The Gay Football Supporters’ Network welcomes the Premier League Clubs signing the Government’s Charter Against Homophobia & Transphobia In Sport today. Whilst many amateur and Football League teams have already signed and supported the Charter, we are encouraged to see participation from the members of the world’s most popular football league.

As representatives of many thousands of LGBT football fans across the UK, the GFSN will be contacting each club to see how we can help them implement anti-homophobia policies both on and off the pitch, in line with the aspirations of the Charter. We will be closely monitoring their ongoing progress to ensure this is not just a symbolic gesture.

We also look forward to the remaining Football League clubs signing the Charter in due course.

Says GFSN Chair, Chris Basiurski:

“We are delighted that the Premier League Clubs have decided to sign the Government’s charter but we are conscious that is just the first step. We are keen to ensure that the clubs are not just making an empty gesture but are truly committed to the cause of tackling homophobia and we are calling on them to commit as much time and resources to this cause as they have previously demonstrated in the largely successful fight against racism.

With the recent BBC3 documentary highlighting that the issue of homophobia is prevalent in the game today, creating a safe and tolerant atmosphere in football for LGBT people has never been more important and we hope to see some real progress from the Clubs in the wake of their signing the Charter.”

Link to the Premier League’s own website story:

http://www.premierleague.com/en-gb/news/news/premier-league-clubs-sign-sports-charter.html

To contact the GFSN, please use the contact form on the homepage.

Chair Chris Basiurski and Campaigns Officer Ed Connell

LONDON 15th OCTOBER 2011

The Gay Football Supporters’ Network (GFSN) today signed the Government’s “Tackling Homophobia and Transphobia in Sport: The Charter for   Action”. GFSN chair, Chris Basiurski signed the Charter on behalf of the GFSN at an 11-a-side tournament hosted by London Titans F.C. on Saturday 15th October. The tournament was won by Village Manchester FC who beat London Romans FC on penalties in an action-packed final.

The Charter, which was launched in March this year and has been signed by   the likes of Football Association, the England and Wales Cricket Board, the Rugby Football Union, the Rugby Football League and the Lawn Tennis Association, aims to make sport accessible for all and its signatories are committed to tackling homophobia and transphobia in sport.

The GFSN is the largest network of LGBT football supporters and players in the UK and hosts its own league, which is the world’s only national league aimed at the LGBT community. It has been working with the FA and the other footballing bodies for many years to address homophobia in football both on and off the pitch and sees it’s signing the Charter as endorsing its aims and spirits.

Ed Connell, campaigns officer for the GFSN says:

“We are really pleased to be endorsing this Charter and hope that its aims and objectives will carry across sporting and political divides to gain real progress for LGBT inclusion in sport. The GFSN was set up due to many of our members feeling disenfranchised from mainstream football so we welcome any initiative that seeks to address this issue. There is a great deal of work to do which requires commitment, dedication and adequate resources from   the football authorities as well as scrutiny and support from the Government to make the aims of this Charter a reality and we look forward to assisting them in their efforts”

Lynne Featherstone as Minister for Equalities adds:

“There is no room for prejudice of any kind, anywhere in sport. The Government has created a Charter for Action which commits signatories to challenge discrimination and work to rid sport of homophobic and transphobic   abuse both on the stands and in the field, so that everyone can take part in   and enjoy sport. The Gay Football Supporters Networkhasjoined over 30 different sports and 2000 other organisations and individuals who have signed the Charter so far and I thank them for their pledge. Everyone who loves sport should sign the Charter and help kick homophobia and transphobia out of sport for good.”

For more information on the Charter For Action please see online:
www.facebook.com/lgbtsportcharter

GFSN Teams Back The Government Charter at the London Titans Tournament

The GFSN attended a reception at 10 Downing Street today, in the presence of Prime Minister David Cameron and Sports Minister Hugh Robertson, to mark the launch of the Government’s “Charter for Action” against homophobia and transphobia in sport.

GFSN chair Chris Basiurski joined representatives of sports governing bodies including The Football Association, the England and Wales Cricket Board, the Rugby Football Union and Rugby Football League, who have all signed up to the charter.

The GFSN welcomes the Government’s initiative in bringing these organisations together to combat the issue of homophobia in sport and is glad to hear that future government funding will be conditional on sports bodies signing up to the Charter for Action.

Says Chris Basiurski, GFSN Chair:

“We cautiously welcome this Charter for Action, but now we want to see action and not just words. For many years we have been pressing for the issue of homophobia in sport to be taken seriously and we are delighted that the Government and the sporting bodies have taken this important step. We have a unique opportunity to seize the initiative and make sport more accessible and welcoming to LGBT participants.”

The weekend kicked off with a football shirt party at Legends bar & club on Brighton seafront on the Friday night. Hundreds of GFSN members descended on the club for a night of partying and the draw for the national tournament.

Saturday began with the yearly GFSN 5-a-side tournament featuring players and teams from all over England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales.

Stonewall FC 1 beat Mersey Marauders 1 2-0 in the final of the main GFSN Shield competition, while Stonewall 2 beat Birmingham Blaze 2 on penalties in the secondary competition to secure the Vase.

After the tournament, members met at the Camelford Arms to watch the England-Switzerland friendly before a pub crawl round Brighton’s gay bars.

On Sunday the focus moved on to the AGM where the committee was re-elected and new members proposed. The yearly report was ratified by the members and new proposals discussed.

Says Chris Basiurski, GFSN Chair:

“Yet another cracking get-together on another sunny weekend. It was great to see so many GFSN members meeting up and making new friends. UK LGBT football goes from strength to strength and its fantastic to welcome new teams such as Wolverhampton Harts joining us for the first time.”

Here’s the full details for the 2011 GFSN get-together which will be held in Brighton from the 3rd to 5th of June.

Friday 3rd June – Registration and Opening Party
Legends will be hosting the first night of festivities. Registration will be open from 7:30pm until 10:30pm. There will be a special stage act on at 9:30pm, drinks promotions, and free entry to the basement club all night! Friday is traditionally football shirt night, so come wearing your teams colours.

Saturday 4th June
Tournament, Camelford Street Party, and England vs Switzerland

The 5-aside-tournament will be held on the 2G astroturf pitches at Stanley Deason Leisure Centre. Teams are to be on site by 10:30am for a prompt 11:00am start. There will be various competitions to play for, so there will be a full day of play for every team!

There will be light refreshments and snacks available on site, and the tournament will finish around 4pm. The entry fee will be £5 per player.

Street Party outside Camelford Arms
The Camelford Arms are proud sponsors of the Brighton Bandits, and are holding a special GFSN street party on the Saturday night! Activities will starting at around 6pm and finish towards midnight, after which point feel free to enjoy Brightons vibrant scene. For more information, visit the GScene website.

Please be advised that many venues do not like large groups of lads turning up together, so split into groups of no more than 3-4’s.  Based on recent experience, we would advise not attempting to get into Charles Street or the R-Bar. England face Switzerland in the Euro 2012 qualifiers, which kicks off at 4:45pm, so we are trying to arrange a venue to watch the game (either The Camelford or The Amsterdam).

Sunday 5th June
Awards Ceremony, AGM and Managers Meeting

The AGM will take place at 11:30. Venue TBC.

Accommodation
Hotels and guesthouses fill-up very quickly in Brighton, so don’t delay in booking your accommodation.

Who can come?
Anyone is welcome to come along! You do need to be a member of the GFSN, but it costs just £6 for lifetime membership. Latecomers who miss registration on Friday can also register at the tournament, but must arrive in good time.

General Information
Further detailed information will be made available to team members nearer the time.

Buses run along St James’s Street (the backbone of Kemptown, the main gay area). Stanley Deason is to the east just north of East Brighton park; the number 1 passes nearby the Stanley Deason, and the 21 passes directly outside. http://history.buses.co.uk/bustimes/ Brighton%20Area%20Map.pdf

Car parking is a nightmare, but one of the cheapest is the Councils London Road car park . Most of the city has residents only parking or extortionate on-street meters. Queens Park has some free on-street parking and is a shortish walk from Kemptown. Marderia Drive is close by but a bit pricey. There is free parking at the Leisure Centre.

Southern Railways do a super group save ticket, meaning you can travel from London to Brighton for just £2/person!

Sports Minister Hugh Robertson (Conservative, Faversham and Mid Kent) has given an exclusive interview to the GSFN where he discusses issues including the government’s opposition to homophobia in football, and his wish to see a united GB team for the London 2012 Olympic Games.

“Homophobia is still seen as a taboo subject in football and this is proven by the fact that there are no openly gay professional players” says Mr Robertson, “but this must change. Homophobia is totally unacceptable in any sport.”

“We need a cultural change in how homophobia is viewed in sport and working with bodies such as the Gay Football Supporters’ Network will be crucial in getting the message across that any form of homophobia in football or any other sport is not to be tolerated.”

Chris Basiurski, the chair of GFSN agrees with the Sports Minister;  ”Sport in general, but especially football, needs a culture change in the way LGBT people are perceived. We expect the coalition government to work with the relevant football authorities to ensure that efforts to tackle homophobia are sustained and effective – and not just words.”

Here’s the full interview:

You say you support Chelsea in your spare time. Do you get the opportunity to go and see them play at all and how do you rate their prospects for the rest of the season?

Not as much as I would like – not least because, as Minister for Sport and the Olympics, I have to divide my time between all sports. I think it will be hard for Chelsea to win the Premier League this season because they haven’t been as consistent as in recent years.

The recent purchase of Fernando Torres from Liverpool will help as will the purchase of David Luiz who already looks to be a great find. I was disappointed to see us get knocked out of the FA Cup by Everton on penalties, but still remain optimistic with our chances in the Champions League. That has to be our priority now.

What are your earliest and best football memories?

Watching the Liverpool sides of the 70’s win everything but I particularly remember watching the 1990 World Cup whilst I was serving in the army in Germany. I started watching Chelsea every week whilst I was working in London in the mid 90’s.

Why do you think that we have made so much progress in football dealing with racism (Kick It Out etc) yet homophobia remains prevalent in the sport?

Kick It Out has made great progress with educating people with the simple message that any form of racism in the game is not to be tolerated and is not acceptable. It is pleasing to see so many different bodies all pulling in the same direction on this issue.

Although we have made some great advances, it is extremely disappointing to see that some European countries seem to be behind the times. Homophobia is still seen as a taboo subject in football and this is proven by the fact that there are no openly gay professional players – but this must change. Homophobia is totally unacceptable in any sport.

Why do you think there are currently no openly gay professional players?

I don’t know but the macho culture of the game is probably the main reason. Football is a game that should be inclusive at all levels and shouldn’t discriminate against race, sexuality, gender or disability, a point that Prime Minister made while on a recent trip to Qatar, where the 2022 FIFA World Cup will be played.

In light of your recent comments where you stated football was “the worst governed sport in the country” do you think this weak governance has led the football authorities to taking a weak stance in tackling homophobia in the game?

No. My point was a more general one about the lack of independent non executive directors we have at the FA. However, well governed sports tackle issues like homophobia more effectively.

What do you think the Coalition Government can do to encourage the football authorities to be far more inclusive in how they operate, especially in the light of the cutbacks in public spending?

The cutbacks in public spending will not have an effect on how we encourage all sports to be inclusive. Homophobia is an issue that affects all types of sports and we have a role to push an inclusive message as we gear up to London 2012 next year.

We are totally committed to delivering a highly accessible and inclusive Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012. The 70,000 volunteer ‘Games Makers’ will come from a diverse range of communities and backgrounds across the UK.

DCMS, Sport England, UK Sport and the Government Equalities Office are working to fulfil the commitments made for sport in the publication ‘Working for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Equality.’ We are also working with the Mayor of London and others to ensure a safe and successful Olympic and Paralympic Games in London 2012.

Is there anything we can do, working in conjunction with you and other like-minded politicians, to move things forward in practical and achievable ways?

We need a cultural change in how homophobia is viewed in sport and working with bodies such as the Gay Football Supporters‘ Network will be crucial in getting the message across that any form of homophobia in football or any other sport is not to be tolerated.

How about arranging a match between MPs and GFSN members to get some positive publicity rather than all the negative things that we read about politicians and issues of sexuality?

It would be a great idea and one I would totally support.

As the excitement for the 2012 Olympics grows do you think that there should be a team GB in the football tournament in one of the future Games?

Yes. I would certainly like to see all the home nation Football Associations support a GB football team that will play in London 2012. It would be great to see players from all the home nations coming together to compete for Team GB and it is particularly important for the exposure of women’s game.

Finally as you are a playing member of the MCC it would be remiss of us not to ask how you felt when England trounced Australia in the recent Ashes series?

It was fantastic. I was incredibly impressed by the way that the team management formulated a plan to beat Australia before the series and then executed it during the tests. The performances of Alastair Cook speak for themselves but I thought that the bowlers, and in particular Jimmy Anderson, bowled fantastically. Test matches, are, after all, won on the ability to bowl out the opposition twice!

Squads from the length and breadth of the UK travelled to the South Leeds Stadium in order to take part in this ever-popular LGBT football competition.

The tournament was won by previously perennial runners-up, Mersey Marauders FC, beating recent GFSN additions Exeter Lions 2-0 in an exciting final. Amongst the teams were Hotscots FC (Edinburgh), Village Manchester FC, Nottingham Ballbois, Cardiff Dragons, London Titans, Trowbridge Tigers and many more.

More picture are available on the official GFSN Facebook page here:

http://www.facebook.com/GayFootballSupportersNetwork

Saltire Thistle (Glasgow), Devon Lions, and Bristol Panthers will all join the world’s only national LGBT football league. We welcome all three teams and look forward to seeing them in our 11-a-side competition.

Terry Connolly, secretary of the GFSN National League said:

“All three teams were unanimously accepted into the league and we’re looking forward to welcoming them into the GFSN family. This brings the number of full league members to 15 teams – a clear indication that gay-friendly football is flourishing across the UK.”

Here are the details of the weekend:

SATURDAY NIGHT – SOCIAL
The Yorkshire Tournament kicks off properly on Saturday night in The Loft above Queens Court. We have drinks offers in the upstairs bar but if you use the downstairs bar you will get charged full price – you have been warned.

The draw will be announced at some point in the evening and then people are free to move about the other bars as they want. We have also got free entry into Mission. We’re expecting a record turnout this year and have a lot of old friends coming from teams we don’t see much anymore, again it would be great is as many people as possible could come along, show their faces and support.

SUNDAY – TOURNAMENT
The matches are to be played at John Charles Centre for Sport in Leeds and so far 30 teams have confirmed their entry, making this year’s tournament one of the biggest yet.

The tournament starts on Sunday morning at 10:30am PROMPT, get there early please (9:45am) as we have a lot of football to get through.

A buffet and the prize giving will then be on at The Viaduct Showbar from 4:30pm – 5:00pm and then no doubt further drinking.

The tournament venue is:
South Leeds Stadium
Middleton Grove
Leeds
West Yorkshire
LS11 5DJ

(Its about £5 in a taxi from Leeds city centre).