Invicta FC: The First Club Trust-Affiliated LGBTQI+ Friendly Team
Being a member of Charlton Athletic Community Trust Invicta FC (CACT) is more than being part of a team. It means being part of a family.
Invicta have gone from strength to strength in championing diversity and inclusion in football. Founded as Bexley Invicta FC in early 2011, in September the following year, they played their first game in the London Unity League.
The club made history in 2017 when they became the first LGBTQI+ club to be affiliated with a professional club’s community trust.
Through the affiliation with CAFC and CACT, Invicta has increased LGBTQI+ visibility. Both at grassroots level but also in the professional game through campaigns such as Rainbow Laces, Football v Homophobia, Football v Transphobia and marching at Pride events.
Invicta are a key part of the club and Trusts EDI Strategy and work closely running EDI training and educating the wider community to make football more LGBTQI+ inclusive. All different. All Together. All Charlton.
The Sports Gazette recently sat down with members of Invicta to discuss allyship, promoting diversity and inclusion in football and what it means to be a part of the Invicta family.
Community at Invicta
Daniel Crump, Invicta second division joint manager and social media manager, wanted be a part of something special.
While previously at another LGBTQI+ team, conversations with a member of Invicta, his partner and the drive to be part of a community led him to the newly established club.
He said: “We [he and his partner] just wanted to be part of something special. It was more the family vibes you get from [Invicta].
“It’s not just another football team. There’s something special about the club that everyone wants to be a part of.”
Invicta is more than a place to play football. It’s a safe space where players can freely express themselves.
“It gives individuals the space to come and play football and be themselves,” Daniel said. “Compared to a mainstream league, anybody is welcome here. Whether you are straight, gay, bi, trans. It just gives someone that platform to come play football, enjoy it and be themselves.”
Meanwhile, second team captain Scott Anderson was on the search for somewhere he felt comfortable.
“I was looking for a safe space to play football. Away from all of the classic Sunday league.” He added, “Just somewhere simple with a great bunch of people who have a shared love for the game.”
Successes, feats and what it means to be a member of Invicta
Since its formation in 2011, Invicta have delivered countless success stories as a club. Six years following their debut in the London Unity League, in March of 2018, Invicta became league winners for the first time.
The club then became silver medallists on their debut EGLSF (European Gay and Lesbian Sport Federation) EuroGames in Rome during July 2018. Before joining the GFSN (Gay Football Supporters’ Network) League the following year and playing and losing their first GFSN National Cup final last year.
While not playing at professional level, the players dedicate themselves to winning and committing to the team as much as possible.
Daniel said: “It’s hard because obviously you have a day job. I run the social media page, so pretty much after work I’m thinking up new campaigns and working out how to make the social media the best across the LGBTQI+ football teams.
“It is hard, but you find that balance somewhere along the line.”
Scott added that his role as captain kept him grounded: “I’ve been captain for the past two seasons but I’ve been at the club for seven years. I’ve seen the club grow from 10 people to 45 people.
“It’s a privilege to be captain. To be given that honour of being the leader of the boys and girls and all in between. It gives you that presence on the pitch so that everybody listens to you, but you have to play as a leader as well. It helps to keep me grounded.”
Championing education and change in football
It is not just about winning on the pitch, but the gains made off of it. In February of 2020, Invicta were honoured as winners of the Grassroots Club of the Year award at the Inaugural FvH awards night.
In 2018, Invicta lead the first ever Charlton Athletic Family Pride in London float before appearing on Sky Sports Soccer AM for Stonewall’s 2019/20 Rainbow Laces campaign.
For Gary Ginnaw, current Chair of Invicta, the club’s platform exceeds playing the game. Its presence acts as a vehicle to educate.
He said: “We are a football club, but we’re so much more than that. We use the power of football to educate.
“We may be members of the LGBTQI+ community, but we do not know everything about the community. The only way that happens is through conversations.”
Conversations, no matter how small, have the power to change the world. At the least, they inspire positive action in football.
“We have a lot of straight players that are part of the club. They learn from having conversations with the LGBTQI+ members of the team and then they will have those conversations with their friends and families.
“They become better allies from being a part of the football club.”
What comes next?
Record breakers turned history makers. Invicta have already made their mark in football, but the club have no plans to slow down just yet.
Despite aim taken at DEI initiatives in recent months, Invicta stands firm in their efforts to remain as a safe space for individuals of the LQBTQI+ community. In fact, they hope to expand their 50 person membership.
The club grew massively after lockdown. Isolation, the need to be proactive and be a part of a community is what Gary speculates could be the driving factors. This growth is something the club is hoping to continue.
“It’s just making sure that more members of the community have access to football, but also to friendships. When I first joined the club, it was more about the friendships and the socialising aspect than the football,” he added.
“The football was always part of that journey. I think to get more people involved in the club, and to keep growing the club is something we want to continue to do.”
A game played for all by all. Those are the hopes of the club as it moves towards a new, greater chapter. One committed to building friendships, winning titles and growing a community through football.
