New England Patriots will sponsor the Gay Bowl 17 in Boston this fall, a national LGBT flag football tournament held annually, according to the website Outsports.
The tournament sponsorship by the reigning Super Bowl champions is reportedly the first by an NFL team, which was announced at FLAG (Friends, Lesbians and Gays) Flag Football Boston's spring season banquet on Saturday, Outsports reported.
Outsports reported that the NFL team confirmed its sponsorship of Gay Bowl 17. New England Patriots owner Bob Kraft attended FLAG Flag Football scholarship dinner earlier this year.
The Tom Brady-led Patriots made history in February by overcoming to largest deficit in the history of the Super Bowl to win the NFL championship over the Atlanta Falcons.
"Every league says they are interested in inclusion, but often won't act," Michael Colangelo, of the blog Touchdown Wire noted Wednesday. "The Patriots sponsoring Gay Bowl '17, is a clear message of where they stand on LGBT issues. Every team is aware of who and what they associate their brand with. The Patriots are making a statement whether they intend to or not, and that is a statement of inclusion."
According to its website, the Gay Bowl is the national LGBT flag football tournament played on Columbus Day weekend by the National Gay Flag Football League. The tournament features teams participating in three divisions; Open 'A', Open 'B' and a women's division, noted the website.
The Patriots had not yet made a statement of the sponsorship on the team's website. Comments on the sponsorship varied on social media.
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