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LOS ANGELES – People filled a park in Los Angeles on a recent Saturday afternoon for a kickball tournament, but no one was as concerned about the score as they were about the camaraderie and fun. Music played in the background of people shouting words of encouragement, even to the other team, laughter and jokes.

The participants are part of the Gay Varsity League, which is a recreational sports league with a mission to create a supportive and inclusive sports environment. Although competitiveness was on display during the tournament, at the end of the hot summer day, everyone was looking to have a good time.

Will Hackner, owner and CEO of the league, felt a need in his life to have somewhere to meet other members of the LGBTQ community outside of the bar setting and set out to find a solution.

“I myself wasn’t meeting people, I wasn’t having the best of times,” Hackner said. “I felt it was about drinking and partying, and I felt, ‘I just want to have fun.'”

But creating a sports league was never something Hackner had in mind. In fact, he wasn’t into sports growing up.

“I was a bullied kid, terribly bullied, tragically bullied, terrified of sports,” Hackner said. “I was small. I was picked on. I was attacked. I didn’t go to the gym after freshman year because someone broke my wrist and the gym teacher was laughing at me. So, I wasn’t a sports guy.”

As he got older, he began to realize the benefits of participating in sports.

A dodgeball team from the Gay Varsity League celebrates its championship victory. In Phoenix, the league also has kickball, pickleball and tennis leagues. (Photo courtesy of Varsity Gay League)

“Not just the activity, not just the camaraderie, not just the confidence building and all those beautiful pieces,” Hackner said. “But it also creates a structure in your life that you can use as a foundation for other elements like how to talk to people, how to stay active, how to be young, how to communicate positively and effectively .”

Fifteen years ago, he and a friend planned what became the first of many events to come. It started with a game of capture the flag in the park.

“Fifty people showed up and we said, ‘Wow, there’s got to be something here, a kernel of something,'” Hackner said. “And that put us off to the races.”

Hackner founded the organization in Los Angeles in 2007. It has since grown into a national organization with sports leagues and events in 22 cities with over 40,000 athletes. Leagues include a variety of sports for different interests. One of the cities that is now home to the Varsity Gay League is Phoenix, where members can play in kickball, tennis, dodgeball and pickleball leagues.

Phoenix league manager Wes Scruggs understands the importance of people feeling a sense of community and belonging, and he’s happy to help others find that.

“If you can ever think of a time when maybe you didn’t feel comfortable with a certain group of people, didn’t feel like you belonged there for whatever reason, it’s a really terrible feeling because we humans are wired to want. to receive it,” Scruggs said.

Scruggs has been a football fan for as long as he can remember. He grew up attending NFL games with his father but said as a child trying to figure out his sexuality, the environment wasn’t always positive for him.

“It’s just the hyper-masculinity and the great stuff, like toxicity,” Scruggs said. “As someone who’s trying to figure out their sexuality and growing up, it’s like, ‘Oh, gosh, okay. It’s probably not good.'”

Now Scruggs is able to take his own experience and use it to create a positive environment for athletes in the league.

“I love to turn that on its head and be like, no, everybody can play no matter who you are,” Scruggs said.

Varsity Gay League emphasizes that despite its name, the organization welcomes everyone to join, even those who are not part of the LGBTQ community. Scruggs said about 15% of the organization’s athletes are allies.

“First and foremost I think what we as an organization try to keep at the forefront is welcoming everyone,” Scruggs said. “And when we say it, we mean it.”

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Madison Thomas Ma-dih-sin Tom-is

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Broadcast Sports Reporter, Los Angeles Madison Thomas expects to graduate in May 2023 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and a minor in political science with a certificate in cross-sector leadership. Thomas, who works in sports radio production and distribution for SkyView Networks, has interned with the Phoenix Mayor’s Office and the Varsity Sports Show.

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