Skip to Content

← All Campaigns & Exhibitions Campaign 

Play in Colour – 

Cities for inclusive sport and against conversion practices

Help your city Play in Colour.


Municipalities 

Join European cities supporting inclusive sport and standing against conversion practices.


Activists and local organisations 
 
Download the materials and invite your city to join the campaign.


Endorse the Appeal      Download Campaign Materials


Play in Colour is a European mobilisation inviting municipalities to take a clear public stand against conversion practices targeting LGBTQIA+ people.

Research shows that, in the EU, one in four LGBTQIA+ people (24%) have experienced interventions aimed at changing their sexual orientation or gender identity.¹ In sport, the situation is even more critical, as our research report shows.² 

Play in Colour responds to this challenge by using sport as a tool for empowerment, visibility and social change - because in sport, as in life, everyone should have the chance to play with dignity and without fear.


The appeal is part of the project Better in Colour, Better in Sports, promoted by Gaynet as part of the “Meglio a Colori” campaign, in partnership with EGLSF and ACT – Against Conversion Therapy, within the framework of the Connecting Spheres initiative funded by the European Union.

Why cities?

Cities are invited to join the campaigns since municipalities are able to: Every city can help build the solution!

  • support and to create inclusive sport environments;
  • work with local LGBTQIA+ and sport organisations;
  • supporting ongoing efforts at EU and national level to prohibit conversion practices;
  • promote awareness and training;

Cities that join the initiative will:

  • be publicly recognised through dedicated communication;
  • receive a toolkit of actions to support local implementation;
  • be part of a growing movement of Play in Colour cities.
If you already have an inclusive sport initiative:
Submit it as a good practice.

Across Europe, so-called conversion practices still send a harmful message: that some people must change who they are in order to belong.

These practices fuel the rhetoric of deviance, contribute to hate speech and violence, and weaken social cohesion.

In 2020, the United Nations called for a global ban on conversion practices. More recently, over one million European citizens supported a European Citizens’ Initiative calling for EU action to prohibit them. However, a comprehensive EU-wide ban has not yet been adopted.

Cities also have a key role to play.

Through the project Better in Colour, Better in Sports, we are launching Play in Colour, a European mobilisation inviting municipalities to take a clear and public stand.

Municipalities wishing to join the appeal can write to:

applications@eglsf.info

Please include the name of your city/municipality and a contact person for follow-up.

View the Appeal (EN/IT/FR/ES)

Municipalities joining the appeal can send an official communication to our email address, as explained above. They may also issue a public statement using this adaptable template. Once we have received your endorsement, we will contact you to coordinate the public announcement as part of our social media campaign.

Download the Statement Draft

We invite all organisations to contribute to the campaign by sharing their good practises with others, including the municipalities taking part in the campaign.

We are looking for initiatives that already involve collaboration with municipalities or local authorities, as well as initiatives that could benefit from such partnerships in the future.

It can for example be an anti-discrimination or community action or an awareness campaign etc. More details and examples are given in linked the form.



1) European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), LGBTIQ Equality at a Crossroads: Progress

and Challenges, 2024

2) Gaynet, EGLSF, Better in Colour, Better in Sports: Report on the Main Results of the Survey, May 2026, research conducted under the scientific coordination of Roberto Baiocco and Jessica Pistella (Sapienza University of Rome).

Cities Playing in Colour

Cities taking part in the campaign

Related to Play in Colour

Better in Colour, Better in Sports project

Social Media

Funding

The European Union generously funds this project under the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV) programme through the "Connecting Sphere" subgrant managed by Oxfam Italy, Giacomo Brodolini Foundation, and Oxfam Italy Intercultura.

Logo: Co-funded by the European Union
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.