The Carlton Football Club is proud to reveal its season seven AFLW Pride guernsey, which has been designed in conjunction with members, fans, and the Carlton Pride Group.
A competition launched earlier this year with members and fans able to submit designs for the Club’s sixth instalment of the Pride guernsey.
Entries were then shown to the AFLW leadership group at the time, alongside representatives of the Carlton Pride Group, with Megan Furphy’s design selected as the winner.
The Blues will wear the guernsey on Friday night against Richmond in the first ever Pride Round fixture to be held at IKON Park.
The clash will kick off a total of three games at the Blues’ spiritual home during Pride Round, with a Saturday double header to follow featuring Essendon and Sydney, then Geelong and West Coast.
The theme of this season’s Carlton guernsey centres around a celebration of community and connection, with the wider AFLW theme embracing the roles that ambassadors and allies play in the LGBTQIA+ community.
Carlton’s player ambassador is defender Mua Laloifi and the Club ally is AFLW development coach and AFL defender Nic Newman.
Laloifi said the Pride fixture is something the entire playing group look forward to each season.
“It is an honour to be named the Carlton player ambassador for Pride Round and it is such an important week in terms of wider recognition and celebration of the LGBTQIA+ community,” Laloifi said.
“We opened up the guernsey design to our members and fans because we really value their input and want their voices to be heard, we’re all looking forward to putting on Megan’s design on Friday night for our first ever Pride game at IKON Park.”
Carlton CEO Brian Cook said the Club continues to strive to create an environment for inclusion and belonging for all.
“The unveiling of the Pride guernsey is something we look forward to each season. Pride Round is something we’ve invested in quite heavily as a Club and we’re proud to have played a part in establishing the original Pride Game against the Bulldogs back in 2018,” Cook said.
“It is fantastic to be able to host our first Pride Round home fixture at IKON Park this Friday night, in addition to another two games on Saturday. It is always a round that sparks great celebration of the LGBTQIA+ community so it is a privilege to play our part in that.
“Pride Round also initiates some important conversations in our industry around inclusion and diversity. As a football club we feel that Respect, which is a core value for us, is central to creating an environment where our people feel comfortable to express their views in a respectful manner. It is that inclusive environment which we are continuing to strive to create, both now and into the future.”
A limited number of Pride guernseys will be available to purchase online and directly from The Carlton Shop, along with an auction of player worn guernseys with proceeds going towards the Carlton Pride Group and Minus18.
Carlton Pride has been the official LGBTQIA+ supporter group of the Blues since 2017 and they exist to provide a safe and inclusive environment for the community while welcoming all LGBTQIA+ people and allies.'
Minus18 is a charity for LGBTIQ+ youth in Australia that works to create social change and mobilise community support through youth-driven events, workshops, education resources and campaigns that are used across Australia.
To purchase your own limited-edition Pride guernsey click here.
