NEWYou can now listen to Pakinomist articles!
Major League Soccer’s Los Angeles Football Club was one of two professional sports teams to sponsor Rainbow Lab’s Violet Visionary Awards Thursday night.
The awards ceremony honored former UPenn swimmer Lia Thomas with a “Voice of Inspiration” award, which is given to “an individual whose story and actions ignite hope and courage in the LGBTQ+ community.”
Thomas, a transgender woman, won a women’s national title in 2022, which became the catalyst for the national debate about transgender athletes in girls’ and women’s sports.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON Pakinomist
University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas receives the winner’s trophy for the 500 Freestyle Finals during the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships on March 17, 2022 at the McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta, Georgia. (Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Thomas gave a speech at the event, which the Los Angeles Dodgers also sponsored. Neither the Dodgers nor LAFC responded to emails from Pakinomist Digital regarding their thoughts on Thomas receiving the award.
However, a spokesperson for the football club spoke at the event attended by OutKick as Daisy Chavez showed support for the LGBTQ community.
“We are a community of queer fans, community leaders, supporters and activists from the Los Angeles Football Club. And if you don’t know, we follow sports because we’ve always been here,” Chavez said. “We’ve been athletes, we’ve been fans, we’ve been lovers of the sport.
Thomas, 26, received the “Voice of Inspiration Award” at the 2025 Violet Visionary Awards in Los Angeles on Thursday night. (Alejandro Avila/OutKick)
TURNING POINT USA CALLS FOR NBA STAFF TO BE FIRED FOR CRUDE REMARKS ABOUT CHARLIE KIRK’S ASSASSINATION
“And so our presence with this club reminds not only the club, the community, but the world that we’ve always been here. And so we cheer, full of joy and love for our local community, but we also represent for our queer people, and we’re so proud to be there every step of the way.”
Riley Gaines, who competed against Thomas and tied the former UPenn swimmer at the national tournament, was not happy with Thomas getting the award.
“The voice of inspiration? The only people Will Thomas inspires are other men who realized that you can take everything from women—our records, our space, our opportunities—and still get a standing ovation,” Gaines told OutKick, using Thomas’ birth name. “It’s 2025, not 2020. We’re done pretending it’s courage.”
University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas and Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines react after finishing 5th in the 200 Freestyle finals at the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships on March 18, 2022 at the McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta, Georgia. (Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Twenty-nine states have regulations regarding trans athletes in girls’ and women’s sports. In February, President Donald Trump signed an executive order banning trans athletes from competing against women.
