Mitch Brown Becomes AFL’s First Openly Bisexual Player

Editor in Chief Beth Nicholls covers ex-AFL player Mitch Brown’s coming out and why it is so important in the overwhelmingly masculine industry.

In the 129-year history of the AFL, no male player (either present or past) has publicly identified as gay, bisexual or queer. On 27 August 2025, this changed with ex-West Coast Eagles player, Mitch Brown, coming out as bisexual in an exclusive interview with The Daily Aus (TDA).^[1]

Mitch Brown played 96 games for the Eagles from 2007-2016, and his decision to retire was built off a combination of injuries and being sick of hiding who he was, with his sexuality being a huge factor in his retirement.

"One of the biggest reasons I wanted to finish up playing AFL was to meet new people, to meet a diverse range of people, men and women, different cultural backgrounds, and I craved new conversations. I craved talking to someone and not being judged. I craved the ability to choose who I wanted to be around rather than to fit into a team."^[1]

Brown recounts that there was a hyper-masculinity culture within the AFL when he played, which made questioning your sexuality difficult, along with having to battle casual and directed homophobia.

Over his career, many homophobic comments were directed towards Brown on the field, and not because people were speculating but because being gay was (and still sometimes is) considered the biggest insult.^[1]

Despite these occurrences happening during Brown’s active playing era, we unfortunately still see this behaviour dominate the league today.

Brown made this decision to come out in light of ongoing homophobic incidents in the AFL, including the most recent being Adelaide Crow’s Izak Rankine’s four-match suspension. He hopes that by sharing his story that he can help create the “safety, comfort and space” for others to come forward.

Whilst acknowledging that he has a sense of privilege being a retired player, Brown wants his experience to help other players feel seen, as he believes there are gay and bisexual players (both past and present) who feel alone, based on experience and statistics.

There is a long way to go, but Mitch Brown has taken a huge step of bravery, and he has hopes that he can help contribute to a safer space for fans and players.

ENDNOTES

[1] Koslowski, Sam, et al. "EXCLUSIVE: Ex‑West Coast Player Becomes AFL's First Openly Bisexual Man." The Daily Aus, 27 August 2025, thedailyaus.com.au/sport/first-openly-bisexual-afl-player-26-08-2025.