‘LGBTQ sports clubs are essential’ – EuroGames 2027 team members share stories on Coming Out Day
October 11 is Coming Out Day, and EuroGames Cardiff 2027 is celebrating the role that queer sports plays in helping LGBTQ+ people unlock their potential; here, two members of the committee that’s delivering the LGBTQ+ multi-sport event in July next year share their stories…
By Charl Galloway and Craig Stephenson
Next July, EuroGames Cardiff 2027 will bring thousands of athletes together for a festival of LGBTQ+ inclusive sports and culture.
More than 1,500 athletes have already signed up to be part of the event.
You can begin to fill in the registration form right now, even if you’re unsure what you’ll compete in.
Sunday, October 11, is Coming Out Day, when many LGBTQ+ people reflect on their coming out experiences and consider how we can help others find their own sense of authenticity.
Here, Charl Galloway and Craig Stephenson from the EuroGames Cardiff 2027 committee share their stories to mark the awareness day…
‘My football family created the space for me to find myself and come out’
I have always been ‘sporty’, but it was through queer sports that I found myself, writes Charl Galloway.
When I moved to Cardiff and joined Cardiff Dragons FC – Wales’ first LGBTQ+ football club – I discovered an environment in which everyone was different. Soon, it would feel like home.
At the time that I started playing for the Dragons, I identified as straight. Now I was being welcomed into a family of LGBTQ+ people. They helped to create the space for me to come out.
I went on a journey, discovering more about sexuality and gender. Over time, I would better understand my relationship with my own orientation and identity.
I experienced queer joy – and gay panic! – all within the sport that I love so much.
I’ve been with the Dragons for over a decade. It’s been wonderful to witness the journeys of other people as they pass through our club. Some play with us for only a few months, while others have been here for years, just like me.
I’ve also loved seeing LGBTQ+ clubs for other sports flourish in the Welsh capital. There’s truly an activity for everyone in our city.
Every summer, I’m reminded of this when we come together to celebrate Pride Cymru. I’ll never forget my first Pride, marching in the parade alongside my team.
There were people lining the streets, clapping and cheering and showing their support for our community in a way I hadn’t seen before. It made me so proud to be a Dragon.
I still feel that strong sense of solidarity and determination today. In fact, it’s more important than ever that we support each other, with societal attitudes towards trans and gender non-conforming people having hardened in recent years.
It’s why queer sports clubs are absolutely essential. Without them, there would be far fewer safe spaces where LGBTQ+ people could go to find genuine community, friendship and all the many benefits of being active.
You belong in sports – this is the message Cardiff will send out across the UK and beyond when it hosts EuroGames in July 2027.
And to those in our community who are more marginalised, I say this as well: at our event, you can participate as your true selves.
So come as you are, and support us in creating the space in which we all get to come out and play.
‘Queer sports clubs enable many people to come out and find their tribes’
Coming out in the UK in the late 1980s was more difficult than it should have been, writes Craig Stephenson.
Society at large was supporting Thatcher’s Section 28, which was legislating against us and banning the promotion of homosexuality as a ‘pretended lifestyle’.
The devastating HIV/AIDS crisis was wiping out our community, and public opinion – influenced by a divisive awareness campaign – was characterised by misinformation and fear. Gay people were ostracised.
In Cardiff, the community felt almost underground. In those days, there was no social media or internet, and no queer sports clubs or associations. The gay bar was really the only place to socialise and meet kindred spirits.
Meanwhile, because of the general sense of ill-feeling against my community, I found it hard to come out to my family and friends.
But I didn’t need to be afraid. They were all fine when I eventually told them, in my early 20s, that I’m gay.
Despite these challenges, I was happy and content. I put my energy into fighting for equality.
I stopped being a bystander. Over the years, I’ve campaigned and negotiated for LGBTIQ+ rights, such as pensions, adoption and equal marriage.
I became proud, loud, and confident to stand up for my own rights and for the rights of others.
That includes trans people, whose lives are being weaponised in a politically hostile environment.
Previously, I didn’t have a strong connection to sports. When my organisation won an award at an event being held at the Cardiff Wales Stadium – home of Glamorgan Cricket – I went to the Cardiff City Stadium by mistake!
Today, sports are a big part of my life. I’m now in my early 60s, and run regularly with the Cardiff Foxes. I’m also part of the EuroGames 2027 committee.
We now have many queer sports clubs in the Cardiff area, and I’m heartened by this development.
It fills me with pride to see these teams flourishing. I’m sure they will enable many more people to come out and find their tribes.
It’s a major reason why I wanted to help organise EuroGames in this beautiful city that I love so much.
So, Happy Coming Out Day! I hope you’ll join us in Cardiff in July 2027 to celebrate LGBTIQ+ inclusion in sports – be sure to Bring Your Fire!
For more information, details on accommodation, or to start filling out the registration form, visit cardiffeurogames2027.com.
Further reading…
‘EuroGames for everyone!’ Trans footballer Natalie Washington flags up FLINTA categories at Cardiff 2027 (August 2026)
To stay in the loop about EuroGames Cardiff 2027, sign up for email updates on the official website.
Interested in sponsorship and partnership opportunities? Email the team at info@eurogames2027.com
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