History
"Ever tried getting punks and hippies up early on a Sunday morning?"
The Easton Cowboys began with the formation of a football team in 1992 in St Paul's Estate in Bristol. Fortunately we had bigger ideas than most Sunday league teams and have not only expanded our number of sports, players, supporters and friends, but have organised many social events, tournaments and trips abroad. The Cowboys have become not only a large sporting organisation, but also a social club of more than 150 based in Easton, with tentacles that have spread throughout the world.
In May 1993 we travelled to Stuttgart in Germany to take part in a football tournament. It turned out to be a brilliant trip where we made many new friends, lost 3-1 in the final and forged ourselves as a club. This tour opened our eyes to many possibilities and over the succeeding years we have organised tours to Antwerp, Brussels, Stuttgart, Berlin, France, Amsterdam, Italy, Mexico, Poland, Morocco and California. In addition, we have held numerous football tournaments in the UK, including two 'Alternative World Cup' tournaments in the summers of 1998 and 2001, where 20 teams from around the globe came to Dorset for a weekend of football, music and fun. This is only the tip of the iceberg as there have been numerous other trips around the country, gigs, club nights and other social events down the years.
* A more in-depth and very inspiring history can be found here.
About
The Easton Cowboys are a large sports and social club based in The Plough Inn in Easton, Bristol. The Cowboys and Cowgirls now include several men's and women's football teams, two cricket teams, a netball team and a basketball team.
All those involved in the Cowboys have a voice - whether they play a sport or not. We value the opinions of all our players, supporters, friends and lovers. This is why there is no fixed membership of the organisation. We value our social lives as being as, or even more important than our sporting activities. We try and create an atmosphere that does not exclude anybody by race, sex, sexuality, age or culture. Ideas and commitment are the lifeblood of our community. We think big and act on it.
Essentially the club is run by the Cowboys, for the Cowboys. We are a democratic organisation which gives the opportunity for all to have an opinion and a voice, whether they play a sport or not. We elect members to a few positions of responsibility and expect them not to abuse their position. It is a matter of trust and respect. In the very few cases where officers of the club have not been able to carry out their responsibilities they have either stepped down or been removed by a popular vote. In general, we have been very successful in our organisation and democracy.
Articles
* Cullompton Tournament, Bristol, August 24-26, 2007
* Short BBC News feature, March 2006
* Freedom through Football/A la Libertad por el Futbol - The Irish Times, January 27th, 2001
* Zapatista Football in Mexico / Do or Die Issue 8 / 2001
