Applaud the ones who wear rainbow armband - Hitzlsperger

Former Aston Villa midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger came out as gay shortly after ending his playing career a decade ago, saying he wanted to "move the discussion about homosexuality among professional sportspeople forwards".

Every season the Premier League partners with LGBTQ+ charity Stonewall on the Rainbow Laces campaign to promote equality and diversity.

After Ipswich captain Sam Morsy opted not to wear the campaign's rainbow armband and Crystal Palace's Marc Guehi added messages about Jesus to his, Hitzlsperger gives his thoughts.

I have seen so much progress.

Just the fact that I was able to share my story and come out as gay in 2014 and my involvement in different aspects of the sport I love is part of that.

We have come a long way but it's misguided not to appreciate that we aren't - and may never be - in a perfect scenario, given the way society is mirrored by football.

Thinking back to my career, I had team-mates who were offensive in the dressing room when it came to the discussion about homosexuality.

In respect of the current news stories, Ipswich and Crystal Palace have been clear to state that their players fully endorse a tolerant environment. My hopes are obvious in that they'd reflect this fully if they had a gay team-mate. We have to believe that.

To be clear - if clarity is in fact needed - the rainbow armband's objective is not to promote homosexuality. It is supposed to help fight discrimination.

I hope every single player out there fights discrimination, one way or another, not least because they might be affected - but also as it's a basic human right.

We must not be affected by any objectors or doubters, especially those in high-profile roles, not least famous footballers who like it or not have a platform.

So let's switch the direction of focus.

A rejection of the armband can arguably have a negative effect on the community.

The near majority of captains wear the armbands, players wear warm-up shirts and jackets in rainbow colours.

Let's applaud them for taking a stance against division and fighting discrimination and look at the positive developments over the years.

If you had told me 12 years ago we would be at this point where there are open and visible campaigns that fight against discrimination and welcome the LGBTQ+ community then I would have said we're making tangible progress.

Rainbow flags won't change society on their own, but they have been there now constantly for years and years - and that is a big part of change and improvement.

Let's concentrate on promoting good examples of the work clubs are doing and the great work of individuals.

We have to look for allies: all the great fan clubs in the Premier League and Championship, as well as the gay and lesbian fan clubs. There are so many of them. Let's talk about them and not focus on a few individuals.

If I hear one player not doing what I like him to do, it's as negative and uncompromising as the stance that 'it's proof footballers are homophobic'. No, that's not the case. Let's not use these examples, generalise it and say they account for everybody.

Since former Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson moved to Saudi Arabia, it has raised split opinions and conflicts of moral positions.

The armband is a powerful symbol, but while there is only one captain wearing the armband you can never have any insight as to what their team-mates think.

When I think back to my career, I have clear recollections of intimidation at times by what team-mates have said, maybe unwittingly, not knowing my orientation.

But I was too scared at the time when I was playing to open up and can still entirely respect that position in others.

Over a decade on, yes I would love to have that conversation, and ask what is the problem, and maybe help them by explaining what this means.

Some might like it, others not. At the end of the day, we are here to play football with the obligation to promote initiatives that at times we cannot have an open say on. Players may sometimes feel like they are being dictated to outside what they started out to achieve in a playing career.

The armband allows an element of personal interpretation - maybe that is part of the problem as people look at it differently.

In this case it has opened up the highly sensitive topic of religion, something that for so long many - if not most - fans and players would say should not be a factor in sport, along with politics.

But overall, we have set such high standards for our football players.

Companies around world use the rainbow colours, but as we know not in every territory, so this is not a football-centric issue.

Are footballers being highlighted in a way corporations are not?

Scrutiny is one thing, education and change another - and what I believe every case such as this should be informing and evolving.