BRENDON Goddard believes there is scope for a round celebrating gay pride in the wake of Essendon endorsing a supporter group for the gay and lesbian community.
The group, called the Purple Bombers and the brainchild of 30-year member and long-time player sponsor Jason Tuazon-McCheyne, will be formed over the off-season.
It will feature a unique logo of a purple plane and will come with specific membership packages for the 2015 season.
At the announcement of the supporter group, Goddard said he believed a pride round remained a possibility.
"I think there's got to be the support from us being behind this but from the AFL as well and then from the wider footy community and the other footy clubs," Goddard said.
"I don't see why it can't happen. It's obviously probably a little while down the track with organising this stuff but I think they deserve the right.
"It's great for this [group] to come to fruition and become something.
"We want to create a place not only here at Essendon but at the footy that everyone is welcome and equal."
The supporter group is an extension of the club's Respect campaign, which was launched earlier in the season.
Tuazon-McCheyne said the formation of the group was a strong step forward for the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and intersex (GLBTI) community.
He agreed with Goddard in regards to a round that celebrated the community.
"I look forward to the day when a football club will actually hold a pride round and stand and say we value all of our fans," Tuazon-McCheyne said.
He also said he hoped initiatives like this would "make a lot of people happy and bring positive change".
"It's really important than when I take my husband and my son to the football that I don't have to hear discriminative or offensive words from the audience and I can feel safe and valued," he said.
"The Essendon Football Club does care about its fans. We have Indigenous and women's things in place and now they're saying we love our gay and lesbian fans and we want to create a safe environment for them.
"The AFL doesn't have any out players and a lot of its fans aren't even out in the audience.
"It's time that changed and we should have a diverse environment where we can all be accepted and appreciated for who we are.
"It's really important I can sit there and be happy and be myself and know that I'm accepted and valued by the club that I've loved all my life."
