The Kings Cross Steelers Win The 2026 ‘Bingham Cup’ Gay Rugby Union Championship
Image: Kings Cross Steelers, @kxsrfc/Instagram
After a tense final featuring two of the world’s greatest gay rugby union teams, the Kings Cross Steelers have officially taken home the 2026 Bingham Cup. The London-based team took on the Sydney Convicts on Sunday in Brisbane, winning with a score of 12 to 6.
The result marks the Steelers’ second Bingham Cup Victory in just four years, having won the 2022 tournament in Ottawa, Canada, against the New York Gotham Knights. It also marks the second consecutive cup in which the Sydney Convicts earned a spot in the championship.
As for the International Gay Rugby’s Amanda Mark Cup, the global women’s tournament held in tandem with the Bingham Cup, the Ottawa Wolves took home gold, beating out Dublin’s Emerald Warriors. It marks the second time the Canadian team has won the tournament.
The matches concluded four days of inclusive (but no less competitive) rugby as hosted by the biennial LGBTQ+ global tournament, the last of which was held in Rome in 2024. For many, the Bingham Cup is far more than a sweaty competition; it’s also a celebration of inclusivity in sport, gay solidarity, and found family.
The Bingham Cup Is About Love, Verve, & Community
“For me, Bingham represents passion, skill, love, verve, intensity, and triumph of the human spirit,” said James, a Sydney Convicts 4XV player who participated in the cup. “But most of all it represents a real community for those deprived of one but given one when they needed it most.”
Connor, who played alongside James in the Convicts’ fourth-string, described feeling like he was “part of something bigger”
“This experience was nothing short of absolutely exhilarating,” Connor said. “Coming from a place of no experience yet making it to the semis with a legendary group of players (shoutout 4ths) and getting three tries in one game was probably one of the best moments of my life. Definitely one of the best things to exist in the whole gay world.”
The Bingham Cup, formally known as the Mark Kendall Bingham Memorial Tournament, seeks to honour the memory of Mark Bingham. Among being a proud, openly gay rugby player who challenged queer stereotypes, Bingham is also recognised for being one of the key passengers aboard September 11 United Airlines Flight 93 who foiled the hijackers plan to crash the plane into a Washington D.C. building.
Today, the cup stands as a permanent tribute to Mark Bingham and his memory in rugby and in life.
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