Bayern Munich light Allianz Arena in rainbow flag on Christopher Street Day

The Allianz Arena was lit in the colors of the rainbow flag on Saturday July 9 in honor of Christopher Street Day. Earlier in the week, the Allianz Arena was lit in the colors of the American flag to celebrate American Independence Day and Bayern’s upcoming USA tour.

Christopher Street Day is the annual celebration of LGBT rights across Europe in honor and memory of the Stonewall Riots. In the summer of 1969, the first uprising against police assaults by LGBT people occurred at the Stonewall Inn on Christopher Street in New York City. The first Christopher Street Day festivities occurred in Munich in 1980.

Bayern have never shied away from their social responsibility as a club. When a couple of young Italian Bayern supporters raised a “Gay Gooners” banner during a Champions League match against Arsenal. While Bayern were punished by UEFA, the club worked to find the families of the supporters to punish the young men. Karl-Heinz Rummenigge spoke on the intolerance showed by the banner saying, “This will never be accepted by Bayern Munich."

Pro-LGBT banners and rainbow flags are regularly seen in the Südkurve by Bayern supporters, and the club has also had a LGBT supporter group, Queerpass Bayern, for a decade.

The official CSD celebrations in Munich take place on July 2-10 in 2016 during Pride Week. For more information, visit the CSD München website.