If you finished Heated Rivalry and immediately wished the ending were real, this one’s for you.

The producers behind the gay hockey romance have launched the Irina Foundation, a real-world version of the charity Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov start in the books, The Globe and Mail reported.

What it is

The foundation comes from Jacob Tierney and Brendan Brady, cofounders of Accent Aigu Entertainment, the production company behind the show.

Its stated mission: “championing inclusivity and mental well-being and resilience by supporting programs that connect people through organized sports and the arts programs, with a focus on LGBTQIA2S+ and underserved communities,” the Advocate reported.

In practice, it will back existing nonprofit sports and arts programs that fit that mission, rather than running its own, Out reported.

How it’s set up, per The Globe and Mail:

  • In Canada: a donor-advised fund through TD Wealth’s Private Giving Foundation
  • In the US: powered by Panorama Global, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit
  • First donors: Kate Spade New York is the inaugural donor, and grooming brand Harry’s is an early supporter

Why “Irina”

Fans will already know. In Rachel Reid’s Game Changers novels, which the show adapts, Irina is Ilya’s late mother, who struggled with her mental health. At the end of the Heated Rivalry novel, Shane and Ilya set up a youth hockey camp built around inclusion and name the effort after her.

“We chose the name Irina Foundation because, at the heart of Heated Rivalry, Irina represents something much bigger,” said Jayme Alter Wilson, president of Accent Aigu Entertainment. “She reminds us that behind every struggle is a person who deserves to be seen, loved and supported.”

Tierney and Brady said they were inspired by “places where we find our people, discover what lights us up and feel like we belong.”

Reid herself reacted in an Instagram comment: “I’m so excited about this. It means so much.”

Why it lands

Sport can be one of the hardest places to be openly queer, and hockey has a particular reputation. A fictional love story set in that world found a huge audience, and now its team is putting money into the thing the story was quietly about all along: kids and adults finding a locker room, a stage or a team where they can just be themselves.

It’s also a nice model for how fandom energy can turn into something real. The show gets people talking about queer athletes and mental health. The foundation gets actual programs funded.

What’s next for the show

Season 2 is filming now, with Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams back as Ilya and Shane and newcomers including Justice Smith, Emily Hampshire and Milla Jovovich, The Globe and Mail reports. It’s expected on Crave in spring 2027. The series airs on Crave and HBO, per the Advocate.

Not every viewer can watch safely, of course. In April, a Russian news site was fined under the country’s “LGBT propaganda” law for publishing a review of the show, as we reported. All the more reason a small, sweet piece of news like this one is worth passing on.