Warwickshire Cricket has embraced Pride Month with a vibrant lineup of events and initiatives, celebrating diversity, inclusion, and the LGBTQ+ community both on and off the pitch.
The month started with members of the Warwickshire County Cricket Club and Warwickshire Cricket Foundation joining our friends from the Birmingham Unicorns to march at the Birmingham Pride Parade.
Each year, we celebrate and show our support for the LGBTQ+ community through a variety of events, which you can learn more about below.
Rainbow Laces Game
Friday 6th June saw the annual Rainbow Laces games at Edgbaston celebrated as Bears Men and Women took on Yorkshire and Somerset respectively. We hosted a number of guests from LGBTQ+ sport in the area and nationally, whilst the Chairmans Lounge saw a Question and Answer session in between games from Amy Holmes and Out4Cricket Founder, Lachlan Stephen-Smith.
The Birmingham Unicorns formed the Guard of Honour before the men’s game and the evening concluded with a performance by Birmingham drag queen Pork Elizabeth Pie, who entertained the crowd with pop classics in the Edgbaston’s Exhibition Hall.
LGBTQ+ Festival
Sutton Coldfield Cricket Club once again hosted the 3rd annual LGBTQ+ Festival, which featured a new format this year with the addition of a softball competition alongside the traditional hardball tournament. This change aimed to welcome a broader range of players and counties with varying skill levels. Six counties participated, with teams representing Warwickshire, Middlesex, Surrey, Lancashire, Yorkshire, and Western Force from Wiltshire. The day was a huge success, and we’re hugely grateful to our partners at Sutton Coldfield CC and their dedicated volunteers, as well as Out4Cricket and Rob Evans and his team of officials for their brilliant work on the day.
Surrey claimed the title in the softball competition, while Graces CC, after a group stage loss, secured redemption by defeating the Birmingham Unicorns in the hardball final.
LGBTQ+ Open Session
We rounded off our series of events with an LGBTQ+ Community Session held in the indoor centre at Edgbaston, delivered in partnership with Out4Cricket and our friends at the local charity, Journey. The evening brought together participants with a wide range of cricketing experience, from first-timers to those returning to the sport after a break, all united by a shared desire to embrace the game in an inclusive and welcoming environment.
The session was well attended and a number of participants subsequently signed up with the Birmingham Unicorns began exploring opportunities to get involved with other local clubs.
Thank you to everyone who joined us in celebrating Pride Month this June. 💙