Irish WWE Star Uses Wrestlemania Entrance To Promote LGBT+ Inclusivity

Wrestler Finn Bálor from Bray Co. Wicklow had members of the New Orleans LGBT+ community on the stage during last night's Wrestlemania wearing his new rainbow inspired t-shirts of which 20% of sales will go to LGBT+ charity GLAAD.

News . Written by Katie Donohoe.

Wrestlemania star Finn Bálor makes his entrance

One of the most exciting parts of any wrestling match tends to be the extravagant entrances into the Gladiator style arena before a fight. WWE has historically taken this tradition to the next level and history was indeed made last night as Irish wrestler Finn Bálor competed in his first ever Wrestlemania last night.

Bálor entered the stadium with members of the New Orleans LGBT community, who were all wearing the wrestling star’s new rainbow inspired t-shirt. 20% of the sales of his new t-shirt will go to GLAAD, a US LGBT+ charity.

Balor first revealed his re-worked logo in February this year.

As he unveiled his new T-shirt on social media last week, he said: “I am proud to announce that a portion of sales from my new shirt will go to benefit GLAAD. Because everyone deserves to be accepted and included.

“Balor Club is for everyone.”

The 36 year-old wrestler from Bray whose real name is Fergal Devitt has made a name for himself in the sport with over 1 million followers on Twitter, he has changed his name on the site to ‘Finn Bálor forEVERYone’.

Fellow Wrestlemania star Sonya Deville who has also made history by being the first out lesbian wrestler in WWE tweeted her support for Bálor’s message saying:

“I proudly support this message! Being a part of the LGBT community myself in the WWE its such a great feeling to see Finn Balor speaking out with such an amazing positive message!”

Sonya’s costume was also all about LGBT+ Pride.

Wrestlemania is one of the biggest events in the WWE calendar with millions tuning in to see the event.

Finn’s entrance was well received by the fans who were delighted to see that such a ‘macho’ event would spread a message of inclusivity.

Although he ultimately lost his match against opponents Seth Rollins and The Miz, he was ultimately gracious in defeat tweeting lyrics from John Lennon’s Imagine during the show, saying: “Imagine all the people living life in peace. BalorClub fOreVERyone.”

Watch his entrance video:

https://twitter.com/meganoliviam/status/983337870290284544

© 2018 GCN (Gay Community News). All rights reserved.

Support GCN

GCN has been a vital, free-of-charge information service for Ireland’s LGBTQ+ community since 1988.

During this global COVID pandemic, we like many other organisations have been impacted greatly in the way we can do business and produce. This means a temporary pause to our print publication and live events and so now more than ever we need your help to continue providing this community resource digitally.

GCN is a registered charity with a not-for-profit business model and we need your support. If you value having an independent LGBTQ+ media in Ireland, you can help from as little as €1.99 per month. Support Ireland’s free, independent LGBTQ+ media.

0 comments. Please sign in to comment.

Popular News

All News