NFL celebrates Gay Flag Football during national broadcast
The National Football League, the New England Patriots and CBS Sports unwrapped an early Christmas present for LGBTQ+ sports fans on Sunday: 90 seconds that showed viewers that love is love and football is for everyone.
The NFL Today show’s usual rundown of football stories and score predictions made room for a highly-produced video that featured out LGBTQ+ players from Boston’s Gay Flag Football League.
The video, a collaboration between the network, the league and the Pats, was shot under the bright lights of Gillette Stadium — the team’s home turf — as well as on the flag football league’s muddy home field in Boston. “The field is just a field until we step on it,” intones the narrator. “Here is a home with no penalty for being you.” The scenes, which at first address the isolation, fear and self-doubt many LGBTQ+ people endure, go beyond the gridiron to show the players working out and making out, hugging, dancing and enjoying good times together. “The production crew included a number of LGBTQ+ members of the CBS Sports team,” a CBS spokesperson told the Los Angeles Blade.
Robert Kraft, chairman and CEO of the Patriots, is also featured in the video, speaking with flag football players. Titles on the screen inform viewers that leagues like the one in Boston are a part of the National Gay Flag Football League, which boasts more than 250 teams with 4,000 out players and allies in 26 other cities. “Today, with the support of the NFL, a new playbook is being written,” reads the end titles. “One where we all play for the same team.
