The Sydney Swans have recently set a new membership record, after passing 75,165 members in 2025 – and of those, an estimated 25,052 will need donated blood at some point in their lifetime.
This month our partners Australian Red Cross Lifeblood removed most sexual activity wait times for life-saving plasma donations, safely paving the way for many gay and bisexual men, transgender people, sex workers, and people on pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEPi) to help save lives.
Some 625,000 Australians may become eligible to donate plasma, with Lifeblood anticipating around 95,000 additional donations of plasma to be made each year.
Josh Smith, Lead Relationship Manager for NSW/ACT Lifeblood, as well as co-chair for Lifeblood Pride, spoke at a Rainbow Swans dinner in the lead up to the Pride Game about what the changes mean for members of the Pride community.
"The news has been really well received by the community," Smith told Sydney Swans Media.
"Ultimately, this is something that people have been excited about and campaigning for such a long time, and now that we're finally here, the outpouring of support and great first-time donor experiences has been a really wonderful thing to see.
"These restrictions represented a really dark time in queer history, so to be on the other side of that now and to be involved with changing those and being able to celebrate it with such amazing partners like the Swans is a really special moment for us."
Lifeblood estimates that about 600,000 people were affected by previous wait times. These changes could mean up to 95,000 more plasma donations each year and 11,000 extra blood donations annually once the gender-neutral assessment is available.
"In the first week of the changes we saw about 700 first-time plasma donors and that's a huge number of first-time donors to come over such a short period and it really just speaks to how passionate people were about wanting this change and how many people were waiting to press that book button once we announced it," Smith said.
“It is literally life-saving work, we always say to people, you'll never meet the person that receives your donation but, they'll be eternally grateful to you because you've given them another day with their family, another week with their kids, another day walking their dog or whatever it might be that's special to them.
“This is really why we do what we do, we're about giving life to people who need support, and that's ultimately something that we're really proud of and something that I think everyone can feel connected to.
"We are neighbours, we’re in the same building with the Sydney Swans, it's a partnership that we love being a part of and having the donor centre downstairs is such a great opportunity for fans and locals just to come in and donate, roll up your sleeve and give life to someone."
Discover more details about the plasma eligibility changes, the reasons for the changes and the rigorous safety standards behind them on Lifeblood’s website.
To book your donation at Sydney Swans HQ or any Lifeblood donor centre around Australia, call 13 14 95, or book online at lifeblood.com.au or on the DonateBlood app.
Our annual Pride Game is set to return to the SCG on Saturday, August 2, as the Sydney Swans take on Essendon.
Established in 2016 through a collaboration with St Kilda, the Pride Game has become a powerful symbol of diversity in sport, carrying the message that everyone is welcome at the football.
