Keith Watson | Rainbow Laces

“People should not feel the need to hide who they are in 2021” were the words of Ross County Captain Keith Watson when talking about this year's Rainbow Laces campaign.

Keith, who made his professional debut in 2006, admits that football has become a more welcoming and inclusive place as the years have gone by and encourages all aspects of football to continue building on those strong foundations.

“Not only in terms of LGBTQ+ but I think generally football has become a more inclusive place for people all over the world.”

“We have seen the impact of so many campaigns year-on-year, whether it be Rainbow Laces, Black Lives Matter or any others that we support, and clubs have really taken the ownership of that.”

“Clubs now run their own campaigns and membership groups within their supporters to engage and support people from a variety of backgrounds, our StaggiesArmy is a prime example of that. People should not feel the need to hide who they are in 2021.”

Watson, who was earlier this season named as the Club’s Captain for season 2021/22, also says that Josh Cavallo’s video in October really inspired the footballing community and has created a landmark moment for football and beyond.

“We as a group really admired the courage and pride Josh took in that video. You could see emotionally he was trying to keep it together, and it was such an important moment for not just football but for the wider world to see a role model like Josh do something so bold.” Keith said.

“I think when you see the massive outpouring of support, including from our club, it really shows how far football has come. In saying that, we need to make sure that we all continue to build on those foundations and continue to make football a more inclusive place.”

Although there are currently no male LGBTQ+ players in Scottish football publicly known, Keith doesn’t feel that it should hold anybody back.

He said, “Dressing rooms are a unique place. In a dressing room there is always trust, there is always unity and it is a safe space for everybody. For 15 years I have been in professional football dressing rooms and I know that when the time comes, we would support, encourage and stand by any player that wanted to come out.”

“I think sometimes people can easily forget that we are all human beings, we are all people and the fact we are footballers is irrelevant.”

“We all have families, some of us have family members and friends that are part of the LGBTQ+ community, so if we had a teammate on the pitch that was part of the LGBTQ+ community there is no difference for me or our football club.” Keith added.

Rainbow Laces annual campaign runs from 25^th November to 12^th December 2021. Rainbow Laces day itself takes place on Wednesday 8^th December 2021. Our club will be marking the annual campaign at our match with St Johnstone on Saturday 4^th December at McDiarmid Park.

Earlier in the week Manager Malky Mackay spoke to Andrew Henderson from Pride of the Terraces to discuss this year's Rainbow Laces campaign, you can read that article by CLICKING HERE