of people” has no place in sport and does not reflect the views of the general public.
“We know that there’s still a way to go to combat anti-LGBTQ+ hate but it’s fantastic that we’re moving towards a world where players can live openly as their true selves – and that is something we can all take pride in,” Ward added, as reported by The Independent.
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