Playing with Pride - Nottingham Lions FC

When it comes to community sports facilities, everyone deserves a great place to play, no matter who they are or how they identify. For Nottingham Lions FC, that place is Gresham Sports Park in Nottingham – a top-quality 3G and grass pitch site funded by The Premier League, The FA and Government’s Football Foundation.

Set up in 2006, Nottingham Lions FC, Nottingham’s only LGBTQ+ football club, was founded on an ethos of inclusivity with the aim of providing a safe sporting environment for people of different sexual and gender orientations.

Having started as a kickabout in the park for a number of years, the club has since gone from strength-to-strength with two thriving 5-a-side and 11-a-side sections, helped in part by the development of Gresham Sports Park. The team has also seen substantial growth with an influx of players joining the team ahead of the season bringing the total members to almost 80, plus an incredible opportunity to compete at EuroGames in Vienna last summer – Europe’s largest multi-sport event for athletes, regardless of their gender, identity or sexual orientation. The Lions have also formed a new annual Football v Homophobia five-a-side tournament hosted in Nottingham.

THE QUALITY OF THE FACILITIES AT GRESHAM HAS ALLOWED US TO ATTRACT NEW PLAYERS AND CONTINUE OUR TREND OF EXPANDING THE LIONS COMMUNITY YEAR-ON-YEAR.

This expansion has been helped by a £591k Football Foundation grant awarded to Rushcliffe Borough Council in January 2019, to deliver Gresham Sports Park a brand new 3G pitch, a refurbished 3G pitch and improved grass pitches which has provided Nottingham Lions with a place to call home.

“The quality of the facilities at Gresham has allowed us to attract new players and continue our trend of expanding the Lions community year-on-year," said Nottingham Lions Chairman Craig Innes.

"We narrowly missed out on the league title last season and are excited to host our annual Football v Homophobia tournament again this year, before another incredible opportunity to play football abroad as we fly to Lyon in July for this year’s EuroGames."

“The site is a fantastic place to play and a safe environment for everyone which makes it a great place for our community to continue to grow and provide people with opportunities to play football regardless of their sexual orientation.

“Our aims for the future are to continue offering football opportunities in a safe environment for all, regardless of ability, to champion the LGBTQ+ presence within the sport, and continue building the fantastic community that's been here for nearly 20 years.”

THE SITE IS A FANTASTIC PLACE TO PLAY AND A SAFE ENVIRONMENT FOR EVERYONE WHICH MAKES IT A GREAT PLACE FOR OUR COMMUNITY TO CONTINUE TO GROW.

The Lions now have a record number of players and offer both recreational and competitive football, competing in the GFSN (Gay Football Supporters Network) League. The league is the world’s only national league aimed at the LGBTQ+ community and is open to all, regardless of age, races, nationality, religion, gender or sexuality.

To find out more about Nottingham Lions FC, follow them on Facebook and Instagram or visit nottslions.com

And the club’s impact goes far beyond the pitch. They are also actively involved in charity work, raising money for Notts LGBT+ Network and other local community organisations through charity matches and tournaments at Gresham Sports Park. This has earned the club very well-deserved national recognition at Football v Homophobia’s annual awards. 

To find out more about Nottingham Lions FC, visit nottslions.com