Overlap of Tempo Pride game, Dyke March a disappointing oversight, fans say

A couple kiss each other along the route during the Dyke March, in Toronto, Saturday, June 24, 2023, as part of Pride celebrations in the city. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

Some LGBTQ+ fans of the Toronto Tempo say they’re disheartened they’re being forced to choose between attending the team’s first-ever Pride game and a beloved Pride event this weekend because the match directly overlaps with the annual Dyke March in the city’s gay village. 

The Tempo will take on the Phoenix Mercury at 2 p.m. Saturday at Scotiabank Arena, the same time the Dyke March kicks off in the Church-Wellesley neighbourhood. 

Toronto resident Krystle Merrow will be missing the Dyke March for the first time in 15 years to make it to Saturday’s game. But they said the choice was not an easy one, and some of their friends declined to come along in favour of the march. 

“I probably go back and forth every day about it,” said Merrow, who is also a Tempo season ticket holder.

Merrow is excited to see the team’s inaugural match at Scotiabank Arena, and said the Play with Pride event is a historic first.

But they’re crushed to be missing the community atmosphere at the march, saying they feel love, anger and bravery walking arm-in-arm down the street with other queer people in an act of protest and celebration. 

The Dyke March feels like it truly has the queer community at its core, unlike some other Pride events that have come to feel “corporate” over time, Merrow added.

“It sucks that it’s at the exact same time as the Tempo game — the game they’re saying is specifically for Pride,” Merrow said. “If it was just one hour later, we could have marched to the Tempo game.”

The team has heard from fans about the scheduling conflict and chose this weekend for the Pride game so the team could participate in the Pride Parade, Tempo communications director Bri Bijman said in a statement.

The Tempo requests game dates far in advance, but the WNBA is responsible for choosing tip-off times, Bijman said, adding that “this specific timing was not within our control.”

“That community is incredibly important to us, and we’ll take this into account as we plan future Pride celebrations to help ensure more fans are able to take part in both,” Bijman said.

When Elle Stark realized her Tempo plans overlapped with the Dyke March, she decided to sell her $70 tickets at a loss.

The march is “such an important part of Pride in the community,” Stark said. 

Stark most looks forward to people coming together in an energetic rally at the start of the march but said she’s nonetheless disappointed to miss out on the Tempo game.

Alethea Bakogeorge, a lesbian and queer organizer from Toronto, said she is also choosing the Dyke March over attending the game.

“It’s disappointing that the Tempo — in a league that caters to so many queer women and celebrates the athleticism of so many queer individuals — didn’t have more foresight in planning,” Bakogeorge said.

Merrow and Bakogeorge both acknowledged that scheduling matches is complicated, especially in the team’s first year, and said they hope the league is able to land on more convenient timing for next year’s Pride game.

“If they can change it for next year, I’m sure a lot of people would be very happy about it,” Merrow said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 26, 2026.