A football commentator is suing Fox Sports – after he was sacked over anti-gay comments he made.

Craig James, a former NFL tailback, was let go from Fox after just a month in 2013, after footage surfaced of him saying that being gay “is a choice”, and that gay people “will have to answer to the lord for their actions.”

The 54-year-old, who has previously worked on ESPN as a sportscaster, told a crowd at a rally: “People choose to be gay… I think its a choice, I do”, adding that “God’s going to judge each one of us in this room for our actions”.

He also claimed that “we should not give benefits” to gay couples, and that the Boy Scouts of America are “going to have to answer” to God for allowing gay members.

However, James told Breitbart that he has launched legal action, claiming he was fired for his “beliefs over marriage”.

He said: “This is very troubling as an employee when your boss holds against you something you said about your belief system nearly eighteen months before you were recruited and hired.

“I said nothing about my belief system on the air at Fox Sports. So, the fact that they reached back in my past nearly eighteen months and responded to a comment about my biblical belief in natural marriage as a candidate—that’s troubling.”

According to the right-wing news network, the suit claims: “Fox Sports fired James for one reason only: his religious beliefs about marriage.

“In so doing, Fox Sports violated the law. Specifically, Fox Sports violated the Texas Commission on Human Rights Act (‘TCHRA’) and Texas contract law along with a myriad of equitable principles.”

Hiram Sasser of the anti-gay Liberty Institute said: “It makes the case very straightforward.

“They admitted their reason. They were very proud of that reason.”