You don't know what people are going through - Coady

"You don't know what people are going through. I certainly don't know what people are going through. But the one way to learn is to listen. Can we listen and learn to make people's lives better when coming to the sport we all love?"

Conor Coady's message is clear.

The 33-year-old former England international says we should all be helping each other "in any walk of life" regardless of our sexuality or identity - or anything else for that matter.

"Football has given me everything in my life and I'd love it to give everybody else everything in their life as well," Coady tells BBC Sport.

"I'd support anybody on the streets, anybody who needs a bit of help. I've always been that sort of person, so for me it is about using our platform as footballers to try and help in any space we possibly can."

Coady is a vocal ally of the LGBTQ+ community and is supporting Football v Homophobia's month of action, as well as the EFL's rainbow ball campaign.

"I was asked a few years ago about the LGBTQ+ community and what it meant to them when they were trying to come to football or they were scared or things were going on at football they didn't like," Coady said.

It is a question he has always answered in the same way and how he believes "everybody should answer it" - or at least how he likes to think people would.

"I've heard plenty of people's stories about what they've been through growing up and what they're going through now," he said.

"I think being in the position that I'm in as a footballer, I'm in the greatest job in the world. I pinch myself every day of my life that I'm a footballer.

"So if we can help in any way, I think we should. If there's a little 1% that you can help with, then go and try and help.

"That's just something that I try and do as much as I can, not just in this community but in any walk of life."

The EFL's chief executive officer Trevor Birch says "we all have a role to play in creating an environment in which everyone feels they truly belong".

How can the football world help? Coady reiterated his advice to "listen and learn".

"Listen to people's stories and listen to what people have gone through," Coady said.

"I think that's the biggest way to gain experience and learn about different situations and different spaces people find themselves in."

The former Wolves, Leicester and Everton player is currently on loan at Championship side Charlton Athletic.

Coady will be watching from the stands as he is unable to face his parent club Wrexham, who visit The Valley on Saturday for the Addicks' ninth annual Football v Homophobia matchday.

"The players are the ones out there living and breathing the game," said Gary Ginnaw, the chair of Charlton Invicta, external - the club's affiliate LGBTQ+ friendly team.

"They're role models to so many people and they can really impact how society sees LGBTQ+ people.

"To understand the issue that LGBTQ+ people go through in football and in general is massively important."

If you witness homophobic or discriminatory abuse at a football match, it can be reported directly to clubs through Kick It Out, external, the EFL's reporting tool, external, or by alerting a steward.