Community football club members in Perth believe more must be done to ensure the safety and inclusion of LGBTQIA+ players in the sport.

The issue has been raised this week after the AFL banned Port Adelaide player Jeremy Finlayson for homophobic comments towards an opposition player. The incident occurred just a month after North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson was fined $20,000 and a suspended two match ban for also making homophobic comments.

Coolbinia Amateur Football Club President and member of the LGBTQIA+ community Brock Wilson says the AFL needs to implement a specific policy to address the issue.

“I think the AFL just doesn’t have a black and white policy…it feels as though they are making it up on the go,” he says.

“The stigma is still there, we start to think it’s going away and then we have some more things like this happen at the top level where these people that we look up to and I think that just pushes us all back.”

Coolbinia Football Club hosts an annual pride round aimed at promoting LGBTQIA+ representation at local football clubs.

Mr Wilson says more needs to be done to further LGBTQIA+ education and address communication issues occurring at amateur level.

The Perth Hornets are the city’s only LGBTQIA+ football team and have more than 50 members.

Club President Ian Odlum says the club provides a safe space for members.

“We are focused mainly on providing a space for anyone in the Queer community or allies that want a place in playing AFL, the sport that they enjoy,” he says.

“It formed as a way of providing that space for people that didn’t feel like they could do that in an existing club.”

Mr Odlum wants all levels of AFL to push for improvement.

“The more that we can create a safe space for conversation whereby people who don’t understand anything about the Queer community can ask questions and then build that understanding,” he says.

“That’s where that fear subsides and acceptance grows.”

Mr Odlum says the Jeremy Finlayson incident compounded the issue of a lack of education in the AFL and a non-inclusive environment.

“Just having the word that he used in his vocabulary is indicative of the face that not enough has been done,” he says.

“They need to start showing more support for the community by having at least a pride round.”

According to a report, 16 per cent of people working in the sporting sector identify as someone with a diverse sexuality or gender.

Brock Wilson says listening to such people represents a chance to improve.

“I think you’ve just got to listen to the people that know what they are talking about,” he says.

“It’s all about listening and they’ll educate you on the right things to do and say.”