History

Although SLFC was primarily founded in response to difficult and painful events, it is impossible to discuss the history of the association without acknowledging these circumstances.

In 2016, Spain had only one association, “Leather Friends Spain,” which was created solely to allow the winner of the Mr. Leather Spain competition to participate in the Mr. Leather Europe election. In November of that year, János Martényi won the Mr. Leather Spain title by a landslide. On the day of the competition, he promised to unite the divided Spanish fetish and leather community. Discussions began with the organizers of the original competition about making the event and the association more inclusive, not just for those who could afford expensive 2-3 day stays. However, after it seemed that the organizers and János had agreed on a new, more accessible competition plan for November 2017, they suddenly announced a completely different event the next day, one designed to generate more profit. When János held the organizers accountable for not honoring their agreement, they stripped him of the Mr. Leather Spain title. The title was then offered to the second and third-place winners, but neither accepted it—perhaps out of respect for János, or fear of the potential consequences.

And so, the story of SLFC began. Our aim was to create an association open to everyone—whether they had an extensive collection of fetish clothing or only owned a harness. We set our plans in motion. In January 2017, the founding of the association was announced at what was then the International Leather and Boots Seville event, and work on the association’s statutes began. From the start, the association welcomed applications not only from “puppies” (a group that no other association had previously embraced) but also from female members, which was considered unconventional at the time, and still is today. Although János Martényi and his partner Henk Van Tilburg were responsible for developing the statutes, they were not initially intended to serve as the legal representatives of the association. In the end, the Seville group hesitated to take on the legal responsibility for the association, and only one person agreed to serve as vice president (a representative role with no legal obligations). As a result, János Martényi became president of the association, and Henk van Tilburg took on the role of secretary.

In April 2017, the new registered title “Mr. Fetish Spain” was legally formalized, and János made his debut with this title at the Easter Berlin event. There, he met the third-place winner of the previous year’s Mr. Leather Spain competition, who later announced that he would accept the Mr. Leather Spain 2017 title five months after the election.

The goal of the association has always been, and will always be, to offer an alternative. Fetish clothing is not a tool for enhancing our personal reputation, but rather a way of life—a way of life that encompasses culture, education, and shared experiences, both joyful and sorrowful. Since our founding in 2017, the association has participated in numerous major Pride marches across Spain, marching on foot to raise the visibility of the fetish community. Making SLFC the first fetish association marching officially on a Pride march. We have organized fetish events in unexpected locations, where this kind of event had never been held before. We have created both online and in-person fetish events that connected Europe and the world during the divisive days of the pandemic. Our actions have been closely followed by many Spanish and international associations. And while we may no longer be the largest or most popular association in Europe, we remain the most progressive, continuing to create space within the fetish community for those who have nowhere else to go.