At 10:10 p.m.: Director Manfred Oldenburg tells the story of Thomas Hitzlsperger and those who broke this taboo in his documentary
Vienna (OTS) – Of around 500,000 active male football professionals worldwide, there are currently only ten players who admit to being gay. The topic seems to be completely swept under the table in professional football – filmmaker Manfred Oldenburg explains why in his documentary “The Last Taboo”, which will be broadcast on ORF 1 on Thursday, March 14, 2024, at 10:10 p.m Free TV premiere shows. The director and screenwriter relies on interviews with gay players and ex-players such as Thomas Hitzlsperger, Marcus Urban and Collin Martin, but also with (heterosexual) football experts such as Per Mertesacker and Rolf Töpperwien.
Manfred Oldenburg lets those who broke exactly this taboo tell their personal stories: like the British professional soccer player Justin Fashanu, who came out in 1990 and paid with his life. His niece Amal tells his story. Marcus Urban, on the other hand, was about to make the jump to the Bundesliga as a teenager and, by deciding to come out, he also went against his big dream. The stories of the US professional Collin Martin and the British player-coach Matt Morton, on the other hand, suggest that normality is not far away.
The film increasingly raises the question of why the topic is so hushed up, especially in football. Does homosexuality simply not correspond to the hyper-masculine image of the football hero? Is there a fear that sand could get in the way of the football marketing machine? Or is it perhaps the case that players and fans are now much further along than those who are at the controls of this machine? “The Last Taboo” gets to the bottom of these questions precisely and not only tells the story of the footballers, but also sheds light on a society in transition. A society that was perhaps not always as tolerant as it believed itself to be.
“The Last Taboo” is a BROADVIEW production, directed and written by Manfred Oldenburg (“Kroos”, “Completely Normal Men – The Forgotten Holocaust”).
“The Last Taboo” is available for streaming on ORF ON and in the TVthek app for seven days after it is broadcast on TV.