When the San Francisco 49ers moved into the new Levi’s Stadium located in Santa Clara, Calif., it left them searching for new ways to stay connected to the city they used to call home. In doing so, they created a football first: 49ers Pride, the first official NFL social community dedicated to LGBTQ+ fans.
Originally launched in May, the 49ers Pride initiative organizes football Sunday watch parties for Bay Area LGBTQ+ fans and provides opportunities to attend pride-themed 49ers experiences as well as philanthropic events in the community. The group also offers a chance for lucky fans to march with the front office in San Francisco’s Pride Parade.
Now that football season has kicked off, 49ers Pride watch parties are out in full force. On Sunday, the group met at The Detour in San Francisco’s Castro District. And attendees were treated to a show of dominance, getting to watch the Niners dismantle the Cincinnati Bengals 41-17.
Throughout the day, 49ers social media treated fans to a series of videos from the Pride gathering on the team’s Instagram stories. And with a final score that lopsided, there were a lot of scenes like this:
49ers Pride will be holding Sunday gatherings like this throughout the rest of this season. And that’s cause for these kinds of celebrations to break out all over San Francisco’s LGBTQ+ community.
