Tournaments

As an active and social LGBTQ+ soccer club, FTSC is highly active in the tournament scene, hosting three annual tournaments of our own each year and sending several of our teams across the country and the globe for other club’s annual tournaments and major IGLFA tournaments.

Our tournaments

FTSC is proud to host three tournaments spread throughout the year: the FTSC Indoor Cup (f.k.a. the Women’s Indoor Cup) each spring, the Rehoboth Beach Classic each summer, and the Turkey Bowl each fall.

The FTSC Indoor Cup has grown from just 8 teams in 2010 to well over 20 teams in four divisions in recent years! This is the largest women’s indoor tournament in the country, with teams coming from multiple cities across the northeast. The divisions are separated into upper & lower for both open (all ages) & masters’ teams, with the all-day schedule divided up with each division playing for a set chunk of the day. All games are 7v7 format. The tournament also features a raffle to help raise money for a different local charity each year! For more information, see the official tournament website: http://ftscindoorcup.weebly.com/

The Rehoboth Beach Classic is FTSC’s annual weekend tournament out in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. Check-in on Friday is followed by the one-day tournament on Saturday and a beach day on Sunday – along with various social events throughout the weekend! Everyone registers as individuals, and tournament organizers will create 6-8 half-teams as evenly balanced as possible, then those teams will pair up for matches throughout the day. Click here for more information.

The annual Thanksgiving Turkey Bowl and Potluck occur the weekend before Thanksgiving each year. It is a casual, low key affair and players of all stripes and skill levels are welcome. Individuals are placed on a squad of 6 or 7 players that remains constant throughout the day, but for each game two squads are paired up to form a complete team – just like the Rehoboth Beach Classic, but without the travel or multi-day schedule. The tournament is followed in the evening by a potluck dinner party that is one of the club’s social highlights of the year. Participation is free for FTSC members and costs a minimal fee for non-members. Watch the newsletter around October for more information on how to participate.

IGLFA championships

Every even year, the International Gay and Lesbian Football Association (IGLFA) holds its World Championship tournament. FTSC has thrice hosted this event: 1997, 2009, and 2022. The tournament has been held both in many cities across the US – including New York, Los Angeles, Dallas, Ft. Lauderdale, Boston, Chicago, and San Francisco – as well as all around the world – including Vancouver, Amsterdam, London, Cologne, Berlin, Sydney, Madison, Paris, and Buenos Aires among others.

FTSC has seen success at the IGLFA World Championships frequently over the past 10 years, with the Rainbow Unicorns having won D1 gold in 2016, D2 silver in 2018, and both D1 and D2 golds in 2022!

IGLFA also hosts other events, such as the North American Championships roughly every four years on the odd years, with the Rainbow Unicorns having won D1 gold in 2015, and the annual Sin City Classic indoor tournament in Las Vegas, with FTSC reps earning bronze in 2022.

Other travel tournaments

Our brother and sister LGBTQ+ soccer clubs across the US all hold annual tournaments of their own that we frequently send teams to! These include Albany, NYC, Seattle, Houston, Chicago, and even some destination tournaments like our Rehoboth Beach Classic, such as the Boston Strikers inviting people to Provincetown or West Hollywood SC inviting people to Palm Springs. If you are interested in participating in any of these tournaments, fill out our interest survey!