Manchester United stars have been lending their support to the Manchester Pride celebrations that have been taking place this weekend.
The weekend festival is aimed at celebrating diversity in the city, something that is welcomed by the scorer of yesterday’s first goal, Christian Eriksen.
“It’s a very important thing,” he said on the club’s official website.
“Pride is always a big party. I remember when I was [playing for Ajax] in Amsterdam, there was always a big Pride event on the canals and everything.”
Victor Lindelof also spoke about the significance of the event.
““I think it’s very important. Everyone should be able to love who they want,” the Swede said.
“I think pride, first of all, is a great thing, not just here in Manchester, but around the world. So I think it’s a very, very important thing to do.”
Member of the women’s squad who had a sensational 2022/23, Martha Thomas, also spoke about Manchester’s welcoming attitude to diversity.
“Yeah, it’s huge,” she said.
“It’s really important that everyone is seen as equal. I think these kinds of events are important.
“I went to Pride when I first moved here in 2021, and you just feel that sense of pride to be a part of that community and see people from all walks of life get involved and get excited about the weekend.
“I’m excited for this weekend as well. I’m sure I’ll see a lot of celebrations and try to get involved where I can.”
United have their own LGBTQ+ community for fans, known as Rainbow Devils. “Sam”, one of the committee members, said:
“I’ve had great experiences being a United fan. I came out about four years ago, and that was a really strange time for me because it felt like football and LGBTQ+ things can’t coexist. But getting involved with the Rainbow Devils really changed that for me.”
The celebrations will continue over the course of the bank holiday weekend in the city centre and various other locations, as can be seen on the official website.
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