Arts & Entertainment
Southampton FC exec and GW alum shares coming out story
Hugo Scheckter came out and then went back in the closet
Hugo Scheckter, Southampton Football Club’s player/team liaison officer, publicly revealed his sexuality on National Coming Out Day in 2016. In a profile for The Times, the George Washington University alum shared how his road to transparency wasn’t an easy one.
On Oct. 11, 2016, Scheckter tweeted that he was finally ready to be an out member in football (soccer).
In honour of #NationalComingOutDay, I want to confirm something I’ve never mentioned publicly but am so proud to now do so: I’m gay. ??️?
— Hugo Scheckter (@HugoScheckter) October 11, 2016
As cliched as it sounds, it really does get better when you come out and I genuinely couldn’t be happier to have done so at this moment!
— Hugo Scheckter (@HugoScheckter) October 11, 2016
Atlanta-born Scheckter, 26, attended boarding school in England where he says he never learned about being gay “as a concept.” Once he figured out his identity, he decided to tell his family and friends.
“I went to boarding school here, where homosexuality is never talked about. So I didn’t really even understand it as a concept. It took until I was 21 to realize. That was a lightbulb moment, so I made a list of 20 people I wanted to tell in person and the rest I just stuck on Facebook. I told my parents over the phone,” Scheckter says.
In college, Scheckter attended George Washington University and served as the head club soccer coach. He decided to come out to his team because the school was an accepting place.
“Part of coming out was coming out to my team as I was coaching at the George Washington University. It was a very progressive place so it wasn’t an issue. We had three openly gay players in the starting XI. Then I went to my first club in Indiana, where it was not a very liberal state, though the club was. So I was half in, half out. Some knew,” Scheckter went on.
When Scheckter accepted the position at Southampton Football Club, he chose to go back in the closet. Worried that coming out would hinder his opportunity, he didn’t share that part of his life with the team.
After two years, Scheckter realized he had to be open with his team in the same way they were open with him. He says their responses were positive from the adults to the younger members.
“I thought I’d get silly responses from the 12 to 18-year-olds but they were so supportive,” Scheckter says.
Overall, Scheckter wants to normalize gay players and let other people struggling with coming out feel supported.
“We just have to stop the witch-hunt of trying to find a gay footballer and create an environment where someone can feel supported and comfortable,” Scheckter says. “Having role models in the sport is really important. I’m down the pecking order, but I’ve had fans get in touch asking to talk about coming out as they don’t know any other gay people. If I can help in any way, then great. I want to show football is a good place where gay slurs aren’t thrown around any more.”
Sports
Jason Collins dies at 47
First openly gay man to actively play for major sports team battled brain cancer
Jason Collins, the first openly gay man to actively play for a major professional sports team, died on Tuesday after a battle with brain cancer. He was 47.
The California native had briefly played for the Washington Wizards in 2013 before coming out in a Sports Illustrated op-ed.
Collins in 2014 became the first openly gay man to play in a game for a major American professional sports league when he played 11 minutes during a Brooklyn Nets game. He wore jersey number 98 in honor of Matthew Shepard, a gay college student murdered outside of Laramie, Wyo., in 1998.
Collins told the Washington Blade in 2014 that his life was “exponentially better” since he came out. Collins the same year retired from the National Basketball Association after 13 seasons.
Collins married his husband, Brunson Green, in May 2025.
The NBA last September announced Collins had begun treatment for a brain tumor. Collins on Dec. 11, 2025, announced he had Stage 4 glioblastoma.
“We are heartbroken to share that Jason Collins, our beloved husband, son, brother and uncle, has died after a valiant fight with glioblastoma,” said Collins’s family in a statement the NBA released. “Jason changed lives in unexpected ways and was an inspiration to all who knew him and to those who admired him from afar. We are grateful for the outpouring of love and prayers over the past eight months and for the exceptional medical care Jason received from his doctors and nurses. Our family will miss him dearly.”
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said Collins’s “impact and influence extended far beyond basketball as he helped make the NBA, WNBA, and larger sports community more inclusive and welcoming for future generations.”
“He exemplified outstanding leadership and professionalism throughout his 13-year NBA career and in his dedicated work as an NBA Cares Ambassador,” said Silver. “Jason will be remembered not only for breaking barriers, but also for the kindness and humanity that defined his life and touched so many others.”
“To call Jason Collins a groundbreaking figure for our community is simply inadequate. We truly lost a giant today,” added Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson in a statement. “He came out as gay — while still playing — at a time when men’s athletes simply did not do that. But as he powerfully demonstrated in his final years in the league and his post-NBA career, stepping forward as he did boldly changed the conversation.”
“He was and will always be a legend for the LGBTQ+ community, and we are heartbroken to hear of his passing at the young age of 47,” she said. “Our hearts go out to his family and loved ones. We will keep fighting on in his honor until the day everyone can be who they are on their terms.”
The Washington Blade will update this article with additional reaction when it becomes available.
Glitterati Productions held the “Studio 69” party at Bunker on Friday, May 8.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
Arts & Entertainment
Washington Blade’s Pride on the Pier returns June 13 to kick off D.C. Pride week
Pride on the Pier officially launches Pride Week in D.C.
The Washington Blade’s annual Pride on the Pier celebration returns to The Wharf on Saturday, June 13, 2026 from 4-9 p.m., bringing thousands of LGBTQ community members and allies together for an unforgettable waterfront celebration to kick off Pride week in Washington, D.C.
Now in its eighth year, Washington Blade Pride on the Pier extends the city’s annual celebration of LGBTQ visibility to the bustling Wharf waterfront with an exciting array of activities and entertainment for all ages. The District Pier will offer DJs, dancing, drag, and other entertainment. Alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase for those 21 and older.
“Pride on the Pier has become one of the signature moments of Pride in D.C.,” said Lynne Brown, publisher of the Washington Blade. “There’s nothing like watching our community come together on the waterfront with live music and incredible energy as we kick off Pride week.”
Pride on the Pier is free and open to the public, with VIP tickets available for exclusive pier access to the Dockmaster Building. To purchase VIP tickets visit www.prideonthepierdc.com/vip.
Additional entertainment announcements, sponsor activations, and event details will be released in the coming weeks.
Event Details:
📍 Location: District Pier at The Wharf (101 District Sq SW, Washington, DC)
📅 Dates: Friday, 13, 2026
⏱️ 4-9PM
🎟️ VIP Tickets: www.PrideOnThePierDC.com/VIP
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