Condiciones anteriores.-

McCormack (2011b, p.665) theorised three core components of homophobic language in sporting settings. He demonstrated that there were two ‘requisite features’ in the literature: “1) it is said with pernicious intent; and 2) it has a negative social effect”. However, McCormack argues that a third component is also assumed through most of the literature— that it is also said in a homophobic environment. While it is clearly possible that homophobic language can be said by someone in a context where everyone else is pro-gay, the important point is that the way homophobic language is traditionally theorised and understood is in a homophobic social context. In settings where homophobia has decreased, the use of such language is distinct.

McCormack (2011b) has discussed how decreasing homohysteria in a culture has led to different interpretations of homosexually-themed language. Lalor and Rendle-Short (2007) have demonstrated that the word ‘gay’ has become polysemous, with each interpretation of the word correlated generationally. The word ‘gay’ and phrases such as ‘that’s so gay’ can be used in three different ways, as:

(i) homophobic language, with pernicious intent and the effect of creating a negative connotation,

(ii) gay discourse, with no positive or negative intent, yet with the effect of privileging heterosexuality, and

(iii) pro-gay language, with either no intent or a positive intent, while generating a positive social effect.

These interpretations are informed by the level of homohysteria within a culture or

subculture, and by the intent-context-effect matrix (McCormack, Wignall & Morris, 2016). When participants here were asked about the phrase ‘that’s so gay’, 13 stated that they believed that the phrase was homophobic, at least passively. Also noteworthy, of the

previously mentioned 5 participants that said they had used, or still use, homophobic

language in the past, all 5 of those athletes stated that they believe the phrase ‘that’s so gay’ qualifies as homophobic language. I had previously stated that 6 of the 35 men had claimed to have witnessed discrimination towards LGBT people while at Northern University;

however, all 6 of those participants cited the instances of homophobia being around language such as ‘that’s so gay’, and other forms of gay discourse that they are uncomfortable using themselves.

Steven, an American Volleyball player, said that the phrase is definitely homophobic, he elaborated “it’s a phrase that has been watered down, and people use the phrase without fully understanding what they’re saying, but it puts a negative connotation on what it means to be gay”. Adrian, a basketball player from the UK said:

It’s often homophobic, but it is beginning to phase out as people understand more about homophobia. I grew up in a culture where it was common to call people gay as an offensive term, but due to more understanding of homophobia I look to avoid using these terms now. Even though they are sometimes used out of habit and have taken on more of a meaning of describing something as ‘bad’, it is still homophobic whether it is intended to or not.

Here, both Steven and Adrian interpret the phrase ‘that’s so gay’ to be inherently

homophobic, even today, regardless of the context, because they correlate the new meaning of ‘bad’ to still associate gayness with a negative connotation.

Contrastingly, 16 participants believed that the phrase ‘that’s so gay’ could be used as homophobic language, depending on the context; however, they claimed that the phrase has taken on a new meaning that is not associated with sexual orientation at all, falling more in line with McCormack and Anderson’s (2010) model of gay discourse.

Finn, a water polo player from America said “I believe that it’s not appropriate, however it’s not usually intended to offend anyone. It’s such a casual phrase now and I don’t think that people actually think of the sexual orientation facet of the phrase anymore”. In Finn’s view, the phrase holds no malicious homophobic intent, and is completely disjointed from its origins of sexual orientation.

Lastly, of the 35 participants, 6 responded that the phrase usually does not hold a negative meaning, and that they have used it as a way of showing inclusivity with gay

friends. British Volleyball player, Glenn, said “It depends on the context. But I think it can be used as a way of pointing out similarities between certain aspects of gay culture and things that straight people do, which kind of makes it fun and inclusive”. Marcel, a British

volleyball player agreed with Glenn’s analysis, and said:

“I think that there is an emergence of gay culture into mainstream culture at the moment, which is seeing the use of ‘gay expressions’ in a wider cultural context, even for straight men. This is shifting the context behind the use of this phrase, and other similar phrases”.

The male participants of this ethnography have provided further proof that team sport culture is no longer synonymous with a homophobic culture. Rather, they have demonstrated that they maintain pro-gay attitudes and welcome gay and bisexual teammates onto the team. They also reveal that homophobic language, with intent to harm, is uncommon amongst elite male athlete; however, the understanding of what qualifies as homophobic language is still contested amongst these athletes.