
Michael StrahanSince 2008, when he retired from the NFL, he’s been a beloved television personality. He’s hosted popular morning shows, including Live! Live! Good Morning AmericaAs well as the popular primetime show game show, $100,000 Pyramid. But rumors have been circulating for a while about the 50-year-old former Giant’s sexual orientation. Is Michael Strahan gay? Where did these rumors originate? We investigate.
Accusations From Strahan’s Ex-Wife Sparked The Gay Rumors
The rumors arose in 2006, when Strahan was going through a difficult and contentious divorce from Jean Muggli. The couple was married for seven years—from 1999 until 2006—and had two children together, twins Sophia and Isabella.
During the divorce proceedings Muggli charged Strahan with having had an extramarital affair with Dr. Ian Smith, who’s best known for his co-hosting gig on the health talk show The Doctors. “Michael moved into Ian’s one-bedroom apartment,” Muggli said in court. “And you can say an alternative lifestyle sprouted.” At this point, her lawyer stopped her from elaborating any further.

Muggli also filed a domestic violence complaint against StrahanShe claimed that Muggli, a former football pro, had physically abused her. It appears as though the complaint was quickly dropped, and what’s even more interesting is the fact that Muggli faced similar charges in 2021Violation of a restraining orders
According to The Daily Mail Marianne Ayer, Muggli’s ex-girlfriend filed the restraining orders against her. In her filing, Ayer accused Strahan’s ex of a number of troubling crimes, including harassment, forcible touching and coercion, disorderly conduct, and grand larceny. Ayer claimed Muggli threatened her at gunpoint once (the firearm was fake, but Ayer didn’t know that) and she even abused her pets by kick-kicking her German Shepard.
Strahan sets the record straight
Strahan vehemently denied his ex’s allegations of abuseWhile trying to be as civil as possible. “It’s unfortunate that some marriages don’t always work out for both parties, but that’s a painful reality of the times we live in,” he told the New York Post2005. “I would never physically or psychologically harm any of my loved ones, especially my wife. That’s simply not the man I am. I will continue to respect Jean’s privacy and not contribute to a public spectacle of an extremely private matter.”
The ex-football pro added that his children were what mattered most to him. “I love my children with all my heart and will continue to be the father figure that I had growing up. I owe it to my daughters to end my marriage respectfully and with dignity.”
In 2012, Strahan addressed the gay rumors in an interview with Bryant Gumbel on HBO’s Real Sports, saying: “I’m not an adulterer. I’m not gay. I mean, I didn’t beat anybody.”
He’s also not homophobic and publicly supports the LGBTQ community through initiatives like the Human Rights Campaign’s New Yorkers for Marriage Equality.
“As a defensive end for the New York Giants, I always played the game tough but fair,” he says in the HRC’s PSA. “And I feel it’s unfair to stop committed couples from getting married. We believe everyone should have the right to get married.”
Strahan continues to show his support for gay athletes.
“I think at this point in the landscape of sports and anybody with common sense understands that people are different,” Strahan said in a 2016 interview with Andy Cohen on Live: See What Happens “What you do as a person and at home doesn’t determine how you do your job. As athletes, we know that. I think the locker room is a safe place.”