From Former Police Detective to Grassroots Pioneer:

Celebrating Over Three Decades of Breaking Barriers,

Defeating Stereotypes, and Fostering LGBTQI+ Inclusion in Football.

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Javier Pellon
EGLSF General Secretary: javier.pellon@eglsf.info

 

COLOGNE, Germany / VALENCIA, Spain – June 7, 2026 — The European Gay & Lesbian Sport Federation (EGLSF) has officially announced Andreas Stiene, the visionary founder of Cologne’s iconic Come-Together-Cup (CTC), as the recipient of the prestigious EGLSF Advocacy Award. This international honor recognizes individuals who have made extraordinary contributions to equality, visibility, and inclusion within the European sports movement. The award will be formally presented during the upcoming Gay Games XII, held in Valencia, Spain, from June 27 to July 4, 2026.

Stiene’s selection highlights a lifetime of grassroots activism that transformed a modest local initiative into Europe's largest amateur football tournament dedicated to diversity. What began in 1995 with just 10 teams and 1,000 spectators has grown into a cultural phenomenon, drawing over 20,000 annual visitors and serving as a blueprint for intersectional solidarity on and off the pitch.

 

A Personal Journey Toward Collective Empowerment

Stiene’s path to advocacy stems from a deeply personal transition. In early 1992, he made the difficult decision to leave his ten-and-a-half-year career as a detective inspector with the North Rhine-Westphalia police force—forfeiting lifetime civil servant tenure—to live openly and authentically as a gay man.

Upon moving to Cologne, Stiene initially believed he was "the only gay footballer in the world." However, a magazine advertisement seeking queer players led to the formation of the Cream-Team-Cologne (CTC) by his team mates Rolf Emmerich and Sascha H., which joined SC Janus e.V. as its men's football division in 1994.

The spark for the tournament occurred later that year following two key experiences:

  • The 1994 Gay Games in New York: After winning a high-profile match in Central Park, Stiene realized how vital it was to bring high-quality queer sports out of isolation and into the view of the general public.
  • The Historic Police Friendly: In September 1994, Cream-Team-Cologne played the Cologne Police Select Team. It was the world’s first-ever friendly match between an openly gay team and a police squad, shattering long-standing social barriers and providing the immediate inspiration for a broader, public tournament.

 

Three Decades of Impact: Playing, Talking, and Celebrating Together

On June 24, 1995, the first Come-Together-Cup was born under the guiding motto: "Playing football to your heart's content"  Stiene deliberately invited police teams, LGBTQI+ groups, religious organizations, corporate squads, and athletes with disabilities to share the same pitch. In 1997, the tournament established a dedicated women's division—a revolutionary step for inclusivity in German football at the time.

Between 1995 and 2025, the tournament’s collective achievements have left an indelible legacy:

  • 450,000+ total spectators welcomed.
  • 1,850+ diverse teams hosted.
  • 3,200+ dedicated volunteers mobilized.
  • €400,000+ raised for charitable causes, with recent annual proceeds split equally between the LGBTQI+ youth center anyway e.V. and Aidshilfe Köln e.V.

"Receiving the EGLSF Advocacy Award is an incredible honor, not just for me, but for the thousands of volunteers, players, and allies who have stepped onto the pitch to prove that football belongs to everyone," said Andreas Stiene. "When we started in 1995, we wanted to build bridges where walls existed. To be celebrated now at the Gay Games in Valencia shows how far our collective movement has come in changing hearts and minds through sports."

The EGLSF Advocacy Award presentation at Gay Games XII Valencia 2026 will celebrate Stiene’s leadership as a beacon of hope, cementing the Come-Together-Cup as a masterclass in how grassroots sports can drive sustainable social justice, equality, and human rights.

 

About the Come-Together-Cup (CTC):

Founded in Cologne, Germany, in 1995 by Andreas Stiene, the Come-Together-Cup is an annual amateur football tournament and diversity festival. It actively promotes anti-discrimination, dialogue, and solidarity by uniting diverse social strata—including the LGBTQI+ community, allies, police forces, and marginalized groups—on the sports field.

END.

NOTES TO EDITOR:

EGLSF Founded in 1989, The European Gay & Lesbian Sport Federation (EGLSF) aims include
combatting against discrimination in sport on grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity and expression and sex characteristics and to stimulate integration in sport and emancipation of LGBTIQ+ athletes. The federation has a membership of over 150 European LGBTIQ+ sports clubs and
organisations representing the interests of more than 45,000 people.

Advocacy Awards are granted yearly. The awards are granted to two persons whose actions have been particularly important for the LGBTIQ+ Sports movement. Nominations are made by members of EGLSF member organisations or individual EGLSF members.