Efforts made by authorities to help boost Wembley crowds; attendance at last England home game less than 62,000
Friday 10 November 2017 06:48, UK
The alliance of LGBT football fan groups has thanked the Football Association for its help in encouraging members to attend England home games.
A Pride In Football (PiF) party of over 100 supporters who are affiliated to their own club LGBT fan groups will be at Wembley on Friday night cheering together for England in the friendly international clash against Germany.
The allocation of tickets for the match has been provided by the Football Association, an initiative made at a time when the game's governing body has been heavily criticised on wider issues of diversity and inclusion.
For several months now, the FA has quietly helped develop this branch of fans attending England fixtures, against a backdrop of diminishing attendances. Wembley was barely two thirds full for the World Cup Qualifying Group F clash against Slovenia last month.
A group of PiF members first attended an England home game during Euro 2016 qualifying, and even though subsequent clashes involving England fans during the tournament itself in France might have proved a discouragement, some members of the PiF group are now keen to travel to Russia for World Cup 2018.
"Sadly, many LGBT+ fans in the past have thought that, for them, Wembley is just about play-offs, concerts or other sporting events," said PiF chair Di Cunningham.
"By ensuring and publicising our presence at games, we hope to help those fans reimagine themselves as Home Nations supporters."
There are now 34 club groups for LGBT football fans, connected together under the umbrella alliance group PiF; just three years ago, there were only four. The last 18 months have also seen the emergence of national LGBT fan groups for both England and Wales.
Among those in attendance with PiF at Wembley on Friday will be Helen Richardson-Walsh - the patron of Proud Lilywhites, the Tottenham LGBT fan group - and her wife and fellow Olympic gold medal-winning Great Britain hockey player, Kate Richardson-Walsh.
On the prospect of England supporters who are LGBT travelling to Russia, where there is anti-LGBT legislation in place and attitudes to homosexuality are far less liberal than in the UK, PiF campaign lead Joe White said: "There are a number of us who are keen to go and watch England at the World Cup next summer, but we all appreciate the potential risks we would be taking in attending to watch the game we love.
"Having the chance to network and support the Three Lions as well as each other has been crucial to making sure that when we go to Russia, we will have safety in numbers and ensure we do not feel isolated. As a young gay England fan, I feel this is just the beginning for us."
There are perhaps even greater fears, however, for the following World Cup, due to be staged in Qatar in 2022. Same-sex activity remains illegal in the Arab country.
"The next two competition hosts present an ironic halo effect - we don't want to be denied two World Cups in a row," added Cunningham.
"At least in Russia LGBT+ people nominally have many equal rights, though it doesn't work out like that in practice, as law enforcers tend to ignore those rights.
"In Qatar, LGBT-phobia is constitutional; in Russia, it's institutional. But interestingly, we've had discussions with FIFA recently and we're impressed that they have made progress in gaining commitment from Qatari organisers apparently enshrining the safety of LGBT+ fans.
"And in terms of Russia, FIFA introduced new guidance for referees this summer which gives them the power to end any game tarnished by homophobic chanting."
White says the England arm of Pride in Football is working to develop additional layers of safety and security that will enable LGBT+ supporters to have an enjoyable experience of the World Cup in Russia, working with organisations such as the Football Supporters Federation, Football Supporters Europe, UEFA and the UK Football Policing Unit.
