LFP fights against homophobia on all pitches

LFP fights against homophobia on all pitches

As part of the International Day against Homophobia on 17 May, the French Professional Football League and the 40 Ligue 1 Uber Eats and Ligue 2 BKT clubs are mobilising this weekend during the 35th matchday to fight homophobia on all fields.

The fight against homophobia is one of the pillars of the French professional football anti-discrimination plan. In this context, for the fifth consecutive year, a dedicated day of League 1 Uber Eats and League 2 BKT will be a time to raise awareness among the general public. Carried out on the pitch and on digital platforms, this campaign will complement the actions carried out throughout the season in the clubs.

In this context, on the 35th day of the season, all the clubs will play with dedicated shirts. For the third consecutive season, the players’ shirts will be decorated with rainbow-coloured numbers. By wearing these shirts, French professional football will display a message of diversity, hope and love. As the campaign underlines: ‘Gay or Straight, we all wear the same shirt’.

In addition to this campaign and with the support of its title partners, Uber Eats and BKT, the Ligue de Football Professionnel is launching this campaign by colouring the Ligue 1 Uber Eats and Ligue 2 BKT logos in a rainbow. During the match protocol, the competition flag will exceptionally display the rainbow logo. Players and referees will gather around a poster “Gay or Straight, we all wear the same shirt”. Coaches, referees and match delegates will show their support by wearing a rainbow armband.

During the match, Uber Eats, a partner of the Ligue 1, has also chosen to turn its LED animation into a rainbow and broadcast it on the Uber Eats stadium signage. On the digital side, a film dedicated to Ligue 1 Uber Eats and another to Ligue 2 BKT will be relayed on the platforms of the LFP and the clubs. The film features highlights from the season and a complete shoot of the shirts, and aims to simply remind people of the meaning of the shirt with the rainbow number, what it represents and the message of tolerance and otherness that it carries.

At the end of the matches, these exceptional shirts will be auctioned to benefit the associations Foot Ensemble, PanamBoyz & Girlz United, and SOS Homophobie. From Wednesday 17 May at 4pm, the Uber Eats Ligue 1 and BKT Ligue 2 shirts will be on sale on the MatchWornShirt platform until Sunday 4 June at 4pm.