England: Football Association excludes trans women from women’s football

It was a pioneering judgment of the British Supreme Court: In mid -April, the highest British court decided that women are only biological women in the sense of the British Equal Opportunities Act. Accordingly, trans women cannot rely on equality.

A few weeks after the judge’s decision, the English Football Association FA decided that trans women in the future will no longer be allowed to participate in women’s football in England.

A published on Thursday states: “The judgment of the Supreme Court of April 16 means that we will change our guidelines.” From June 1 of this year, trans -women will be excluded by women’s teams.

“We understand that this for people who simply want to exercise the sport they love in the gender with which they identify themselves will be difficult. We will contact the currently registered transgender women in order to explain the changes and to show them ways of how they can continue to participate in sport,” the FA’s message continues.

It is a complex topic, and the FA has always represented the position that the existing guideline is checked and, if necessary, changed if the legal situation, scientific knowledge or the implementation of the directive in popular sports should change significantly.

Previously, the Scottish Football Association had already decided that only players who were female at birth were allowed to play in women’s football from the age of 13, as the television station reported. Such bans were also given in other sports such as athletics, cricket and rugby.

As the broadcaster reports, there are currently no trans women in England or in Scotland who play professionally women’s football. Around 20 trans women in popular sports had played this season.

The reactions to the decision of the FA were different. Fiona McANena, head of the Sex Matters organization, described the decision loudly as “overdue” and the previous regulation as “nonsensical”.

Natalie Washington, head of campaign by “Football VS Transhobia”, said BBC Sport, on the other hand: “I am sure that transgender people will now hesitate to do more and to do sports. Whenever there is a statutory or official decision on this topic or an organization, there is an increase in attacks.”

The judgment of the Supreme Court of April 16 is the result of a year -long legal dispute. The judges had to decide what the Equal Opportunities Act meant by “gender” – the biological gender or the “registered” gender.

Despite the judgment, the judges emphasized that trans people were still protected against discrimination. At the verdict, however, judge Lord Hodge warned: “We advise against interpreting this judgment as a triumph of one or more groups in our society at the expense of someone else. Activists were still concerned.

According to the judgment, the British equality and human rights commission had issued a preliminary guideline that trans people in the UK in the future had to use the toilets, showers and changing rooms of its birth-sex.

A government spokesman said about the decision: “We made it clear that biology counts when it comes to women’s sports and that everyone should adhere to the law”. However, it was up to the individual sports associations to determine their rules.

Sources: News agency dpa ,,