Carl Nassib celebrates 3-year anniversary of coming out & making NFL history

Now that's what we call HISTORY!

On June 21, 2021, Carl Nassib came out as gay and made history as the first-ever active player in the National Football League (NFL) to do so. Nassib was playing for the Las Vegas Raiders at the time and shared the announcement via Instagram.

Earlier this week, Nassib shared a series of Instagram posts attending a London concert of Taylor Swift's The Eras Tour. That particular show, which took place on June 21, 2024, also served as a moment for Nassib to celebrate his three-year anniversary since coming out.

"Best night of my life," the former NFL star wrote in an Instagram story.

Nassib's second Instagram story was a video showing the packed Wembley Stadium with fans freaking out over The Eras Tour. Considering that Nassib is a certified Swiftie himself, it's safe to say that he was getting his life at the concert, too.

Lastly, Nassib re-shared an Instagram post from ESPN that acknowledged his three-year anniversary of coming out and making NFL history.

"Only a [Taylor Swift] concert would make me forget yesterday was three years! Happy Pride everyone! [Pride flag emojis]."

The original ESPN post re-shared by Nassib read:

"Three years ago today, Carl Nassib became the first active NFL player to publicly come out as gay. The support he received from around the league was amazing to see."

It might feel like yesterday — those lockdown years still feel like a blur! — but Nassib did come out three years ago. Between playing for the Cleveland Browns, the Las Vegas Raiders, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, he was still very much an active player in the NFL at the time.

Nassib said in his coming-out video:

"What's up, people? I'm at my house in West Chester, Pennsylvania. I just wanted to take a quick moment to say that I'm gay. I've been meaning to do this for a while now, but finally feel comfortable getting it off my chest. I really have the best life; the best family, friends, and job a guy can ask for. I'm a pretty private person, so I hope you guys know that I'm not doing this for attention. I just think that representation and visibility are so important."

He added, "I actually hope that one day, videos like this and the whole coming-out process are not necessary. But, until then, I will do my best and my part to cultivate a culture that's accepting and compassionate. I'm going to start by donating $100,000 to the Trevor Project. They're an incredible organization. They're the number one suicide-prevention service for LGBTQ+ youth in America, and they're truly doing incredible things. I'm very excited to be a part of it and help in any way that I can, and I'm really pumped to see what the future holds."

We love to love the legendary Carl Nassib!