A rugby team from Bristol, England is being ridiculed for changing its name.
Bristol Rugby recently decided to rebrand their image by changing the name of their team to the “Bristol Bears.”
NBD, right?
Wrong!
How about we take this to the next level?
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Apparently fans are freaking out because the “Bristol Bears” is also the name of a popular gay bar and social club in the city’s gayborhood. It hosts an annual summer fiesta, takes part in Pride events, and owns the internet domain for the name.
Related: Rugby team cordially invites you into the locker room to ogle their undressed adventures
“We could end up being a laughing stock,” a fan of the rugby team tells local media.
“I didn’t think my club could be so stupid!” another adds.
Folks on Twitter are equally confused, amused, and/or upset…
Well well well.
The Bristol Bears already exist. pic.twitter.com/dP5u1Udfsc
— JB (@Jbeardmore) April 15, 2018
Is this Bristol Bears thing a joke? #BathRomans
— David Flatman (@davidflatman) April 17, 2018
Dear Bristol Rugby,
Please don't rename yourself the Bristol Bears. You're not a regionally-based children's book or an LGBTQ Facebook group.
Regards,
Common sense— Squidge Rugby (@SquidgeRugby) April 16, 2018
@Bristol_RFC you do realise you are going to get a lot of confused fans when they google Bristol bears yeah?
— tim brown (@timbotronics) April 17, 2018
A spokeswoman from Bristol Sport, which runs the club, claims the organization was “aware of the Bristol Bear Bar from the beginning of the rebrand process.” Although, we think it’s safe to say they didn’t expect such an extreme reaction from fans over the new name.
Owner Steve Lansdown said of the animal: “It defends for its life when it needs to, is aggressive in attack when it needs to be.”
Grrrrrr!
Related: Rugby star addresses explicit photos of him with his brother: “We are very close”
Kangol
Clearly homophobia is driving some British people to madness, since they’re reading way too much into this simple name change.
lambchopp59
LOL, blatant homophobia is something I’m so enjoying it becoming a laughing-stock concept, rather than the “norm” it used to be.
I believe the funniest part is many of the worst homophobes I know of are such nauseatingly ugly people even before the open their mouths.
Some simply must be dragged kicking a screaming into the 21st century.
Daniel-Reader
They couldn’t go with Bristol Badgers? Anyone who’s been to the UK knows the badgers there are aggressive. They dig under the foundations of stone buildings and walls and undermine their structural stability.
HaguePeter
This is how football/rugby players should look like. Not all padded up to hide their body..
JK 1984
One of the advantages of living in a rugby playing nation, no padding and short shorts.
GayEGO
What is the big deal here? Bristol Bears sounds butch to me!
chris33133
Grizzly Bears?