Arsenal FC and Manchester City FC have teamed up with openly gay player Thomas Hitzlsperger, Stonewall, the Gay Football Supporters Network (GFSN), and Paddy Power to support this year's Rainbow Lace weekend, which sees rainbow-coloured laces sent to to every professional club and footballer in Britain to support gay players and fans, backed by the Premier League.
Arsenal players Mikel Arteta, Theo Walcott, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Olivier Giroud and Santi Cazorla have appeared in a TV ad called The Changing Room to promote the campaign and raise awareness of homophobia in football.