Abstract
In 2013, Robbie Rogers, an American professional soccer player living out his dream as a member of a British team, came out as gay to his family and fans. The subsequent coverage varied across outlets, especially between those based inside and outside of the United States. In general, media reports outside of the United States articulated Rogers to Justin Fashanu, a British soccer player who had been outed in 1990 and subsequently completed a suicide in 1998 after years of torment. American-based reporting tied Rogers to narratives about the gradual cultural acceptance of LGBT personalities. We engage this reporting as an opportunity to revisit the importance of context as a consideration in the conditions of possibility for queer worldmaking.
