Happy Pride Month, San Diego! Each June, communities across the country come together to celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community, recognize its contributions, and promote equality and inclusion.
Wave FC will host its annual Pride Night on Saturday, July 26, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. PT featuring a match between San Diego and Seattle Reign FC at Snapdragon Stadium. Tickets are available for purchase here.
The Club is proud to stand with the LGBTQIA+ community year-round and encourages fans to explore the local events and organizations listed below. If you have any additional groups you would like the Wave to highlight, please send a message to media @wavefc.com.
Events:
Pride By the Beach – Saturday, June 6, 2026, from 12:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. at the Civic Center Plaza,in Oceanside. Pride by the Beach, a program of the North County LGBTQ Resource Center, works to serve, empower, and advocate for the LGBTQI+ community across North San Diego County through a variety of support services and programs. For more than a decade, the organization has provided resources including mental health support, HIV prevention and care, transgender support groups, and housing assistance for at-risk youth, while continuing to expand its impact throughout the region.
Light Up The Cathedral – Wednesday, July 15, 2026 at 7:00 p.m. The Interfaith Pride Celebration brings together LGBTQIA+ and allied faith leaders and community members for an inclusive service celebrating faith, pride, and belonging at St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral. Following the service, the Cathedral will be illuminated in rainbow colors in honor of Pride.
Spirit of Stonewall Rally – On Friday, July 17, 2026, at 6 p.m., the Spirit of Stonewall Rally, first held in 1975, honors the history of the LGBTQIA+ rights movement while recognizing leaders who continue to advance equality and address challenges facing the community. The annual event brings people together to celebrate progress, inspire action, and reflect on the ongoing work toward inclusion and justice.
San Diego Pride Parade – Taking place Jul 18, 2026 from 10:00 a.m to 3:00 p.m. the annual San Diego Pride Parade celebrates the LGBTQIA+ community, drawing more than 250,000 supporters and participants to the streets of Hillcrest and Balboa Park. As the largest single-day civic event in San Diego and one of the largest Pride parades in the United States, the parade showcases a powerful display of diversity, inclusion, community pride, and advocacy.
Pride 5K – Held the morning of Saturday, July 18, 2026 at 8:00 a.m. in Hillcrest, bringing together runners and walkers from across the country in celebration of health, inclusion, and LGBTQIA+ pride. Held in the heart of Hillcrest, the race raises critical funds for San Diego Pride and The LGBTQ Center’s Youth Housing Project, supporting programs and services that make a lasting impact throughout the community.
San Diego Pride Festival – Located at Marston Point in Balboa Park (6th Ave. & Laurel St.) on Saturday, July 18, 2026 from 12 p.m. to 10 p.m. and on Sunday, July 19, 2026 from 12 p.m. to 9 p.m., the two-day San Diego Pride Festival features live entertainment, cultural presentations, local artists, community groups, and the dedicated Queer Locals Marketplace under this year’s official theme: “Pride Shines On.”
Resources and Organizations:
America’s Finest City Softball League (AFCSL) is San Diego’s oldest and largest adult recreational slow-pitch softball league. As San Diego’s largest LGBTQ+ sporting league, they welcome everyone, whether you were born with a ball in your hand or are just learning how to throw, they provide a home for all.
Lambda Rising Soccer is a 501(c)3 non-profit that serves as a boldly inclusive recreational soccer club that celebrates the LGBTQ+ and Ally community in San Diego. They are committed to expanding access to recreational soccer programs for players of all gender identities and skill levels.
Lambda Archives of San Diego – The mission of Lambda Archives is to collect, preserve, and share the LGBTQ+ history of San Diego, Northern Baja California, and Imperial Valley region. Since 1987, they have been the region’s only community-centered archives focused on preserving local queer history.
North County LGBTQ Resource Center – The North County LGBTQ Resource Center is a 501(c)3 organization that serves the lesbian, gay, transgender, bisexual, and questioning (LGBTQ) community of North County San Diego. Their service area includes the communities of Encinitas, Carlsbad, Oceanside, Vista, San Marcos, Escondido, Rancho Bernardo, Fallbrook, Camp Pendleton, and other outlying areas. They come together to share ideas, resources, and expand our presence in the local community.
Hillcrest Youth Center & South Bay Youth Center — The Hillcrest Youth Center and South Bay Center provide drop-in support and recreational activities dedicated to the needs of LGBTQ and nonbinary youth, as well as youth living with HIV.
Our Safe Place — Our Safe Place program provides behavioral health services for youth who identify as LGBTQI+ from 12 to 21 years old, and their families. The program’s service provisions include a certified outpatient clinic that serves all of San Diego County. Clinical services include individual and family therapy, as well as psychiatric services. Additionally, Our Safe Place offers four LGBTQI+ drop-in centers throughout the County (North Inland, North Coastal, Central and South Bay) that are open 7 days a week, 8 hours a day.
PFLAG San Diego County — PFLAG is the first and largest organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) people, their parents, families, and allies. With over 400 chapters and supporters crossing multiple generations of families in major urban centers, small cities, and rural communities across America, PFLAG is committed to creating a world where diversity is celebrated and all people are respected, valued, and affirmed. The PFLAG San Diego County chapter was formed in San Diego in 1982 with 15 members and extends into multiple regions of the county.
Project Trans — Project TRANS (Transgender Referrals, Assistance, Networking, and Services) offers discussion groups, behavioral health services, HIV prevention services, youth services, and more. In addition, the program focuses on advocacy, referrals, outreach, sensitivity training, social activities and events, workshops, and networking with community agencies. Through a partnership with the Transgender Law Center, Project TRANS also provides assistance with legal documents. For more information, contact the Project Trans coordinator at [email protected].
San Diego Black LGBTQ — The San Diego Black LGBTQ strives to be a haven for the Black LGBTQ community. Their primary focus is connecting individuals to resources, events, and outlets that support and enrich their lives, and providing opportunities to strengthen the community in which we live.
San Diego LGBT Community Center — Open daily, the center provides a wide variety of LGBTQIA+ programs and services including crisis counseling, individual and couple counseling, facilitated coming-out groups, and over a dozen LGBTQIA+ peer support groups each week. Additional social, educational, and cultural events, and information regarding community resources, as well as HIV testing, counseling, and substance abuse information and referral, are available. Located at 3909 Centre Street in Hillcrest.
Sport A Rainbow — An organization close to Wave FC goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan’s heart, Sport a Rainbow encourages coaches, athletes and organizations to join the Inclusion in Sport Movement and be supportive, respectful, and kind to each other despite individual differences.
TransFamily Support Services — TransFamily Support Services guides transgender/non-binary youth and their families through the gender transitioning process to help make it the most positive experience possible. They provide family coaching, assistance with healthcare and insurance issues, help navigating the legal system, and support at schools. All services are provided at no fee.
Businesses:
Take a look at the San Diego Equality Business Association directory, which strives to promote, and help the LGBTQ influence through business ownership, workforce equality, and active consumerism, creating prosperity to support equality, diversity, and inclusion.
Additional business information and ways you can support can be found via the San Diego LGBTQ+ travel guide, the San Diego LGBT Community Center, and LGBTQ SD County News.
