Arsenal Women Team Up with Dykes Who Hike for a Landmark Walk
Celebrating inclusion and community while retracing the club’s roots.
Following the launch of Arsenal Women’s first-ever retail range, the club took things beyond the pitch, teaming up with London‘s very own Dykes Who Hike — a thriving community of LGBTQIA+ women, trans and non-binary individuals who come together to explore the outdoors.
What started as a simple hiking group has grown into something much more. Founded just over a year ago by friends Lucy Cooper and Yas Message, Dykes Who Hike evolved from a safe space for outdoor adventures into a close-knit community — one that exists far beyond the trails. In a full-circle moment, this partnership with Arsenal Women felt like fate. After all, the group itself was born out of a shared love for the team, with members regularly organizing trips to watch the club play.
So, what better way to celebrate than by bringing the two together for a special walk through Arsenal’s history? Led by club legend and quadruple winner Anita Asante, nearly 60 hikers — including members of Dykes Who Hike and the GayGooners, the world’s longest-running LGBTQ+ supporters’ group — set off on a journey through the club’s roots.
Starting at Shoreditch Park, where Arsenal Women’s story first began, the group made stops at Highbury Fields, Highbury Stadium and finally, Emirates Stadium, connecting each landmark to the team’s history and its deep ties to the LGBTQIA+ community.
As Asanti puts it, “Inclusion is a force for progress — in sport and society. That’s the principle on which Arsenal Women was founded and why we want all our supporters, no matter their background or belief system, to feel like they belong here.”
Browse the gallery for a closer look at the hike in action.
In other sports news, PUMA’s latest campaign celebrates the runner’s high.
