The Premier League has told clubs it will not run Stonewall’s long‑standing Rainbow Laces activation in the 2025–26 season, opting instead to create its own LGBTQ+ inclusion programme that will be centred on LGBT+ History Month in February. The change shifts the league’s allyship away from the November–December window that has marked Rainbow Laces’ presence in elite English men’s football since the campaign’s wider adoption a decade ago, and aligns the top flight with Football v Homophobia’s established Month of Action. According to reports, references to Rainbow Laces have already been removed from the Premier League’s website as the new approach is finalised.
Rainbow Laces began as a grassroots‑to‑elite effort to encourage visible allyship—coloured laces, captain’s armbands, corner flags and educational packs for schools—and the Premier League’s former Rainbow Laces pages detail how matchday assets and programmes such as Premier League Primary Stars and Kicks were used to broaden reach. Those matchday mechanics deeply informed club and charity activity, providing a recurring moment for community outreach. The league says some of those educational resources will remain available while they are reviewed and refreshed to sit alongside the new February‑focused activation.
The reorientation comes as the Football Association also signals a move away from conventional Pride symbolism while insisting it will continue to prioritise grassroots inclusion. That shift must be read alongside recent, consequential policy changes: following a UK Supreme Court ruling, the FA confirmed that transgender women would no longer be permitted to play in women’s football from 1 June 2025, reversing earlier eligibility criteria and prompting a commitment from the governing body to support affected players as it works through its broader inclusion plans.
The decision by the professional game to change its public calendar arrives against a backdrop of rising recorded disorder and abuse at matches. Government statistics for the 2024–25 domestic season show hate crime remains the most commonly recorded incident type at football fixtures, with data collection highlighting offences motivated by sexual orientation alongside race and religion. Independent monitoring by Kick It Out likewise points to record numbers of discrimination reports in recent seasons, with online LGBT+ hate and transphobic incidents a particular concern; campaigners say improved reporting may account for some increases, but the overall trend underlines the continued need for focused education and sanctions. The FA’s own recent grassroots review also recorded more proven charges of homophobic behaviour than any other form of discrimination.
Stonewall, which founded Rainbow Laces, characterised the Premier League’s decision as part of the campaign’s ‘ebb and flow’. A spokesperson for the charity told Outsports that the sporting landscape has changed since Rainbow Laces began, that elite players still face barriers to being openly LGBTQ+ but grassroots participation and fan acceptance have improved, and that campaigns must ‘stay fresh and repeatedly revisit what they are trying to achieve and what audiences they are trying to reach.’Source: Noah Wire Services
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