Moscow ‘Weekend Against Homophobia’ for LGBT football

Teams from Russia, Ukraine and Poland participated in an LGBT tournament in Moscow at the weekend (7/8 April) in a rare display of open LGBT activity in a country where gay people often face threats and exclusion.

9 teams in Moscow
The tournament, organised by Krylia football club, the Planet Romeo Foundation and the Russian LGBT Sports Federation, saw nine teams from St. Petersburg, Kiev and Warsaw joining their Moscow hosts at the Dinamo Moscow indoor stadium.

The winner of the tournament was a mixed team from Krylia Moscow who defeated team Infinity in the final. Warsaw side Chrząszczyki, affiliated to the FARE Eastern European lead partner the Never Again Association, made the journey to Moscow but finished in 7th place.

Warsaw 2013
After the tournament all players and organisers came together for a social event. As with Ukraine for the first edition of the tournament, the event was an occasion to meet LGBT football teams from Russia and from Ukraine and to share experiences of initiatives to counter homophobia in Russia, Ukraine and in Poland.

The next event in 2013 will be hosted by Chrząszczyki in Warsaw.