JLS and UB40’s Ali Campbell to headline festival by UK’s first out gay owners of a sport club
The inaugural 'Cougar Live MusicX' takes place at Cougar Park in Keighley this July, home of the Keighley Cougars rugby league team
By Dale Fox
Keighley Cougars owners Ryan O’Neill and his husband Kaue Garcia, who in 2019 became the first openly gay couple to own a professional sports club in the UK, are staging a two-day music festival at Cougar Park in Keighley, Yorkshire, on Friday 24 and Saturday 25 July 2026.
JLS will headline Friday night, with UB40 featuring Ali Campbell closing the festival on Saturday.
When O’Neill and Garcia took over the Keighley Cougars rugby league club in January 2019, they saved it from the brink of extinction. The club has since hosted annual Pride events, flown the Progress flag at matches, and appointed India Willoughby as the UK’s first trans patron of a professional sports team.
The club has also raised close to a six-figure sum for LGBTQ+ charities through its Pride fixtures, the first of which, held in 2019, is believed to have been the first dedicated Pride match in British professional sport.
In July 2025, O’Neill and Garcia personally distributed rugby kits to players in Ukraine’s national rugby league teams, taking a 15-hour bus journey from Poland into Ukraine.
The same year, the couple bought the NCEL Premier Division team Eccleshill United FC, bringing the team across to the Cougars’ Keighley base.
O’Neill’s contribution to LGBTQ+ visibility in sport was recognised in 2025 when he was named in the sport category of Attitude 101, empowered by Bentley, alongside the likes of diver Tom Daley and former pro footballer Thomas Hitzlsperger.
“We look forward to welcoming everyone for a weekend of fantastic music and celebration” – Keighley Cougars owners
Now the couple are expanding the club’s profile beyond rugby with Cougar Live MusicX, billed as a family-friendly festival experience with a main stage show each night.
Commenting on the festival, O’Neill and Garcia said: “It’s always been our mission to serve our community and neighbouring cities. Launching a festival of this scale is a testament to the spirit and passion of Keighley and we look forward to welcoming everyone for a weekend of fantastic music and celebration.”
Tickets range from general admission to VIP and a limited number of meet-and-greet packages, with a further VIP announcement still to come. Early bird tickets are on sale now.