Jankto, 27, has played 45 times for the Czech national team, scoring four goals and assisting 13 more in 45 matches. He formerly played for the Italian clubs Sampdoria and Udinese.
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Jakub Jankto, a midfielder for the Czech Republic national team and Sparta Prague has revealed that he is gay. In a video that he shared on Twitter, Jankto declared: “I’m gay. I also no longer desire to remain anonymous.” Jankto, 27, has played 45 times for the Czech national team, scoring four goals and assisting 13 more. He formerly played for the Italian clubs Sampdoria and Udinese. Like everyone else, Jankto declares in the film, “I want to live my life in freedom, without fear, without violence, without discrimination, but with love.”
Jankto’s decision to come out was supported by Sparta Prague, which issued the following statement: “Jakub spoke freely about his sexual orientation with the club some time ago. Everything else is personal to him. None more to say. No more questions. We are behind you. Jakub, live your life. Nothing else is important. Getafe also tweeted the following: “Our player Jakub Jankto has our deepest admiration and unwavering support.” The Czech national team said “nothing is changing for us.” The Premier League responded to Jankto’s video with a comment saying: “We’re with you, Jakub. Football is for everyone.”
In 2014, Jankto left Slavia Prague for Udinese, reportedly for €700,000. He left the team without making his league debut in 2015 and was loaned to Serie B outfit Ascoli. On September 15, 2015, in Ascoli’s 1-0 home victory over Virtus Entella in Serie B, he made his professional league debut. Sampdoria confirmed on July 6th, 2018, that Jankto had signed a loan agreement with the team with an option to purchase him for €15 million. Jankto scored on his Sampdoria debut on August 12, 2018, in a 1-0 Coppa Italia victory over Viterbese. Later, Sampdoria made the switch permanent. Jankto and La Liga team Getafe CF agreed to a two-year contract on August 20, 2021. He signed a one-year loan agreement with Sparta Prague and left for his home nation on August 10 of the following year.
In the men’s game in the UK last year, Jake Daniels of Blackpool made history by becoming the first professional athlete to come out while still competing in more than 30 years. Justin Fashanu, who played for clubs in England and Scotland after coming out as gay in October 1990, was the last active men’s professional football player in the UK to do so before Daniels. Josh Cavallo, an Adelaide United player who came out in October, was the only active out homosexual top-flight male professional footballer in the world prior to Jankto’s public coming out.
Sparta Prague announced in a statement that Jankto had “some time ago” spoken openly about his sexual orientation with the club’s management, coach, and teammates. Former Aston Villa and Germany midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger, 40, who came out in January 2014, a few months after retiring because of injury problems, tweeted: “What a player! What a personality! Jakub deserves praise for standing up and setting an example for others.”
