Joining Hotlanta helped me reclaim soccer as an outlet to cultivate and experience queer joy. I fell in love with soccer when I joined my first youth league. The skill, precision, and competitiveness required to win quickly made games and practices the highlights of my week. That changed once I joined my high school squad. Suddenly, soccer felt at odds with my identity. Many of my teammates were openly homophobic and I quit being my authentic self at practice. I resented the sport and stopped playing. Years later, I realized I missed it. I joined Hotlanta soon after moving to Atlanta and discovered I didn’t have to sacrifice my identity to play. My brash and bold trans non-binary identity went hand-in-hand with my fierce on-the-field persona. They were compliments, not opposites, all along.

Cam Love

Hotlanta, Atlanta, Estados Unidos