The NRL has been snubbed by the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, having been left shocked after its application was rejected.
The NRL had been supporters of the parade, having participated in seven of the last eight events, with Nine newspapers reporting league officials were “stunned” when they had been denied back in September 12.
The only other year the NRL missed was 2020 when it missed the deadline for entries.
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Although organisers claimed the NRL was snubbed alongside 30 per cent of the applicants for the 2023 parade, the timing was conspicuous, coming weeks after the Manly Pride jersey fiasco sparked a heated debate after seven players refused to play in the rainbow strip.
Manly’s season was thrown into disarray by the saga after the players opposed the rainbow colours on the pride jersey on religious and cultural grounds.
The Sea Eagles ended their 2022 campaign with seven consecutive losses, missing out on finals and sparking rumours of discontent within the Manly camp.
Mardi Gras, which is in his 45th year, said: “Because of this milestone year, we received a phenomenal number of parade applications, far exceeding our total capacity.”
“To ensure the safety and security of all our participants and spectators, we must adhere to strict limits on numbers of both people and vehicles involved in the event.
“While we wish we could open our arms to all applications, demand for this year was so high that we only had capacity to accept 70 per cent of the total applications we received.
“When the number of applications exceeds our capacity, Mardi Gras’ Parade Curatorial Committee, made up of diverse representatives from our LGBTQIA+ communities, assess all entries using a clear set of selection criteria.
“Priority for parade selection always goes to LGBTQIA+ groups. The selection criteria also evaluates strong creative concepts with the ability to produce and deliver them, as well as a consideration of their previous parade history.
“In total there will be a record 207 groups represented in the 2023 Mardi Gras parade, sharing a stunning array of creative concepts from all walks of LGBTQIA+ life.”
WWOS also reported that other sporting groups had been invited, despite the NRL being rejected.
Although there will be more than 200 entries, the NSW Teachers’ Union and the state’s largest transgender service centre were also rejected.
An NRL spokesperson told WWOS the sport was still committed to inclusion.
“The NRL has proudly participated in the Mardi Gras for seven years and applied to participate in the 2023 event having been successful with our 2022 application,” a statement sent to Wide World of Sports by the NRL said.
“The NRL was informed on 12 September 2022 that we were unsuccessful in our application to participate in the 2023 Parade.
“The NRL is committed to creating an environment of respect, equality, and inclusiveness, ensuring everyone has ‘Pride in League’. ‘Pride in League’ represents the pride we have in our game and its people, the pride we have in the diverse backgrounds that makes up the rugby league community, and the pride we have in our ability to rise to the occasion and support our teammates.
“The NRL’s involvement in the Mardi Gras does not change its commitment to creating an inclusive sport and specifically to the LGBTQIA+ community.
“We continue to work alongside our partners, including Pride In Sport, to assess ourselves against best practice and build an inclusive environment for people with diverse sexualities and genders in our sport.
“The NRL received Bronze Award at the 2022 Pride In Sport Awards, recognising our support of the community.”
The NRL first entered a float in 2016 with Canterbury great Paul Langmack leading the charge.
Langmack said “this is very disappointing for the game”.
Although not impacting the Mardi Gras situation, it was reported earlier this month NRL coaches did not support an annual Pride Round.
As an alternative, ARLC Chairman Peter V’landys told The Daily Telegraph the NRL would look at a “Respect Round”.
“What a Respect Round is, is that it respects everyone’s views. We might not agree with them, but we respect them,” V’landys said.
“So if we were going to do anything we were going to do a Respect Round. It wasn’t going to be a Pride Round because then you alienate other people.
“We pride ourselves on being an inclusive game. To be an inclusive game you have to respect everyone’s view.”
The comments were slammed on social media.
