Scottish football referees Craig Napier and Lloyd Wilson have come out as gay.
Napier went public in a video released by the Scottish FA, in which he says there needs to be a "climate change" so people can "be their true selves".
“We need to see the climate change so that people feel they can be their true self and live happily and comfortably in their own skin.”
An important conversation with Category One referee Craig Napier. pic.twitter.com/bYygya2k23
— Scottish FA (@ScottishFA) June 2, 2022
Napier said he wanted to help remove the "stigma" and "fear" that others in his position may feel about revealing their sexuality.
"It's something that I never thought I would be sitting here doing," he said.
"It's something that I've obviously lived with for a long time.
"It's been a difficult journey to get to this point, but over the last couple of years, it's become a lot easier."
Napier added that he'd felt inspired by the actions of footballer Jack Daniels, who'd recently come out as gay.
A message from Jake Daniels. https://t.co/R2wEsniXKV pic.twitter.com/dcznYKtSaD
— Blackpool FC (@BlackpoolFC) May 16, 2022
"I think that it's been really inspiring to see what's happened recently - Josh Cavallo and Jake Daniels more recently.
"It's positive to see Jake, at the age of 17, announcing to everyone his sexuality and I think that many people will take inspiration from that."
Wilson has told his story through Scottish mental health charity Back Onside, saying he wants to make it less of a "scary subject".
"I think really the reason being that this has been a horrific journey, to be honest," he said.
"A journey of maybe 17 years of living a life that I didn't want to live, living a lie, living the way that other people maybe wanted me to live or that I thought other people wanted me to live, and probably dictated and directed in many ways by football."
