Keegan Hirst has enjoyed a successful career as a former professional rugby player, making his fame and fortune playing for teams such as Dewsbury Rams, Batley Bulldogs and Halifax. Having competed in the Super League and played 283 games, Keegan made headlines in 2015 after he revealed in an interview with the Sunday Mirror that he was coming out as gay – becoming the first British professional rugby league player to come out as gay. Now Keegan is retired from playing, instead focussing on using his platform as a mouthpiece for awareness and change, now also booked as an accepting and empowering speaker for events.
Beginning his training as an academy player for Bradford Bulls, Keegan made his debut with the Hunslet Hawks in 2008. Playing 18 times for the team, Keegan later moved to play for the Dewsbury Rams for two seasons. He has also played for the teams of Batley Bulldogs and Featherstone Rovers, before signing a deal with Wakefield Trinity in 2016 to play in the Super League. Playing against Leigh Centurions, Keegan made his Super League debut at the round 6 match of Super League XXII. Keegan later went on loan to Dewsbury Rams and Halifax, before signing permanently with Halifax in 2020. Unfortunately, the 2020 Championship season was abandoned due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and Keegan made his decision to retire from rugby in October of 2020.
In 2015, Keegan announced that he was coming out as gay, something that he had kept private from a young age. Sharing that he tried to ‘bury’, ‘hide’ and ‘ignore’ his sexuality, Keegan struggled with suicidal thoughts, before reaching out to the people closest to him to reveal the way he felt. Since coming out, Keegan has gathered a large following of fans who look to him as a beacon of hope, acceptance and empowerment, who encourages people to be true to who they are. Now, Keegan delivers online body coaching, which helps men of all walks of life to feel confident in their own skin. He has also appeared on Channel 4’s First Dates and Celebrity Haunted Hotel, as well as appearing in Attitude magazine – for which he claimed the Editor’s Special Award at the 2015 Attitude Awards.
Having made headlines as the first active player to come out as gay, Keegan is looked upon as an empowering role model in the LGBT+ community. Coming out in a male-dominated industry that expected men to conform to masculine stereotypes, Keegan displayed immense courage and now empowers others to be true to themselves no matter what is expected of them. Now booked as a speaker for a range of events, Keegan shares his story of discovering his sexuality, and how he has coped with revealing it to the world. Keegan has also delivered the TEDx talk, titled A Talk About Hope, in which he discusses the challenges he faced with his sexuality and identity. If you are looking for an empowering and emotive speaker to share their journey of coming out, book Keegan Hirst today.
How to hire Keegan Hirst
Contact the Champions Speakers Agency to provisionally enquire about hiring Keegan Hirst for your next event, today. To get in touch, simply call an official booking agent on 0207 1010 553 or email us at [email protected] for more information.
** We do not accept requests for autographs, signed merchandise, fan mail, birthday messages or any other non-commercial contact with the speakers or acts. Each speaker on the website may not have necessarily worked with Champions in the past but are known to perform such engagements within the industry.
Testimonials from In-Person & Virtual Events
"Keegan hosted a Pride Month event for us and shared his personal story of coming out in the face of adversity and how vital it is that allies of the LGBTQ+ community support their colleagues by creating safe spaces and challenging any unacceptable behaviour. Keegan's story was very well received and people commented on how down-to-earth and empowering they found him to be. Thank you to Keegan for helping us to celebrate Pride Month!" - Vistry Group
"Everyone loved it! I've had so much good feedback so here are a couple of messages that were sent to me following his session: 'I just wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed listening to Keegan Hirst share his story; it was provocative and moving. His message of being true to oneself was positive and relatable; I was very shy during adolescence and found it difficult to express myself for many years, so Keegan's story certainly resonated' and 'I really got a lot out of this today, as did my team. It was inspirational and relatable in lots of ways - thanks for organising - was a great session!'. I was also really moved as we had an employee that took Keegan's story home to share with his wife and daughters, and the following day his daughter discussed her sexuality with him for the first time ever, he has shared that this was a life-changing moment and it's made their family really happy. We had so many great comments and Keegan was relatable for so many reasons, his ability to use his own story and bring it to life in a way that can resonate with everyone was something that really blew all of my expectations out of the water, and I am really glad we chose Keegan for our Pride Day event." - Tasha, Culture & Engagement Manager, Cubis Systems
"Keegan was FANTASTIC….I’ve also been approached by colleagues to share your details so that their friends’ companies can book him too. We had lots of positive feedback." - Liz, Global Data
"I just wanted to pass on my thanks from me and my colleagues here at Bee House, we thoroughly enjoyed the talk by Keegan and it was a lovely way to bring me, a member of the community and my colleagues, together. I really do hope that this is used as a catalyst for more things LGBTQIA+ related to happen around A&P as I think we have started a really great & important conversation between team members and hopefully company wide."
"I thought it was brilliant, really inspiring and so great to see so many people engaged and asking questions. He explained everything so well. He has clearly been through a lot as I imagine most gay men have, but he appears to be very happy now and comfortable and confident in talking about his experiences good and bad. I took a lot from it."
- John, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Lead, Ashdown Phillips & Partners Ltd
- 2016 - Signed a deal with Wakefield Trinity to play in the Super League
- 2016 - Starred on First Dates on Channel 4 & W's Celebrity Haunted Hotel
- 2015 - Came out as gay in an interview with Sunday Mirror - first British professional Rugby League player to come out as gay
- 2013 - Joined Featherstone Rovers
- 2012 - Joined Batley Bulldogs
- 2009 - Joined Dewsbury Rams
- 2008 - Joined Hunslet Hawks
