'Football Is For All' — Two-time Super Bowl champion Khalen Saunders sends powerful message with LGBTQ-friendly youth football camp
This summer, New Orleans Saints defensive tackle Khalen Saunders is starting an LGBTQ-friendly youth football camp. He announced this at the 2025 GLAAD Media Awards on Thursday, March 27, per PEOPLE. And he also spoke about it on NFL Network's "Good Morning Football." There, he had one clear message: "Football is for all." "Being an ally is more than just […]
This summer, New Orleans Saints defensive tackle Khalen Saunders is starting an LGBTQ-friendly youth football camp.
He announced this at the 2025 GLAAD Media Awards on Thursday, March 27, per PEOPLE. And he also spoke about it on NFL Network's "Good Morning Football."
There, he had one clear message: "Football is for all."
"Being an ally is more than just saying I support, but it's also showing up," Saunders explained. "Being in the NFL is very male-dominant and heterosexual dominant and it feels as though there's not really a space for the LGBTQ community."
The camp will begin on July 5. And Sanders is teaming up with former Dallas Cowboys and Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive end RK Russell, who came out as bisexual in 2019.
"These are people who feel like they have to be hidden, although they might love the sport, they might love the NFL, they might love football in general as a sport, but they kind of shy away from it just because of orientations, or all these other kind of outside things," Saunders added.
"That's my goal to continue to spread positive energy around that because football is for everybody," he continued.
The Saints defensive tackle took a moment to comment on his football camp on X, formerly known as Twitter. ./
"Football is for all! Radiate positivity over anything else. Peace and love ❤️☮️," he wrote.
Sanders is also a founder of the Original Element Foundation that recognizes "the power of being an 'original' who defies expectations."
"Khalen is passionate about uplifting individuals and communities that have been overlooked or doubted. The foundation’s mission is to instill hope and foster opportunities for those seeking to rise above challenges, just as Khalen has throughout his life," the Original Element Foundation site explains. "Through the Original Element Foundation, Khalen is dedicated to empowering others to embrace their unique potential and pursue success, no matter the obstacles."