‎Steelers: The World's First Gay Rugby Club (2020) directed by Eammon Ashton-Atkson • Reviews, film + st • Letterboxd

Contents:

• WHAT MAK GAY GBY'S BGHAM CUP TOURNAMENT SO SPECIAL?
• FOR THE LOVE OF THE GAME: A KIWI REF GO TO THE GAY GBY WORLD CUP
• JOG THE WORLD'S FIRST GAY GBY TEAM CHANGED MY LIFE. SO I MA A FILM ABOUT
• HEARD OF THE STEELERS? NO, NOT THEM, THE GAY GBY TEAM OM LONDON
• GAY GBY’S NEXT ‘WORLD CUP’ LOTN HAS JT BEEN ANNOUNCED
• THE 10 BEST AMSTERDAM GAY CLUBS & BARSGAY CLUBS & BARS AMSTERDAM
• AMSTERDAM GAY MAP
• LGBTQ+ AMSTERDAM – THE 14 BT GAY BARS AND CLUBS
• STEELERS: THE WORLD'S FIRST GAY RUGBY CLUB
• NIWEZIJDS GAY SNA
• A GAY GUI TO AMSTERDAM

WHAT MAK GAY GBY'S BGHAM CUP TOURNAMENT SO SPECIAL?

We are proud members of the Internatnal Gay Rugby Associatn whose LGBT+ gby tournaments the Unn Cup and the Bgham Cup take all around the globe cludg Sydney, Dubl, Nashville, Madrid and Ottawa. The Bgham Cup is a three-day biennial “World Cup of gay gby” found memory of Mark Bgham, the gay Amerin gby player who was among the 40 passengers and crew aboard Uned Airl Flight 93 on Sept.

FOR THE LOVE OF THE GAME: A KIWI REF GO TO THE GAY GBY WORLD CUP

The tournament Ottawa, Canada has bee a flagship event of the Internatnal Gay Rugby anizatn and now attracts 1, 700 players om 60 different teams Europe, North Ameri and Oceania. “At the time of Mark Bgham’s heroic ath, only six gay and clive gby clubs existed anywhere the world, ” the Bgham Cup webse says.

Shortly after a handful of gby unn clubs for gay and bisexual men om the UK and USA had found the Internatnal Gay Rugby Associatn and Board (IGRAB) October 2000, The Washgton Renegas held an rmal, ternatnal, vatnal tournament at their home DC May 2001.

As a gay man and regular gby player, Mark not only played for San Francis Fog but also helped to set up Gotham Knights New York Cy and was well known throughout the fledglg IGR was credibly shockg that jt three month’s followg the vatnal, Mark would loose his life the September 11th 2001 terrorist attacks, onboard flight Uned October 2001, followg the 2001 vatnal, the San Francis Fog succsfully lobbied IGRAB for the right to put on a XVs gby tournament  San Francis  June tournament was fashned the style of the Rugby World Cup, wh both the tournament and cup prize named honor of Mark followg a unanimo cisn by all the members of IGRAB. The Bgham Cup brgs together gay and clive gby unn teams om all over the world (photo by Kev Stt).

JOG THE WORLD'S FIRST GAY GBY TEAM CHANGED MY LIFE. SO I MA A FILM ABOUT

"Until you're part of the Bgham Cup, you don't realise how big is, " says Marc-Pl Stufkens, one of the anisers of the 'World Cup' of gay gby that will wele over 2000 players, ach, officials and supporters to Amsterdam this weekend. Then all of a sudn, every two years, you see they're each part of this worldwi gay gby muny.

HEARD OF THE STEELERS? NO, NOT THEM, THE GAY GBY TEAM OM LONDON

" Gay gby clubs om all over the world are about to scend on Amstelveense, a suburb the south of the cy. The tournament self is the flagship event of Internatnal Gay Rugby and tak s name om Mark Bgham, who played for the San Francis Fog - a foundg member of IGR - and later tablished the Gotham Knights club New York Cy. "There are a number of gay sports events - the Gay Gam, for example - but this is the only one that foc on gby unn.

GAY GBY’S NEXT ‘WORLD CUP’ LOTN HAS JT BEEN ANNOUNCED

" An exhibn of Bgham Cup photography lled 'Rugby Is My Pri' is beg held at this year's tournament Amsterdam (photo by Gvanni Caprtti) For gay gby clubs, the petn, muny and celebratn that the biennial Cup embodi serv as a bean, wherever they might be the world. There's a b of tongue cheek around the namg nventns too - the club om Baltimore, home of legendary gay movie director John Waters, are lled the Flamgos. " Teams om Holland, Swen and Canada are set to take on a World Barbarians XV a four-team women's petn at the Bgham Cup this year Stufkens scrib team sports culture for gay men as "a ltle more plited" than for their straight unterparts.

"There have been velopments, and be easier for people who are gay to start participatg team sports when they're younger, but the realy is that a lot of guys playg only e to at a later age. "Here the Netherlands, we might not need to talk about 'emancipatn' for gay people anymore, but visibily - to show across the world that this is happeng, that we're playg gby jt like any other person - is important. "I don't thk 's graed homophobia, 's more like people don't really get - and then when an cint , they're like 'oh s**t, now we unrstand aga'.

"Robbie Brennan, of London's Kgs Cross Steelers - the world's first gay gby club - unrstands gby's fay feel better than most. "Brennan's eback cid wh the fale to a landmark season for the Steelers, who won their league to earn promotn to the London Essex 3 divisn - the eighth tier of the English gby pyramid, and what will be the hight level at which a gay and clive team has ever played the UK.

THE 10 BEST AMSTERDAM GAY CLUBS & BARSGAY CLUBS & BARS AMSTERDAM

In an terview wh ESPN Scm 2014, she explaed how Mark, even though he was "a big guy full of nfince", faced difficulti life for beg gay. The Bgham Cup, known as the ‘gay gby World Cup’, took place Amsterdam earlier this month.

Beyond an obv passn for gby that has brought them further than any other team to the tournament, the players of such disparate experience have somethg else mon – most of them are gay. The Bgham Cup is referred to as the ‘gay gby World Cup’ but the teams bill themselv as clive – there is no requirement to be LGBTQ+, only to play gby a spir that wel LGBTQ+ people to the game. While some clubs have multiple teams, most clive gby players rarely see a lot of other gay people wh the same passn for the sport.

AMSTERDAM GAY MAP

There isn’t much time for me to enjoy the atmosphere, which is a cross between a sevens tournament and Big Gay Out. No, not that Jeff Wilson, this Jeff Wilson is origally om the US and has been the voice of Internatnal Gay Rugby to the World Rugby cisn-makers for years.

Consired by many to be the gay pal of Europe, Amsterdam is one of the most welg statns the world for LGBTQ travelers.

It has numero neighborhoods all over the cy dited to the LGBTQ muny, where you’ll fd gay bars, clubs, and hotels.

LGBTQ+ AMSTERDAM – THE 14 BT GAY BARS AND CLUBS

Those who are gay Amsterdam will feel totally at home this welg cy which has long been at the foreont of LGBTQ activism and fight for acceptance. The Netherlands, more broadly, is a culturally liberal untry and has historilly been a lear the fight for gay rights. In 2019, a Eurobarometer poll reported that 97% of Dutch people agreed that gay, lbian, and bisexual people should have the same rights as straight people (the send hight percentage the EU).

Amsterdam has long been at the center of LGBTQ culture the Netherlands, home to some of s earlit gay bars and clubs. You’ll have no trouble fdg hotels that wele gay guts, and ’s unlikely for you to enunter issu when displayg affectn public. Along wh nightlife, you’ll also fd gay-owned and gay-iendly shops, rtrants, and f the areas, as well as a high nsy of LGBTQ lols.

STEELERS: THE WORLD'S FIRST GAY RUGBY CLUB

Around Amstel River, you’ll fd a buzzg, vibrant gay district packed wh tradnal Dutch bars and historic queer tablishments.

Kerkstraat is the olst gay area Amsterdam, close to the Leidseple nightlife district.

Whether you’re lookg for dance floors or drag shows, Amsterdam’s gay bars have somethg for you. Along the cy’s ma gay streets, you’ll fd a range of different optns, om party spots to laid-back eateri.

NIWEZIJDS GAY SNA

Opened 1927 by the pneerg LGBTQ rights activist Bet van Beeren, Cafe ‘t Mandje was the first official gay bar Amsterdam. It hosts “Boardgayme” nights, a fantastic way to meet gay people Amsterdam a sual settg.

A GAY GUI TO AMSTERDAM

Prik has been named Time Out’s “Bt Gay Venue of Amsterdam” multiple tim and won the Rabow Award for “Bt Gay Bar.