THE RELEVANT QUEER: David Kopay, One of America’s First Openly Gay Professional Athletes

“To know is to understand.  To understand is to have knowledge.  To have knowledge is to tolerate, and to tolerate is to have peace.”

TRQ: David Kopay, Born June 28, 1942

National Football League running back David Kopay, one of America’s first openly gay professional athletes, was born on June 18, 1942. Kopay’s coming out in 1975 made headlines and delivered a fatal blow to his post-football career. However, he has paved the way out of the closet for gay players like Billie Jean King and Carl Nassib.

Kopay was born in Chicago. He was the second of four children in a Roman Catholic family. They moved to North Hollywood, California, while he was in grammar school.

At age 14, Kopay attended Claretian Junior Seminary while considering joining the priesthood but left after 18 months. Like his older brother, Kopay went to Notre Dame High School, a football powerhouse. There, he made the all-Catholic Conference all-star team.

In 1961, Kopay enrolled at the University of Washington, where his brother was already on the football team. As co-captain of the team in 1963, Kopay led the Huskies to the PAC-10 conference championship. They also appeared in the Rose Bowl.

In 1964, Kopay was drafted by the San Francisco ‘49ers. His NFL career lasted 10 years. As a player he was tough and versatile. He earned his teammates’ respect for playing despite pain and injury.

Kopay’s sexual attraction to men conflicted him. In Detroit, after he joined the Lions in 1968, he went to gay bars. In Washington, in 1969, he had gay and straight sexual experiences. Kopay had an affair with Redskins teammate Jerry Smith. Smith died of AIDS in 1986. After seeking therapy to banish his homosexuality, Kopay married in 1971, but the marriage lasted only a year.

In 1975, after he retired, Kopay came out in the media. He recognised in an article by Lynn Rosselini an anonymous quote by onetime lover Smith on the hardships faced by gay professional athletes. Kopay gave Rosselini an interview and agreed to identify himself.

A few months later, Kopay told the Advocate, “I’d been thinking about it for a long time. Many people in the sports world already knew I was gay. My family knew. And I knew how difficult and frustrating it is to try to lead a double life. I was tired of compromising myself.”

Although his 1977 autobiography was the first sport-oriented book to top the New York Times best-seller list, Kopay struggled professionally after coming out. He lost coaching and sales representative job opportunities. His coming out also temporarily strained his family relationships.

Though he doesn’t consider himself a gay rights activist, his debate with homophobe Anita Bryant on the David Susskind Show made him a hero. 

“I realize there are other people like me, younger people especially, who need to know the truth, to know that there are successful gay people in every walk of life, including the life of a pro athlete. It would have helped me to know others.” — David Kopay

In 2007, Kopay gave $1,000,000 to the University of Washington’s LGBTQ centre. “I continually hear from people all over the world that my act of coming out—especially when I did in 1975 — has empowered them in their search for self and to see their vision,” Kopay has remarked. “Hopefully, my million-dollar pledge will influence others to support the university and the Q Center to continue to help others to do just that.”

After Kopay came out, NFL players Roy Simmons and Esera Tuaolo later followed. On June 21, 2021, Carl Nassib became the first active NFL player to come out. 

About the Authors

Troy Wise is currently a PhD student at UAL Central St Martins and teaches fashion and graphic design at London College of Contemporary Arts. His background is in marketing and is founder and co-editor of Image Amplified. He lives in, and is continually fascinated by, the city of London.

Rick Guzman earned his most recent MA at UAL Central St Martins in Applied Imagination in the Creative Industries. He currently holds two MA’s and an MBA in the New Media, Journalism and International Business fields. Co-editor at Image Amplified since its start, he lives in London, is fascinated by history and is motivated by continuing to learn and explore. 

Sources:

The Advocate

Encyclopedia

GLBTQ Archive

GQ

Slate

Washington Post