Former West Coast defender Mitch Brown has become the first AFL player to publicly identify as bisexual.
“I played in the AFL for 10 years for the West Coast Eagles and I’m a bisexual man,” Brown told The Daily Aus.
Brown’s declaration comes at a pivotal moment in the game, with the AFL determined to stamp out homophobia.
Last week Adelaide’s Izak Rankine was the latest player to be banned for a homophobic slur. His four-week ban means he will miss all the Crows’ finals campaign.
“It wasn’t so much hours (of contemplation). It was a moment in time for me, and it was seconds,” Brown said.
“I had this feeling of peace, but more importantly, comfort and confidence.
“What matters to me most is a sense of change, a movement created where you can be anyone and feel like you can be anyone and be safe in any environment here in Australia.
“Hopefully this now provides (that) for the second person.”
Brown, 36, played 94 games for the Eagles between 2007 and 2016.
