The A-Leagues have announced a multi-weekend Pride Celebration to be held between February 24 and March 4, continuing the Australian Professional Leagues’ efforts to create a safer and more inclusive space for all in Australian football.
The Pride Celebration will take place across all A-Leagues fixtures on the weekend of February 24-26 in Australia, continuing the following weekend in New Zealand at Wellington’s A-Leagues double-header at Sky Stadium on March 4.
Headlining the Pride Celebration is the ‘Pride Cup’ double-header at AAMI Park between Melbourne Victory and Adelaide United on February 26.
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Across the Pride Celebration, $1 from every ticket sold will be donated to Pride Cup’s community fund, supporting community clubs and the organisation’s own pride events, all in the name of inclusion, acceptance and support of the LGBTI+ community.
Wellington Phoenix are supporting a New Zealand based LGBTI+ charitable organisation.
The celebration will provide education and information to clubs, fans and stadia officials; signage will be prominently displayed, and there will be a specific focus on online safety for all throughout.
Some clubs will wear Pride kits throughout the celebration, with captain’s armbands available for those who opt in. While each club is celebrating Pride in their own way, all clubs have undergone LGBTI+ education sessions, and all clubs and players have access to platforms to make them feel safer online.
A-Leagues CEO Danny Townsend says the Pride Celebration will build on the success of the Pride Cup in 2021, hosted by Adelaide United against Melbourne Victory in the Liberty A-League and Central Coast Mariners in the Isuzu UTE A-League in a Coopers Stadium double-header.
“We began this journey with Pride Cup in 2021 and since then we have worked together to implement change for the better,” Townsend said. “Whilst we’re not at our end goal yet, we’re proud of the strides we’ve made to make our sport more welcoming and inclusive for our fans, players and staff and wider communities.
“The Pride Celebration is grounded in education, training and an ambition for long-term impact. We’re getting the foundations right to make positive change. This is certainly a long-term project, but we’re committed to ensuring every person involved with our game feels safe and included.”
The Pride Celebration is the latest in a number of initiatives from the A-Leagues across the last 18 months implemented to support the LGBTI+ community and inclusivity in football, including a trial of a new stadium safety and inclusion program (now being rolled out nationally), comprehensive training programme for players, staff and executives, and ‘GoBubble’ technology which helps silence players, clubs and fans from online abuse.
Professional Footballers Australia (PFA) CEO Kate Gill said: “The Pride movement is close to many fans and players’ hearts and we’re extremely proud to be celebrating the diversity of our players and fans through a new Pride Celebration in 2023. We want to reduce discrimination, increase education, and improve everyone’s experience when playing our sport so they feel safe, included, and welcome.”
The Pride Celebration takes place alongside World Pride 2023, hosted in Sydney between February 17-March 5.
Pride Cup chief executive officer James Lolicato said the partnership with the A-Leagues for Price Celebration will continue Price Cup’s work with sporting clubs to significantly reduce homophobic language, increasing the understanding of the LGBTI+ community.
“When you change sport, you change communities,” Lolicato said. “And with the outpouring of support from last season’s Pride Game, we’re excited to partner with A-Leagues for a Pride Celebration in 2023.
“(Surveys show) 75% of LGBTI+ people believe an openly gay spectator would not be very safe attending a sporting event. We want that statistic to change and ensure all LGBTI+ people have access to a safe and inclusive sporting environment.”
“Money raised from the round will go towards our work in continuing to educate the community and clubs on inclusivity and reducing discrimination. So far, our work with sporting clubs has been significant in reducing homophobic language and increasing understanding for the LGBTI+ community, which then ripples out to the wider community.
“We want to encourage everyone to come along to A-Leagues’ Pride Celebration and celebrate inclusion, diversity and football with us.”
