‘Heated Rivalry’ gay hockey book club brings new fans to Charlotte Checkers games
Note: This story has been updated with a rescheduled date for Book Club Night.
It may not be a cottage, but Bojangles Coliseum might just be the second-best place for fans of the “Heated Rivalry” gay hockey romance book and TV series.
Book Club night with the Charlotte Checkers is back.
After being postponed due to January snow, the Charlotte Checkers are, once again, inviting fans and their book clubs to its March 13 game against the Bridgeport Islanders for a pregame happy hour, drink ticket and a tote bag.
“So it wasn’t specifically tied to the show, but the timing was perfect and it likely contributed to the popularity of the night,” Nick Niedzielski, senior director of marketing and communications for the Checkers, told CharlotteFive via email about the book club-themed event.
Gay hockey romance novels
The books are gay hockey romance novels that follow a different couple in each title. Each book features a professional, closeted hockey player and their love interest navigating relationships that could mark the end of the players’ careers due to homophobia and backlash. Interest in the books skyrocketed after the show, named after the second book in the series, premiered in December.
It became an overnight sensation, launching the lead actors into megastardom and bringing an influx of new fans to the sports. And many teams in return have embraced the new fandom too with pride nights and players using rainbow stick tape.
The Tampa Bay Lightning played the song “All the Things She Said,” by Russian pop band t.A.T.u. and remixed by Harrison during a game, a song featured in the show’s fourth episode. The Bell Centre, where the Montreal Canadians play, showed the show’s trailer during the team’s pride night. And actor Robbie GK, who plays the character Kip in Season 1, attended a Vancouver Canucks game to much fanfare, especially when he revealed he was wearing a replica of the jersey worn by his boyfriend in the show.
In fact, replica jerseys sold by teams featuring the characters’ names have sold out within an hour of their release. Fan demand for tickets to games have also increased.
The fifth episode of the show’s first season is currently rated the 13th best episode of television of all time on IMDB, one ahead of an episode of “Game of Thrones.”
The team partnered with Trope Bookshop for the event, Niedzeilski said. In an Instagram post, Trope promoted the event and told fans to tag “your heated rivalry buddy below.” The post had over 1,200 likes.
After the success of the show, the phrase “boy aquarium” began trending on social media, comparing the fan’s perspective of the rink from their seats to that of walking through an aquarium. Only instead of fish, they’re watching professional athletes shoot pucks at goals and occasionally throw hands with each other.
And it has since inspired other professional athletes to come out of the closet, including retired professional hockey players.
Those interested in attending can purchase tickets on the team’s website.
Desiree Mathurin contributed.
This story was originally published January 29, 2026 at 9:32 AM.
