Liam Broady opens up about LGBTQ+ allyship during Pride Month

Straight but not narrow, noted LGBTQ+ ally Liam Broady has taken up the cause for equality once more, collaborating with the LTA to promote its weekly Pride Days for the month of June.

“I was raised in a way that everybody’s equal and deserves equal chances in life, whether you’re rich or poor, gay or straight, whatever the color of your skin,” explains the Brit in a video posted last week. “That’s something I’m very passionate about, is that we are all equal. I can’t stand when people look down at others. Any cause like that, I want to try and get behind.”

Broady is in the midst of a career-best stretch, pushing Diego Schwartzman to four sets at Wimbledon and winning his first ATP Challenger title last fall—moving ever closer towards an elusive Top 100 debut. The 28-year-old began 2022 with another career milestone, qualifying for the Australian Open.

With a big match against home favorite Nick Kyrgios in front of him, Broady opted to share the stage with something bigger than himself, sporting rainbow shoelaces in support of the LGBTQ+ community.

“I actually got handed them at the end of last year, and I’ve been wanting to wear them to show my support,” he said of the laces. “I didn’t really want it to be in a match of no consequence, so I figured the night match against Kyrgios was the perfect time. I wanted to go out there and get the win with the laces on, but I wanted to show support for the community.”

Broady is among the very few active ATP players—if not the only player—willing to speak so candidly about equal rights and representation. Though he came up short against Kyrgios at the Australian Open, the laces and his subsequent comments in press put him in a class of his own.

“They’ve shown so much support for me over the years and I’m truly appreciative of that. They’ve always been very positive about my tennis, even when I’ve not been, and I’ve taken a lot of strength from that, so I wanted to pay people back in whatever way I could.”

Liam Broady enjoys a large gay fanbase? I can’t imagine why…

Speaking more seriously about the importance of allyship, Broady hopes his support will help foster a welcoming environment for the eventual arrival of an openly queer ATP player.

“It takes that first person to step forward and be open about it, and lead the discussion and maybe it will be like a dam bursting sort of thing and then you’ll see everyone start to feel a bit more comfortable with it and aware.

“At the end of the day, this is the 21st century now and it’s okay, it’s allowed!”