Amid Revry’s march to 5 million monthly active users, Pride Ball, the annual, Los Angeles-based, live dance competition tournament, has been a proven audience draw for the LGBTQ+-themed FAST channel and AVOD player.
And this year, Revry took its popular vogue ballroom competition event to the nation’s capital … and the world stage.
Produced in coordination with global LGBTQ+ organization network InterPride and its annual WorldPride event, and sponsored this year by McDonalds, Revry’s World Pride Ball 2025 took place in Washington, D.C. on June 5. Starting June 27 at 9 p.m. ET, the free, ad-supported streaming service will host a 24-hour marathon stream of the pre-recorded competition.
“The World Pride Ball dance battle is a fierce competition showcasing athleticism and artistry in the queer community, enveloped in a message of self-expression, love and acceptance,” said Damian Pelliccione, co-founder and CEO of the 10-year-old Revry network, in a statement. “It’s Revry’s honor to give World Pride Ball the television platform it deserves, opening it up to audiences everywhere in full, multi-camera glory.”
Featuring hundreds of competitors divided into teams (called “houses”) facing off in various categorically defined dance battles in front of celebrity judges, Pride Ball has broken Revry viewership records streaming the past two Junes.
This year’s panel of judges/hosts includes model and actress Carmen Carrera (RuPaul’s Drag Race); model and vogue legend Leiomy Maldanado; voguer and choreographer Dashaun Wesley (Pose); and voguer Ivy Mugler.
McDonalds is taking over as sponsor from Nike, which underwrote 2023’s Pride Ball. Amid a tense political climate that gestated a boycott of beverage maker Anheuser Busch, after the company merely featured a transgender influencer in a social media ad campaign, this could be considered a bold move by the global QSR brand.
Then again, with President Donald Trump recently ending specialized suicide-hotline support for at-risk LGBTQ+ youth and young adults, it could also be viewed as a strong, timely corporate gesture of support for at-risk communities.
Speaking to StreamTV Insider regarding 2023’s Pride Ball event, Pelliccione remarked, “It’s really important not just to us but also for Nike to be supporting the community. They took a real clear stand as one of the few brands that stood out amongst all of the rhetoric during, right now Pride Month, to say, hey regardless, we’re not going to stop, if anything we’re going to support the community even louder and prouder.”
McDonalds released this statement: “At McDonald's, we open our doors to everyone. This goes beyond any one month — our aspiration is that when fans interact with McDonald's, everyone feels welcome, comfortable, and safe without fear of bias or judgment. That means the full expression of diversity for members and allies of the LGBTQ+ community.”