Members of GayGooners share what Pri month means to them
Contents:
- ARSENAL’S GAY GOONERS AMONG ENGLISH LGBT SOCCER FAN GROUPS PHG FOR CLN
- GAY GOONERS: AT THE FOREONT OF FAN CLN
- 'WE LOVE FOOTBALL AS MUCH AS ANYONE ELSE' - HOW THE GAY GOONERS AND ARSENAL ARE TACKLG HOMOPHOBIA
- GAY GOONERS CELEBRATE 10 YEARS AS ENGLAND’S FIRST LGBT FOOTBALL SUPPORTERS CLUB
- RABOW LAC: GAY GOONERS -CHAIR GRATEFUL FOR CLUB'S YEAR-ROUND SUPPORT AHEAD OF ARSENAL VS NEWSTLE MATCH
ARSENAL’S GAY GOONERS AMONG ENGLISH LGBT SOCCER FAN GROUPS PHG FOR CLN
Gay Gooners is Arsenal Football Club’s official supporters’ group for LGBT+ fans. Established Febary 2013, they are the first and largt LGBT+ fans group England, wh over a thoand of members the UK and overseas. Gay Gooners exists to provi a social group for LGBT+ Arsenal fans, alli and their iends to meet up, provi a safe and welg space, and mpaign to kick homophobia, biphobia and transphobia out of football. * gay arsenal supporters *
Gay Gooners. Gay Gooners is Arsenal Football Club’s official supporters’ group for LGBT+ fans. Gay Gooners exists to provi a social group for LGBT+ Arsenal fans, alli and their iends to meet up, provi a safe and welg space, and mpaign to kick homophobia, biphobia and transphobia out of football.
Gay Gooners holds meet-ups near Emirat Stadium before home fixtur, group trips to away gam and anis regular social events. Gay Gooners’ patron and lifelong Arsenal supporter, edian Matt Lus says he is “immensely proud of and grateful to the club” for s support for the group and how “young gay fans now feel clud by the club a way my generatn never uld”.
The club works directly wh members of the Gay Gooners to tackle anti-LGBT+ discrimatn football by vg members to take part cln trag for staff. Gay Gooners also send a team to the club’s annual Arsenal for Everyone tournament at the muny hub.
GAY GOONERS: AT THE FOREONT OF FAN CLN
* gay arsenal supporters *
Gay Gooners aim to rid football of the surg that are homophobia, biphobia and transphobia (Picture: Metro/Arsenal/Getty)‘I don’t give a toss that you’re LGBT, you’re an Arsenal fan and you hate Spurs! That is the roundg msage om the -chair of Gay Gooners, Arsenal’s official supporters’ group for LGBT+ fans, Carl Fearn, who wants all fans to be treated equally, no matter their sexualy or genr. Gay Gooners is the official Arsenal supporters’ group for LGBT+ fans (Picture: David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Imag)‘I was married for 12 years before I me out, ’ says Fearn.
That filters to what the Gay Gooners are all about at heart. Gay Gooners, who have garnered over 1, 100 members all seven ntents sce the group’s ceptn 2013, are helpg to create a safer environment for LGBT+ fans.
It’s a social group for LGBT+ Arsenal supporters and their iends to provi a safe space which they n meet up, share tickets, anise trips to away gam and mpaign to rid football of the surg that are homophobia, biphobia and transphobia. The Gay Gooners banner was unveiled by club legend Pat Rice MBE (Picture: Getty)What’s so special about the group is how has been embraced by Arsenal. The north London club display the Gay Gooners banner at the Emirat Stadium and ve members to take part cln trag for staff, while the group reprent the Gunners at the annual London Pri para.
'WE LOVE FOOTBALL AS MUCH AS ANYONE ELSE' - HOW THE GAY GOONERS AND ARSENAL ARE TACKLG HOMOPHOBIA
The Gay Gooners have teamed up wh Arsenal to make the Emirat a more welg place for members of the LGBT+ muny * gay arsenal supporters *
Arsenal are vtigatg homophobic abe om fans durg a Premier League clash agast Brighton April, where two supporters were ejected om the Emirat Stadium. In the last week of the 2021/22 mpaign, Gay Gooners noted three cints volvg transphobia and homophobia directed towards members of the group. ‘In the last week of the season, we as a group had three s of transphobia and homophobia agast our members of which I was one.
A group of teenage lads thought they would throw homophobic abe at me.
GAY GOONERS CELEBRATE 10 YEARS AS ENGLAND’S FIRST LGBT FOOTBALL SUPPORTERS CLUB
Arsenal have pledged to take the strongt actn possible after two supporters were ejected om the Emirat durg the sis feat to Brighton last Saturday; the fans were reported to stewards for homophobic abe, wh Gay Gooners -chair Carl Fearn praisg the clubs rponse * gay arsenal supporters *
Carl Fearn wh Arsenal mast Gunnerss (Picture: Getty)Fearn nonts homophobic abers his own diplomatic way, spe standg at over 6’4″ stature, and rells a particularly fond scenar which an aber turned to an ally. He rerc the pot that alli are val, revealg that around 10 per cent of Gay Gooners members intify as straight, but are nohels val supportg the group and speakg out agast discrimatn. ‘We met up a bar and I was so exced bee I had a flag ma for the game which had the Gay Gooners logo on and at the bottom: “Proudly on tour”.
I said, “I’m a member of the Gay Gooners and this is the sort of chant that we’d like to have retired”.
Obvly was beg said homophobilly. Jake Daniels is the first male profsnal footballer England to e out as gay 32 years (Picture: Sky Sports)In May, Blackpool striker Jake Daniels beme the first male profsnal player English football to e out as gay sce Jt Fashanu 1990. Patrice Evra recently opened up on the homophobic views aired by some of his former Wt Ham team-mat, claimg they would ll for a gay player to leave the club and refe to share a post-match shower room wh them.
RABOW LAC: GAY GOONERS -CHAIR GRATEFUL FOR CLUB'S YEAR-ROUND SUPPORT AHEAD OF ARSENAL VS NEWSTLE MATCH
Fearn feels footballg thori such as the FA, FIFA and UEFA are somewhat plic that gay footballers are unrreprented posns of power.