This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Homophobic chanting at football matches could be made illegal under a proposal from a Conservative MP.

Damian Collins will join forces with the former Wales rugby union captain Gareth Thomas on Monday to launch a draft amendment to the Football Offences Act 1991 that would outlaw indecent and homophobic chanting.

Chanting of an “indecent or racialist” nature is banned at football games, but due to confusion over its interpretation the draft bill aims to explicitly ban chants and gestures that make indecent references to “sexual orientation and gender identity”.

The MP for Folkestone and Hythe said: “The time has come to move from acknowledgement to action. That is why Gareth and I are seeking to amend the Football Offences Act 1991 to make chanting or gesturing of an indecent nature with reference to sexual orientation or gender identity against the law.

“When the Football Offences Act came into force, it made racialist abuse within football stadia illegal. The proposed amendment, which I will present to the House of Commons on Monday, seeks to extend that legal protection to LGBT+ players and fans.”

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Collins cited the 10,000 Swiss francs (£7,615) fine handed to the Mexico football federation over chants by some fans last weekend and called for sport governing bodies to take stern action against similar instances.

He said: “Whilst, if enacted, the bill would protect LGBT+ fans and players in the UK, recent events, including at the World Cup, have once again demonstrated that homophobic abuse takes place at football matches the world over.

“Fifa and other sports governing bodies should take the necessary steps to ensure that homophobic abuse will never be tolerated and that action will be taken against people that engage in activities like these, no matter where the game is played.

“We hope that the bill will soon become law and will contribute to making football a sport that is truly open to everyone.”

Thomas, who made 100 appearances for Wales, scoring 41 tries, came out as gay in 2009, shortly after he and his wife divorced.

He moved to rugby league in March 2010, making four appearances for Wales, and retired from all forms of rugby in October 2011.