‘We are ourselves’: Hackney football club launches kit to celebrate its standing as Europe’s first openly gay women’s team

The kit was designed by creative agency We Are Fearless. Photograph: Hackney Women’s FC

Hackney Women’s Football Club has launched a new kit that pays homage to its status as Europe’s first openly gay team.

The strip is also a tribute to the club’s founders, who started it in 1986 – two years before it was made illegal for LGBTQ+ people to promote their identity.

It was unveiled during February to coincide with both LGBTQ+ History month and Football v Homophobia.

Megan, a player and social media manager for the club, said: “It has little details like the progress pride flag on the sleeves. It uses little black triangles which were a Nazi oppressive symbol for lesbians which have been reclaimed.

“It has the current lesbian symbol on the back and our motto, ‘Playing with pride since 1986’.”

Photograph: Hackney Women’s FC

In 1988, the Section 28 law was introduced that prohibited schools and local services from teaching about same-sex relationships.

Megan said of the founders: “It was a group of women who wanted to play the sport they loved but also be themselves and not have to sacrifice that. They created a safe space for women and non-binary people to be their authentic selves.”

She said they were accused of negatively influencing young girls and even “setting women’s football back 20 years”.

“At the time, people wanted women’s football to be very feminine,” she explained. “The league told them they were too much and didn’t fit the profile of what they wanted women’s football to be.”

Megan emphasised how needed these kind of spaces are in sport.

She has played since she was six but said she never warmed to the professional side because all she was exposed to was the culture of men’s football.

“I didn’t know I needed a space like Hackney Women’s until I found it. I wasn’t particularly looking for it but I went to my first session and have been there ever since – which is the story for a lot of women.”

She added: “We often leave quite the impression on people when we go anywhere as a team. Because we are ourselves, which is really cool. And that’s always been our mantra, from the early days when we fought against the league to become this team.”

The club has had 100 players in its time and has a beginners’ team playing in a five-a-side league, a reserve team playing in the Greater London women’s football league, and the first team playing in the London and South East regional women’s football league.

For more information, visit the team’s Instagram page here.