Football v Homophobia’s ‘Wear It Black & Pink’ Day returns on Thursday, February 19
Football v Homophobia invites supporters of the campaign to join awareness day activation; February 19 is the International Day Against LGBTQ+-phobia in Sport; FvH campaign colours are Black and Pink – wear the colours and post images…
Football v Homophobia’s annual Month of Action will mark its main awareness activation this Thursday, February 19.
The date is the International Day Against LGBTQ+-phobia in Sport, and the original “Day of Action” for the FvH campaign.
Once again, FvH is asking its supporters to “Wear It Black & Pink” and use the campaign colours to raise awareness of the discrimination that persists in the game, to take a stand against it, and to show solidarity and allyship with LGBTQ+ people.
The date of February 19 was chosen because it is the birthday of the late Justin Fashanu, who would have turned 65 this year.
Why Black & Pink?
Black and Pink were the colours used by The Justin Campaign when they founded FvH in 2010.
These colours were used to honour Fashanu, who was Britain’s first £1m Black footballer and the first professional player to publicly come out as gay.
Pink is a colour associated with gay men as a historical reclamation of the pink triangle, a badge used by the Nazi regime to identify and dehumanise gay men in concentration camps during the Second World War.
Originally a symbol of shame, activists in the 1970s repurposed the pink triangle as a powerful, inverted symbol of pride, resistance, and remembrance. FvH has extended use of the colour pink to reference all LGBTQ+ people.
The combination of the colours is still powerful today because:
- They speak to the intersectionality of experience in our community
- FvH acknowledges that homophobia and racism often go hand in hand
- Black and Pink provide a unique way of talking about discrimination, as well as celebrating LGBTQ+ inclusion (something FvH does as a campaign later in the year)
When we ‘Wear it Black & Pink’ on February 19, and share images on social media, we can all help to initiate constructive conversations and draw attention to the ongoing issues.
Here are some key facts about LGBTQ+-phobia in football in 2026:
- Nearly 13% of Premier League games in the 2024/25 season received one or more reports of an anti-LGBTQ+ incident. The EFL also saw an increase (Home Office, 2025)
- There was also a rise in homophobia offences at grassroots level, where there are more proven charges of this type of discrimination than any other (The FA, 2025)
- A FIFPro / Signify study of targeted online abuse sent to pro footballers found 40% (men’s game players) and 27% (women’s) was homophobic (2022)
- The FA has fined at least nine clubs in the top four men’s divisions and, in most instances, implemented action plans, due to fans’ anti-LGBTQ+ discriminatory chanting since the 2022/23 season
- A survey of LGBTQ+ people who watch the men’s game found 74% had experienced or witnessed anti-LGBTQ+ language or behaviour in football spaces. Less than a quarter said they had reported the incidents (Out and Out Football, 2025)
Get ready!
In advance of Thursday, share this article and our social posts with your football colleagues, friends and teammates, at whatever level of the game you’re involved in.
On February 19, you could do one or more of the following…
- ‘Wear It Black & Pink’ to work and share a message of anti-discrimination and inclusion in football with colleagues – you can don the classic FvH campaign T-shirt; pull on a new FvH logo captain’s armband and wear it with a black top; or just mix and match the two colours from your own wardrobe! (please note – new orders from the FvH Shop are unlikely to be delivered by Feb. 19, 2026, but you can wear the items later in the FvH Month of Action instead!)
- Post an image of yourself wearing Black and Pink to social media, making a commitment to stand up against discrimination and for inclusion using the hashtags #WearItBlackAndPink and #FvH2026 – remember to tag in FvH too!
- Paint your nails Black and Pink
- Celebrate with a Black and/or Pink cupcake! (or another treat)
- Get creative with the FvH campaign logo! It’s free to download from the FvH Resources page
Here are some examples of FvH supporters getting involved in ‘Wear It Black & Pink’ Day last year…
Today marks the International Day Against #LGBTQ+ Phobia in Sport.
To shine a light on the discrimination LGBTQ+ people still experience in sports, our chair is wearing Black and Pink in support of the @FvHtweets campaign.
#WearItBlackAndPink | #FVH2025 | #NoToHate
@footballvhomophobia.com
— Chelsea Pride (@chelseapride.bsky.social) February 19, 2025 at 2:27 PM
#FvH2026 calendar of events – see a list of dedicated matchdays etc here
- Tue 17 Feb (6.15pm): Brentford FC ‘Our Game With Pride’ event (Gtech Community Stadium, Brentford)
- Thu 19 Feb: FvH ‘Wear It Black and Pink Day’ / International Day Against LGBTQ+-phobia in Sport
- Fri 20 Feb to Sun 1 March: Activation of EFL Rainbow Ball initiative
- Sat 1 March: Zero Discrimination Day (UNAIDS)
- Wed 25 to Tue 31 Mar: Football v Transphobia Week of Action – #FvT2026
- Tue 31 Mar: International Transgender Day of Visibility
Visit www.footballvhomophobia.com for more information on how you can get involved in the Month of Action in February.
Check out our archive of related content, including episodes of the FvH Podcast.
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