Pride House 2012 is excited to announce that the London Broncos Rugby League will be part of the Pride House festival, dedicating their Saturday 4 August 2012 game against Salford Reds to Pride House, in what the club aims to become an annual tradition.
As part of the scheme, discounted tickets (£10 instead of £15) will be available to spectators providing the code “LGBT12” when purchasing tickets at the gate or by phone 0208 410 6000.
A musical programme is planned, as is the presence of special guests including Gay Games Ambassador Ji Wallace from Australia, an Olympic medalist in trampoline.
Lou Englefield, director of lead partner Pride Sports, explains: “When we approached London Broncos, they were very interested in engaging with the LGBT community and in fighting homophobia. This special Pride House match goes beyond previous actions which were focused on anti-homophobia campaigns, because it aims to make LGBT fans a real part of the club’s family.”
A spokesperson for the Broncos added: “Since hearing the proposal from Pride House we immediately knew we wanted to play a role in spreading their message. Our club is great believer in sport as a tool for progress, and we want this year’s LGBT day to be just the first step in an ongoing engagement with LGBT Londoners, local LGBT clubs and individuals.
“We’re already anticipating a great day at this year’s Pride House event, and look forward to seeing many fans join us at Twickenham Stoop this Saturday.”
Pride House 2012 takes place at CA House at Limehouse Basin from 3-7 August and on 12 August. It is a project of Pride Sports UK, in collaboration with the European Gay and Lesbian Sport Federation, the Federation of Gay Games, the Gay and Lesbian International Sport Association (GLISA), Phoenix FC and the LGBT Consortium.
Pride House is also a festival running from 3-12 August 2012, with a range of special offerings, including several sports events, among which the Broncos rugby match, a football tournament, a 5K run, and a bowling night.
The Football Association has just added its support to the football tournament organised by Phoenix FC, joining the International Gay and Lesbian Football Association and sponsors GLISA and Barefoot Wines.
Just added to the programme is a Tennis Tester as part of Tower Hamlets Tennis summer tennis sessions at Victoria Park. Wednesday 8 August 2012 from 11am to 6pm will be Pride House Day, with a special invitation to LGBT people and friends to discover tennis. For details, visit www.pridehouse2012.org.
The final weekend of the Olympics will see at Pride House picnic and games day in London park, open to all, on Saturday 11 August, a party at the Shadow Lounge the evening of Saturday 11 August, and a viewing of closing ceremony at CA House on Sunday 12 August. For details, visit www.pridehouse2012.org.
Registration for the other sports events remains open.
With these new events, programming for Pride House 2012 is complete. Lou Englefield expressed her satisfaction with the programme: “Our goal was to offer something every day from the 3rd to the 12th, the day of closing ceremony. We’ve reached that goal, with a mix of educational programming and participatory and spectator sports. This is a real achievement for a project that was launched only weeks ago. I thank the institutions and individuals who have made this possible, and look forward to seeing LGBT people and friends, Londoners and visitors, Olympians and recreational athletes, at Pride House at CA House and any of the other venues of the Pride House festival.”