Friday 11 May 2018 12:12, UK
Proud Canaries and Norwich City teamed up with Aviva to organise an LGBT-inclusive football tournament on Saturday, May 5, as part of Aviva's campaign to celebrate the inclusive and diverse nature of football from the amateur level to the elite.
After the initial recruitment campaign and a series of team training sessions throughout the spring, the inaugural 'Proud Canaries Cup' saw Proud Canaries FC - the team formed by Proud Canaries, Aviva and Norwich City in December - face a number of other LGBT-inclusive and ally teams in a round-robin tournament in the sunshine at Carrow Road.
The other teams who played against the Norfolk-based club included travelling sides from Stonewall FC, Charlton Invicta, London Titans, London Phoenix, Birmingham Blaze, Brighton BLAGGS and Trowbridge Tigers.
Birmingham Blaze ran out as eventual winners following a thrilling Final, which saw them beat Stonewall FC in a closely-fought match, to clinch the Proud Canaries Cup in the tournament's first year.
As well as the 10 teams who played on the day, Amal Fashanu, the niece of Norwich City's former striker Justin, was among those watching the action from the stands. The tournament was particularly poignant, as it took place just three days after the 20th anniversary since her uncle's tragic death on May 2, 1998.
Amal said: "I think the Proud Canaries Cup is a great initiative. Having Aviva and Norwich City come together with Proud Canaries and pull off an event like this is amazing to see and be a small part of. My uncle Justin would be extremely proud of the place we've got to so far. People are talking about homophobia and racism in football, and right now I don't think I could have imagined something better."
Watch a review of the tournament in the video above, including interviews with Amal Fashanu and Proud Canaries organiser Di Cunningham.
