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HotScots is the first and currently the only gay football club in Scotland. Kevin Rowe, the Club’s founder, moved to Edinburgh from Yorkshire where he played in the Yorkshire Terriers. His reasons for starting the HotScots were that he wanted to continue to play football with like-minded people, establish a social network and make new friends north of the border. Kevin says the one of the Club’s purposes is to help “break down barriers surrounding antiquated ideas of how LGBT people are averse to football/sport”.

Kevin offers the following timeline of the HotScots first year:

“First advertised for players/fans on 17th February 2007, 1st training session took place on Sun 12th August 2007, we took part in our 1st competitive tournament in Leicester on 2nd September, & we played our 1st 11-a-side friendly 19th January 2008 vs Haddington Select, & our 1st gay 11-a-side friendly vs Leftfooters in Edinburgh on Sun 17th Feb 2008 exactly one year on from starting. How’s that for a HotScots history?”

The Club has developed very quickly and now has a full committee & paid up membership of nearly 40 people. It has a 3-year sponsorship deal and additional match-funding from Sportsmatch.

Looking to the future, Kevin adds “we have grown so quickly that we have nearly a full squad for the World Championship 2008 (1st time a team from Scotland will have ever competed), we won our 1st silverware on Sunday 13th April by beating the Gay National League (GNL) champions (London Falcons), & have now applied to join the GNL for the 2008/09 season”.

HotScots FC