“Faggots in my team, no thanks”: Borja Iglesias, who plays for the Spanish first league club Betis Sevilla, wanted to set an example against racism. Then it also became a sign against homophobia in football.

Last week, training photos appeared showing the footballer with black-painted fingernails. In a Twitter post he later clearified: they are a sign against racism, a sign of solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. Some “fans” misunderstood the action – and so it became an additional demonstration of everything that still has to change in football.

Twitter user Raul Granado collected some of the negative reactions:

“What the hell is this?”, an alleged fan asked after the photos turned up. Another one just posted that he was screaming inside. Under tweets like “Fags in my team, no thanks”, one could find a lot of approval in posts that unanimously called Iglesias a faggot.

One “fan” even demanded that the club terminate the contract and kick Iglesias out. Further reactions were: “Yuck” or “I can’t believe it”. Another one rushed in allusion to the Madrid scene quarter Chueca:

“Oh Borjita, you look so thin. First it was the drugs, today you can be seen in Chueca”.

Iglesias explained his painted fingernails later on Twitter:

“It’s a way to raise awareness and fight against racism from my position, but you can see that it also works well against homophobia. Besides, I have to admit I like them.”

Fortunately there were positive reactions. Many fans thanked Iglesias for his work against racism and homophobia. Some even joined in and adopted the symbolic idea – they also painted their fingernails. Among them a proud father and his son, who shared a photo:

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