Mitch Brown has made history in Australian sports. The former West Coast Eagles defender revealed he is bisexual, becoming the first openly queer man in the Australian Football League’s 129-year history.
Brown, who played 94 games for West Coast between 2007 and 2016, shared his story in an interview with The Daily Aus. He said the decision came after years of silence in a sport where he felt conversations around sexuality weren’t safe.
“I have this feeling of peace, but more importantly, comfort and confidence,” Brown said. “It’s something I never had while I was playing.”
Breaking Barriers in Aussie Rules
The AFL had been the only major men’s professional sport in the world without a current or former player publicly coming out as gay or bisexual. For Brown, the silence stemmed from the league’s “hyper-masculine” culture, where slurs and casual homophobia were common.
He recalled teammates once debating whether they’d feel comfortable showering next to a gay player. One told him he would “rather be in a cage full of lions.”
“Growing up in Australia, the word ‘gay’ was constantly thrown around,” Brown said. “For a man, it was probably seen as the weakest thing you could be.”
The atmosphere, he explained, left him and others without a safe place to explore or express their identities.
Why He Spoke Out Now
Brown first reached out via Instagram to journalist Sam Koslowski of The Daily Aus, writing simply: “I played in the AFL for 10 years for the West Coast Eagles, and I’m a bisexual man.”
His decision came after recent coverage of homophobia in the AFL, including Adelaide Crows star Izak Rankine’s suspension for using a homophobic slur during a match.
Brown said he hopes his story will encourage the league to embrace “positive male role models” who may not be superstars on the field but can inspire change off it.
“My advice to the AFL would be, let’s celebrate the players who might not be the most successful but are the most important to our community,” he said.
A Role Model for Others
While Brown stressed that he is “just ordinary old Mitch,” he acknowledged the importance of visibility. He wants young queer athletes to feel safer than he once did.
“The reactions I hope for are the ones I won’t hear,” Brown said. “It’s those young men across Australia thinking, ‘I feel seen, I feel a little bit safer, and I have someone I can look to.’”
Now 36, Brown shares two sons with his ex-wife, professional netball player Shae Bolton Brown. His twin brother Nathan also played in the AFL, winning a premiership with Collingwood in 2010.
Brown said he believes there are still closeted players in the league. To them, he had a simple message: “I see you, and you are not alone.”
