Sydney has won its bid to host the 2014 Bingham Cup, the world’s top gay rugby tournament, held every two years.
It will run for one week in August 2014, with up to 40 teams and 1,500 players expected to participate.
This year’s competition was held in the UK in Manchester and was won by the Sydney Convicts.
The International Gay Rugby Association and Board (IGRAB) made the announcement, following a campaign supported by Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard and senior Liberal MP Malcolm Turnbull.
According to AAP, Mr Turnbull said it was a “great result” for Sydney to win the hosting rights.
“This will be one of the biggest events for the city and eastern suburbs since we hosted the beach volleyball in the 2000 Olympics,” he said in a statement.
The Bingham Cup started in 2002 in San Francisco with the aim of making rugby more LGBT-inclusive.
It was named after Mark Bingham, a gay American rugby player, who died on United flight 93, during the September 11 attacks in 2001.
Former Wallabies captain John Eales, who supported the bid, said a lot of work was still needed to be done to eliminate homophobia in sport.
“Regardless of the football code you would like to play, sexuality should be irrelevant,” he said.
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